Ep. 55- How to better Individualize your training plan? with Greg McMillan

Today on the Run Culture podcast I chat to renowned exercise physiologist and running coach; Greg McMillan. We specifically talk about the importance of individualizing training. Over the years Greg has used a simple evaluation to help thousands of runners train more effectively, avoid injury and peak when it counts! He shares how you can do this too!Here are three questions every runner should answer:-How do I respond to certain training? Runners respond differently to different types of workouts and mileage. Are you a speedster, endurance monster or a combo runner?-How do I recover from certain training? Recovery isn't static. What workouts do you recover quickly from, what workouts do you take longer to recover from?-How do I adapt to certain training? What workouts give you a quick fitness boost (fast-adapting), what workouts take a bit longer (slow-adapting)?Greg McMillan is a renowned running coach, exercise physiologist and founder of McMillan Running. Greg has had some incredible mentors, including; Arthur Lydiard, Joe Vigil, David Martin, Gabriel Rosa and Jack Daniels. For a number of years Greg coached an Adidas sponsored pro team in Flagstaff, Arizona called 'McMillan Elite' or 'Team USA Arizona'. As you will see Greg has been a student of the sport his whole life, he is an incredible wealth of running knowledge and I am so grateful that he could share some of this with us today! If you want to learn more about; Greg's coaching services, try his world famous pacing calculator or just continue to be well informed about running, be sure to go to; www.mcmillanrunning.com

Today on the Run Culture Podcast I was very lucky to chat to Paul Laursen. Paul is a renowned sports scientist and expert in high-intensity interval training (HIIT). His extensive research and practical experience (as a runner, triathlete and coach) have made him a pivotal figure in the understanding of how HIIT can be effectively applied to endurance sports. Paul is the co-author of the; ' The Science and Application of High Intensity Interval Training: Solutions to the Programming Puzzle.' with Martin Bucheit. Here he explored the physiological mechanisms and benefits of HIIT. In todays episode, Paul defines what HIIT is and we discuss the 'decision tree' you should use to more effectively prescribe it. If you liked this episode and you want to reach out to Paul, be sure to go to: https://athletica.ai

Yesterday I caught up with Pete Dutton after we both ran the 2024 Melbourne marathon! We chat about; the preparation, how the race went, his mindset throughout both and what’s next!Pete finally can call himself a marathoner! Like many people’s journey it’s been a long time coming. I have coached Pete now for five years; so many of the training decisions over that time have been made with this ultimate goal of the marathon in mind. Three or four years ago after a couple of stress fractures off low mileage it seemed a long way off. This marathon was certainly the summation of a big body of work and growth. There were as always, many learnings to come out of it and there are many more to come. It certainly has instilled an exciting layer of confidence for the future knowing Pete’s body cooperated and he ran as well as he did Sunday off a relatively conservative marathon build!I hope you enjoy this honest reflection and chat between coach and athlete!

Today, I had the distinct pleasure of engaging with the insightful John Davis on the Run Culture Podcast. We ventured into his coaching techniques, influenced by the greats like; Arthur Lydiard, John Kellogg, and Renate Canova. Our dialogue then largely focused on the groundbreaking concept of 'full spectrum training'—a vital approach for runners looking to enhance their training methods and understand the nuances of periodization. I specifically reached out to John to discuss this topic, as I believe it holds the potential to empower many runners in their training journeys. A huge thank you to John for generously imparting his wealth of knowledge! John is a runner, coach, scientist and author of the book: "Modern Training and Physiology for Middle and Long Distance Runners" He also has an amazing website called; www.runningwritings.com Be sure to explore his outstanding book and blog for more invaluable insights (links below): Newsletter: https://runningwritings.com/news Website: https://runningwritings.com/ Book: https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Training-Physiology-Long-Distance-Runners/dp/0615790291/ X: https://x.com/JDruns Here’s a link to the percentage-based training article we discussed: https://runningwritings.com/2023/12/percentage-based-training.html

Peter Dutton is one of the Run Culture Owl athletes I coach, we have worked together for the past 5 years! The hidden advantage of doing a podcast with an athlete you have coached for that long is that you have an incredible audio time capsule to re-visit! In fact, as I write this blurb I am re-listening to the very first podcast we did together (S1-Ep. 30 Feb 2020), it's quite an interesting process as a coach; he's definitely the same person but a little bit different...as am I! It has been a year to the day since the last time Pete was on the podcast! So, please do yourself a favor and listen in to hear; -How Pete's 3 month US trip went (he trained at Altitude in Boulder and Flagstaff!). -Or how he salvaged, in his words; 'the track season from hell!' .... -and how I have finally given him the green light to try to make the 2024 Melbourne Marathon start line!

🎙️🏃‍♂️ In today's episode of the Run Culture Podcast, I had an enlightening conversation with Dr. Phil Bellinger, a researcher and teacher from Griffith University in QLD, Australia. We delved into the fascinating world of muscle fiber phenotypes and how understanding them can revolutionize individualized training for athletes. 🏋️‍♀️⚡️ Dr. Bellinger shared insights from his groundbreaking study on 24 middle-distance runners, highlighting the diverse responses they had to overload training. He also revealed a non-invasive test he uses to accurately predict an athlete's muscle fiber phenotype. 🧪💪 We explored how athletes with different ratios of fast twitch, slow twitch, and hybrid fibers generally respond to training, debunking the assumption that coaches always get it right. Discover the adjustments you can make to training schedules to better cater to an athlete's specific phenotype. 📊🏃‍♀️ Ever wondered if fast twitch intermediate fibers can transform into more oxidative fibers over time? We tackled this question and discussed the types of training that encourage such adaptations. 💥🔋 Finally, we wrapped up by exploring the distinctions between acute fatigue, functional over-reaching, and non-functional over-reaching. It's crucial to understand these nuances to optimize training and prevent burnout. 💤🔄 Tune in to this episode to gain valuable insights into the science of muscle fiber phenotypes and how it can enhance athletic performance. 🎧🔬 #RunCulturePodcast #AthleteTraining #MuscleFiberPhenotypes

Ok, I raced well or I raced poorly but what’s the ‘how’ and ‘why’ behind this?? How good would it be if we could peak under the hood? This is exactly what Nick Jankovskis @nj_sportscience does for a living. Nick is a Sports Scientist and endurance performance coach at METS Performance Consulting. A specialist in improving endurance performance by accurately analysing performance through physiological testing to prescribe individualised training to optimise athlete performance. He helps runners answer questions like: How big is my engine? How efficient is my engine? Where could I improve? Is my current training efficient and aiding better performance? What training should I prioritise/maintain? Why should I train differently at times to my training partner? Thanks for the ripping conversation Nick and I look forward to doing some testing with you for a few of the athletes I coach over the coming months (a repeat podcast discussing the results is a must!). If other runners are also interested in doing some physiological testing with METS performance consulting be sure to check them out here: @metsperformance Welcome — METS Performance Consulting

On today's episode of the Run Culture podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Phil Batterson, the founder of Critical Oxygen. Dr. Batterson holds a PhD in human bioenergetics and is an avid endurance sports enthusiast himself. His passion lies in helping athletes and coaches optimize their physiology to enhance endurance performance. I've always wanted to delve into the scientific aspects of exercise physiology on the podcast, but I never felt qualified to do so. That's why it was fantastic to have Dr. Batterson join us today. During our conversation, Dr. Batterson provided a comprehensive understanding of the acute and chronic physiological processes that occur when we exercise. He explained how our bodies adapt to different types of training and highlighted the importance of testing and understanding our individualized training zones. This knowledge can greatly assist athletes in efficiently targeting specific adaptations to enhance their performance. If you want to follow more of Phil’s educational content be sure to listen to his podcast (Critical Oxygen Podcast) or want to reach out to him with a Question find him on YouTube/Instagram @critcalo2 or his website at www.criticaloxygen.com

Calling all runners! This one has to be up there as one of my all time most enjoyable Run Culture Podcast conversations! This is part 2 of the conversation I had with Dutch Kenyan coach: Hugo Van den Broek about his key training principles for running! Hugo’s passion, knowledge, thirst for learning and strengths as a communicator really shine through. Get ready to slow down and take notes or listen multiple times to absorb all the valuable lessons, stories, analogies, and coaching wisdom shared. Hugo, a former 2:12 marathoner, now resides in Kenya and coaches athletes worldwide through 'Train Smarter Run Faster' coaching. Check out his Instagram @running_coach_hugovandenbroek for more info.

What an insightful conversation with renowned Dutch Kenyan coach Hugo Van den Broek! In part 1, we delved into the secrets of Kenyan training methods and explore the polarised training literature. Stay tuned for part 2, where we'll dive into Hugo's key principles for running training. A former 2:12 marathoner, Hugo now resides in Kenya with his family and coaches athletes globally through 'Train Smarter Run Harder' coaching. He also runs Kenyan coaching camps. For more information go to Hugo's Instagram: @running_coach_hugovandenbroek. Get ready for a wealth of knowledge!