Triathlete Training Podcast with Eric Schwartz

South African Richard Murray is in the midst of a successful ITU career and in 2016 he finished 4th in the Olympics. We talk about his career in triathlon and the path that led him to where he is today.

Hillary Spires returns to the show to talk about her 100 mile run challenge.  I discuss how the Apple Watch has changed my life. 

Dan Linick, co-founder of South Jersey Physical Therapist, is my guest.  Dan is also my physical therapist and has helped my running significantly.  

We discuss his background as a physical therapist, some common problems that he's seen, and some issues I've had.  We also talked about his previous work in brain rehab and how to help an older friend or relative who might benefit from visiting a physical therapist. 

Dan's clinic is located in Hainesport, New Jersey and at southjerseypt.com.

Matt Dixon has experience as a professional athlete, coach to elite and amateur athletes, an exercise physiologist, and an author. His newest book is Fast-Track Triathlete.  This book is geared toward athletes who want to maximize their success with limited time to train.  The book explains his concepts and includes a 14 week training plan for both Ironman and Half Ironman as well as a strength plan that can be completed without visiting the gym.  

We talk about the book in the second half of our interview.  In the first half we focus on off-season training.  

Matt was also a guest on episode 33.  

Zach Boivin went to watch a friend race Ironman Lake Placid in 2015.  At the time he weighed 330 pounds and was not active.  He was inspired watching the finishers that night and the next day he decided he was going to do a triathlon.  

He thought all triathlons were Ironman distance. Fortunately, he realized there were shorter races and he signed up for Ironman 70.3 Syracuse the following year.  In 2017 he attempted his first Ironman at Lake Placid.  

This is his life changing journey that starts with running his first step and then two years later hearing Mike Reilly say "You Are An Ironman!"

Courtney Sergeant joins the show as she prepares for her first half ironman at Atlantic City 70.3. She did her first triathlon in 2014 and has marathon experience.

Among the topics we discuss:

• Nutrition
• Hydration
• Salt tablets
• Transition
• Massages
• Preparing for the run on limited run training
• Post-race recovery
• Pacing

Billy Edwards returns to the show to talk about his experiences since winning Ultraman Florida in 2015.  He completed the Ultraman World Championships later that year and has since cut back on his racing since having surgery on his toe.  However, he is busy in the sport as a coach of the Naval Academy collegiate triathlon team that finished third at the 2017 Collegiate National Championships.

He was one of a few coaches selected for USAT's Elite Mentorship Coaching program and he recently observed a training camp for the collegiate recruiting program. We talk about all this and a few other random triathlon topics.

Billy was a guest on episode 52 talking about his Ultraman Florida experience. 

Billy's website is at http://billythekidtriathlete.com/

The Brave Athlete is a new book by Dr. Simon Marshall and Lesley Patterson covering cutting-edge brain training for athletes.  Lesley is a professional triathlete and mountain biker. Her resume includes a few Xterra World Championships titles.  

Dr. Simon Marshall is a former Professor of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of California at San Diego and Professor of Exercise Science at San Diego State University.  He has published over 100 scientific articles on the psychology of exercise.  He now provides performance psychology support for the BMC Racing Team.

We talk about their new book, Lesley's experiences, and mental tricks to improve performance.

You can reach them at BraveheartCoach.com

Phil Gaimon was a pro cyclist from 2009 to 2016, including two years on the WorldTour with Garmin Sharp and Cannondale.  He’s done Paris Roubaix, won Redlands twice, and finished second at the Tour of the Gila.

He just retired last year, as he put it, after Jonathan vaughters stopped returning his phone calls. Even though he's retired he’s still going after hill climb records in North America. He's also putting on Grand Fondo in Malibu in October and he is  the author of three books.

We talk about his life as a pro cyclist, doping in the sport, what it's like to be in an early break at Paris Roubaix, peeing on the bike, cookies, and more.  You'll like Phil's stories.

Justin Mendoza didn't know much about triathlon until he saw Craig Alexander's 50 minute Aussies Abroad video on Youtube.  Then he knew he triathlon was what he wanted to do.  He had recently transitioned out of Motocross racing after some serious accidents and four weeks after watching the video he did an Olympic distance triathlon near his home in North California.  

He now lives in Colorado Springs and races primarily races Olympic and half ironman distance triathlons with the hopes of getting his pro license.  We talk about his journey.

Alicia Caldwell has been racing triathlons for 20 years.  In 2016 she won her first US Age Group National Championship.  

Wes Hobson was one of the top triathletes of the 1990s.  He turned pro in 1990 and retired in 2001.  In his second year as a pro he was competing with and sometimes beating the Big Four: Mark Allen, Dave Scott, Scott Molina, and Mike Pigg.  During his career he was named Triathlete of the Year by the United States Olympic Committee, won 35 races, and was the first American to win an ITU World Cup Triathlon.  

He talked about transitioning into the sport from collegiate swimming to racing with the fastest triathletes in the world.  Along the way he dealt with chronic fatigue and going through a nine month period in 1997  where he could barely train.  This was preceded by an 8 week period of high volume and an absurd amount of high intensity training.   In a period of 2-3  weeks he suddenly came out of it.  He got coaching from Joe Friel and was a contender to qualify for the US Olympic team in 2000 but missed out.

He retired in 2001 but since then has kept busy with many different business pursuits, including a very successful career in real estate in Boulder.  He talks about that transition and how continuously following his passion has led to success and fulfillment.

Eric reviews his running career and lessons learned along the way plus important habits that lead to success. 

Total Immersion founder Terry Laughlin talks about TI swimming, his career in the sport, his swimming philosophy, writing about financial risk, and more.

Jeff Pack is in his 40s and he has only been started competing in endurance events three years ago.  He recently completed an Olympic distance triathlon in the Galapagos Islands and he followed it up with a half ironman distance race in Paracas, Peru.  

Elizabeth and Nate Sylves have been racing together as a couple for over a decade.  This year she did her first Ironman (Florida) and he did his first half ironman (North Carolina).  They combine training and racing with full time jobs while raising two young kids.

Joe Friel totally revamped the Triathlete's Training Bible, the top selling triathlon book of all time. We talk about the significant updates he made to the book.

Colin Pugh had what could have been a fatal outcome after a 70.3 Half Ironman triathlon.  He drank too much water after the race and ended up in a car accident and the hospital.  Hydration Andy Blow joins the podcast to give his take on Colin's experience.