The Endurance Drive Podcast

In this week's episode, we dive deep with a master in the sport psychology space. Dr. Justin Ross is a licensed clinical psychologist and a certified cycling and running coach who specializes in health, wellness, and human performance. He shares his expertise on a ton of topics that will help you unlock the next level of performance in training and racing, including activating mindfulness as an athlete, myths about mental training, building self-efficacy, setting goals, mental skills for before, during, and after races, the power of self-talk and mantras, fear and anxiety in races, optimism, and so much more. This one is a game-changer! And check out our extended show notes here for a very special offer only for our community on his sports psychology and 12-week TrainingPeaks mental training programs.

This week’s episode features one of our favorite people in the Endurance Drive community: our social media and gear guru, Colleen Geaumont. Katie and Elena chat with Colleen about the common themes that have marked her journey through sport and life as a high school swimmer, a nationally ranked beauty queen (Miss Maine World), a competitive triathlete, and a powerlifter. We talk about team dynamics inside and outside of sport, challenges related to body image and eating disorders, confidence in performing and racing, Colleen’s big comeback from a severe neck injury and surgery that sidelined her from sport, visual content creation as Colleen’s creative outlet, and a whole lot more. We were overjoyed to put the spotlight on the woman who is usually behind the camera in this one, and we’re so grateful to Colleen for openly and confidently sharing her story with a healthy dose of levity and humor. Check it out! View extended show notes for this episode here.

In this super special episode, we asked the amazing members of our community what they are most afraid of when it comes to endurance training and racing. They delivered with thoughtful, insightful responses that helped us come up with a ton of content for our longest episode yet! Topics include: fears related to training and conditioning; mental or psychological fears like falling short of goals or expectations; hesitations about technique and skills (including, yes, open water swimming); concerns about nutrition, health, and body composition; and fears about equipment and gear mishaps on the race course. We share our thoughts and experiences navigating these fears and helpful strategies that have helped us overcome them as athletes and coaches. Check it out! View extended show notes for this episode here.

This week’s episode is a special one for us. We got to interview an everyday hero, Elena’s high school cross country coach and chemistry teacher, Susan “Coach” Savage. A self-declared Title IX baby, Coach Savage grew up running with the boys before her talent finally convinced the Pittsburgh City Schools to start a girls track program. She went on to run on scholarship for West Virginia University, before eventually settling in Ohio to start a 40+ year career as a standout high school cross country and track coach and chemistry teacher. We chat about overcoming early obstacles as a woman in sport, developing her wise coaching philosophy, and listening to your body as a lifelong athlete. We already know Coach Savage has had a tremendous impact on the hundreds of athletes she’s coached, and, as a pioneer for women in sport who’s always flown under the radar, we’re honored to share her story and wisdom! View extended show notes for this episode here.

A discussion on managing life stress for athletes, tracking Life Stress Score (LSS), benefits of power napping, improving swim efficiency, and transitioning to outdoor workouts. Insights on fitness testing methods, eustress, and strategies for reducing stress. Also, celebrating completion of a PhD and gear recommendations for athletes.

This week's episode is one of our all-time favorites. We're joined by Gina des Cognets, Senior Director of Organizational Development at Strava, a life and leadership coach, and one of our most valued athletes at the Endurance Drive. Gina joins Katie and Elena to share her wisdom and practical strategies for success when it comes to valuing excellence, non-linear career paths, "mid-life moments" and listening to your gut, balance as bullsh*t, focusing on your strengths, naming your inner critic, reframing your narrative, and taking on big challenges in both athletics and life. We also talk about her work in leadership at Strava. Everyone needs a Gina in their life, and we're so pumped to get to share her insights with our whole audience. Thank you Gina! View extended show notes for this episode here.

As athletes and coaches, we have SO much data at our disposal. It can help you out or drive you crazy. Our goal today is to break down what data is useful and what data you should ignore. We cover: heart rate data (zone training, resting HR, HRV), data in TrainingPeaks (TSS, CTL, ATL, TSB), "stuff that Garmin says" (performance condition, training status, recovery time, heat/altitude acclimation, lactate threshold, VO2 max, weather warnings), specific data for swim, bike, and run, sleep data, and a whole lot more. We also chat through 'reset days,' the mental side of performance, fueling, and a bunch of other fun topics in our coaching & training insights and our listener questions. This is a can't-miss episode! View extended show notes for this episode here.

This is the last episode of our five-episode series that covers the perspectives and experiences that we crowdsourced from our community about the rewards and challenges that female athletes face. Here, we're pulling out themes related to how it makes us feel: strong, capable, and badass, but also unwelcome, unworthy, or unrelatable, depending on the context. We talk about how being a female endurance athlete impacts other domains of life (professional, family, etc.), how endurance training interacts with mental health, how endurance pursuits feed into feelings of being an underdog or being selfish, and a whole lot more. We also preview where we're going next with the Female Athlete Stories segment of the podcast. Thanks for listening! View out extended show notes for this episode here.

In this week's episode, we welcome our very own Coach Kevin Prunty onto the podcast to talk about his introduction into sport, the role competitive lacrosse and a career-ending concussion played in shaping his trajectory as an endurance athlete, the importance of family and support networks, his experience qualifying for Kona at his first Ironman in Lake Placid, his launch of KPI Training and inspiring others through social media, his thoughts on marathon training and strength training, and so much more. Check it out! View extended show notes for this episode here. Follow KPI Training on Instagram here!

In the fourth installment of our special series, Female Athlete Stories, we’re tackling the forces we’re up against. Highlights of this super rich episode include: another deep dive on body image, the objectification of the female athlete body, safety as female athletes, femininity and athletics, the myth of balance for women in sport, navigating the medical system and health challenges as a female athlete, lack of research, and cultural assumptions about our abilities and performance. This was a fun one!  View extended show notes for this episode here. To submit additional perspectives and experiences to future episodes, check out ⁠this link⁠! Safety resources:  Strava Beacon / Find Friends for location sharing Garmin inReach for backcountry adventures  On balance: Work Play Love podcast (Lauren Fleshman and Jesse Thomas) Articles we mentioned: Labor market value of motherhood One Partner Runs the Marathon — and the Other Does Everything Else Female athlete research and resources we mentioned:  Female Athlete Science and Translational Research Program (FASTR) at Stanford Female Athlete Program at Boston Children’s Hospital Gender gaps in sport science research On the dangers of intermittent fasting for female athletes ROAR by Stacy Sims Up to Speed by Christine Yu Our emails: Katie: Katie@TheEnduranceDrive.com Elena: Elena.Horton21@gmail.com