Are you constantly finishing workouts feeling destroyed but not seeing progress in your performance? You might be chasing the wrong thing. The Endurance Athlete’s Biggest Mistake Here’s the hard truth: That burning sensation in your muscles, the complete exhaustion, and the next-day soreness don’t automatically translate to improved performance. Too…

Let me ask you directly—are you truly acting like the athlete you want to become? How about this question: If I followed you around for one week, how serious would I think you were about achieving your goals? As an endurance athlete coach, I work with competitors across a spectrum…

Recovery isn’t optional—it’s where your real gains happen. But not all recovery is created equal. Understanding when to completely rest versus when to engage in low-intensity movement can make the difference between bouncing back stronger and falling into the overtraining trap. Why Recovery Matters for Endurance Athletes The brutal truth…

When injury strikes, it feels like your world is collapsing. Trust me, I get it. Having recently deferred my own Ironman—my A race for the year—I’ve been living this reality. But here’s the truth: injuries aren’t just setbacks; they’re opportunities in disguise. As endurance athletes, we’ll all face them sooner…

If you’re serious about improving your endurance performance, there’s one training metric that stands above the rest in importance: Training Stress Score (TSS). This powerful number can transform how you train, recover, and perform when it matters most. Now if you are lucky and working with a coach (like me)…

The scenario is all too familiar: You’ve trained diligently for months. Your fitness is peak. Your equipment is dialed in. Your nutrition plan has been tested on long training days. Yet somehow, 3 hours into your Ironman or 10 miles into your marathon, your stomach revolts. Nausea sets in. Cramping…

As endurance athletes, we often approach training with unwavering dedication. The structured weekly hours, the carefully planned workouts, the progressive overload – these are the cornerstones of improvement in triathlon, Ironman, and ultrarunning. But what happens when life throws a curveball? Work deadlines pile up. Family emergencies arise. Travel disrupts…

With spring marathon season approaching in April, now is the crucial time to start thinking about heat adaptation. While we all dream of perfect 10°C race day conditions, the reality is that spring weather in the UK can be surprisingly warm – and unprepared runners often pay the price. Why…

You’ve completed multiple races, logged hundreds of training miles, maybe even tackled an ultra or an Ironman. Yet somehow, when someone calls you an “endurance athlete,” you feel like a fraud. Sound familiar? The Endurance Imposter Here’s a reality check: that elite runner you admire? They once stood where you…

As one of Team DB took on their first 100-miler of 2025 last weekend there was a lot of discussion about how you keep going during something like that. Let’s dive into one of the most powerful tools in an endurance athlete’s mental toolkit: self-talk. What you say to yourself…

Do You “Need” a Coach? Obviously, the answer is no. No one strictly “needs” a coach. BUT if, as an endurance athlete, you have specific goals, the right coach will always be hugely beneficial. Anyone can do it themselves, just like anyone can cut their own hair, paint their own…

As endurance athletes, we pour our hearts and souls into training for our biggest races. The months of gruelling workouts, careful nutrition, and mental preparation all culminate in that one pivotal event – the “A” race we’ve been building towards. But once the finish line tape is broken and the…

As runners, we’re bombarded with a plethora of technical terms and jargon that can sometimes feel overwhelming. Whether you’re a seasoned marathoner or just lacing up your shoes for the first time, you’ve likely heard phrases like “running mechanics,” “running economy,” and “running efficiency” thrown around. But what do these terms…

Visualization may sound like New Age mumbo-jumbo to skeptics, but the science backing its efficacy in endurance sports is hard to ignore. Far from being a mystical practice, visualization is a concrete mental technique that leverages the brain’s neuroplasticity to enhance athletic performance. When an athlete vividly imagines executing their…

Say Goodbye to RICE and Hello to PEACE & LOVE If you’ve ever twisted an ankle or pulled a muscle, you’ve probably heard the age-old advice: RICE – Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. For decades, this has been the go-to protocol for managing acute soft tissue injuries. But what if…

RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport is a serious thing and something all endurance athletes should have a little bit of awareness of, as well as anyone who is active and looking to shed some body fat and change their body composition. Low Energy Availability (LEA) discussed in a previous…

Cracking the Code: 8 Periodization Models to Revolutionize Your Training Ever wonder how top athletes seem to peak at just the right moment? The answer lies in a powerful training strategy called periodisation. This systematic approach to planning workouts isn’t just for Olympians—it’s a game-changer for athletes at all levels….

What is LEA? LEA occurs when an individual’s energy intake is insufficient to support the body’s functions after accounting for energy expended in exercise. It’s essentially an energy deficit that can occur in both athletes and non-athletes. It’s calculated as energy intake minus exercise energy expenditure, relative to fat-free mass….

Even endurance athletes with true mental grit and mental toughness will inevitably face dark moments when shit gets tough, motivation plummets and the prospect of quitting seems tempting. The ability to overcome these psychological slumps separates the middle-of-the-pack finishers from the podium contenders. While physical conditioning is paramount, having an…

Periodisation… a term every endurance athlete has probably heard but it is obvious from many conversations I have had recently that few actually understand what it is all about. Even if you have a coach who plans your training it is still beneficial for you to have a basic understanding…

Building on from the previous DB Conversation, All About Stress (https://differentbreed.io/the-relationship-between-training-stress-and-recovery/) I am going address the importance of monitoring and managing fatigue levels during endurance training. This topic aligns nicely with the discussion about balancing training stress and recovery, managing the body’s finite energy source, and optimising performance and adaptation…

To fully understand fitness and how to make lasting and meaningful changes to your endurance you really have to understand the key concepts of stress and recovery. Training is just a form of stress and training stress refers to the physical and mental demands placed on the body during exercise…

A thought-provoking question recently popped up in my Instagram inbox, courtesy of one of my athletes: “Is athletic success determined by genetics or mental toughness?” It sparked a lively debate, prompting me to delve into this topic for this week’s blog. Firstly, it’s crucial to acknowledge that opinions on this…

Embrace the lows, they’re the launchpad to your highs. The 5th Training Principle of Different Breed focuses on recovery and understanding that the highs and the successes are only possible due to the dips and the down time. This can be one of the hardest things for some athletes to…

The 4th Training Principle of Different Breed focuses on being consistent with your training, but also being adaptable and not letting life’s curveballs completely derail your progress. We all know that sometimes ‘life gets in the way” but having a solid plan in place and building commitment and discipline is…

Now, don’t get it twisted when reading that headline… I am not saying minimum effort as in you can sand bag your training sessions. What I am talking about it the Minimal Dose Response, the third training principle of Different Breed. Endurance training aims to improve the body’s ability to…

Your ability to sustain is your ticket to success and is the substance behind my second principle of training. You must adapt, endure and then you can conquer. Specificity develops the physiological capacities, technical skills and fortitude in the exact muscles, energy systems and movements needed to excel in your…

This week we are going to delve a little bit deeper into the first training principle of Different Breed: Strength Reigns Supreme in Endurance. To excel in your chosen endurance sport you obviously need to practise the disciplines of your sport and build an extraordinary level of fitness in all…

I had a great response to my New Year’s message email earlier this week and some of you shared some really inspiring “word for 2024” Better. Balance. Focus. Energy. Achieve. These are just a few. Hold on to your word and use it to shape and guide your year. As…

Over the past couple of weeks we have been discussing Lactate Threshold Testing and why using your Lactate Threshold is better for endurance training than Max Heart Rate. Now you know how to test and how to set your zones, here is some information about how to use those zones…

We’ve been discussing how Lactate Threshold trumps Max Heart Rate for Endurance Training (LT over Max HR) and in the last post I explained how to test your Lactate Threshold (Test your LT) Once you have done the two step test and properly determined your Lactate Threshold you will be…

In last week’s conversation I discussed why Lactate threshold is a better guide than maximum heart rate for heart rate run training.   In a nutshell it’s becuase it gives you a more personalized and accurate measure of your aerobic capacity. As promised, this week I’m going to lay out…

Lactate threshold is a better guide than maximum heart rate for heart rate run training because it gives you a more personalized and accurate measure of your aerobic capacity. As you exercise harder, lactic acid builds up in your muscles and bloodstream. Lactate threshold is the exercise intensity where this…

Isn’t that an Oxymoron? I have been programming active recovery sessions once a week for one of my athletes for the last couple of months, since he completed his B race, and is building to his A race. Last week I received a message from said athlete, asking (in their…