By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning The scene at the Twin Lakes aid station during the Leadville Trail 100 is interesting. The small town serves as the aid station at Mile 40 (outbound) and again at Mile 60 (inbound). It’s equal parts haven for tired athletes and late night rager for the crews. …
Topics Covered In This Episode: Developing risk tolerance, vulnerability, and patience The relationship between outcomes and your process Getting through the plateaus in progress Returning to failures Reframing success and failure Abby’s John Muir Trail FKT attempts Guest Bio: Abby Hall is a CTS Athlete and professional trail and ultrarunner for the Adidas Terrex team. …
When I had CTS coach and licensed psychotherapist, Neal Palles, on the Trainright Podcast, I thought we were diving into a conversation about mental toughness and psychological considerations for the masters athlete. Instead, I walked away with a mantra I’ve scribbled on a sticky note on the corner of my computer monitor: “Psychological Flexibility > …
Strength training protocols for cyclists have evolved through the years, and the current consensus at CTS is that heavy strength training is recommended for most amateur, Masters, and especially Grand Masters (60+ years old) cyclists. There are exceptions for some highly competitive cyclists and elite riders who may need to sacrifice balanced, well-rounded fitness in …
Topics Covered In This Episode: Developing a training strategy Chronological age vs training age 3 key tips for masters athletes to focus on Building back after a serious injury The important factors to consider beyond just training data The different ways in which masters athletes may need to train Deciding when you should push forward …
The first time trying something new can be exciting and intimidating, or both. Although nerves are probably part of the equation, don’t let those concerns keep you from testing your mettle. Perhaps you’ve never attended an ultrarunning event and are unsure of the details. For those of you considering your first ultramarathon, let’s walk through …
There is an entire generation of cyclists that views VO2 max as a genetically pre-determined performance ceiling. A more modern and nuanced take shows it to be quite responsive to training. With different types of workouts we can increase VO2 max itself, as well as peak power, fractional utilization, and power duration at VO2 max. That’s …
Topics Covered In This Episode: The psychology of masters athletes Psychological flexibility vs. mental toughness “Pushing away paper” exercise Developing self-awareness Guest Bio: Neal Palles is a CTS ultrarunning coach who holds dual master’s degrees in Social Work and Applied Sports Psychology, and is a licensed Psychotherapist and Sports Performance Specialist. Episode Links: Website: https://coloradopsychotherapyandsport.com/home Blog: https://coloradopsychotherapyandsport.com/news …
How many tools are in your training and racing toolbox these days? Truth be told the market is saturated with new gadgets, technologies, philosophies, algorithms, and promises to make you better. As educated consumers, you need to evaluate new products coming to the market and decide personal worth to you. Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is …
By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning Injuries in ultramarathon training and racing are not going away. That’s a sobering fact, but the numbers don’t lie. On the training side, up to 70% of runners will become injured every year and lose at least one day of training. Racing is just as injurious. For …