Coach Dan - The Endurance Athlete

Made it to Death Valley with . Ready to start .

We still haven’t found what we’re looking for.

We still haven’t found what we’re looking for.

Sunsets and fish tacos. Not a bad way to spend a Tuesday evening in Encinitas.

“Oh, the places you’ll go!” One of the things I love most about running is having the ability to explore. To go places and see things that most people don’t get to see.

Seven years ago, Boris and I ran 23 miles miles exploring the Goat Canyon trestle. This was one of my favorite runs of all time. I think it’s time to go back….

San Diego! Testing your VO2max has never been easier. With new ultra-mobile equipment we can test you ANYWHERE, ANYTIME. Test on a treadmill, bike, rowing machine, outdoors or on the assault bike 🤮.

Sign up for a test now and get the data and tools you need to improve your peformance.

Get insights on your VO2max, Lactate Threshold, Heart Rate Training Zones and more!

https://www.theenduranceathlete.net/metabolic-testing

Questions? Send me a message.

Cheers, Dan

It was exactly 19 years ago I became a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). Although I passed, I distinctly remember thinking that the test had gone horribly wrong after months of studying. At the time, I was a student assistant with the University of Tennessee Lady Vols strength & conditioning department about to start my masters degree in exercise physiology at UT. This would lead to an assistant s&c position with the Lady Vols before moving to California in late 2007.

Dressed for success. Finished the Spartan Beast 21k. Was fun, but I could have done without the 30 obstacles and about 20+ more miles! Time was 2:29:16. I had no goals in mind, other than completing it under 2 1/2 hours ✅. Only missed 4 obstacles out of the 30. Now Mike D at needs to run a 50k…
Where’s the beer tent?

Another successful Beer Mile! Photo dump #1

Race morning! Carlsbad Beer Mile.

Beer Mile shirts are in! I’m super excited for the 5th Annual-ish Carlsbad Beer Mile tomorrow. 🍻🏃‍♂️

It’s a fun challenge and also a blast! 😜

If you’re looking for a way to spice up your weekend, come and join us. We have a just few spots left.

Can’t wait to see you all there. Cheers & Prost🍻

Birthday mile with the boys. They’re getting faster. An easy 7:52 pace.

"SHUT UP LEGS! - Jens Voigt."
We all need a bit of motivation sometimes, and what better to motivate yourself than with a new shirt!

I've got some news - I just added a bunch of new tees to my Etsy store, and they're all about fitness and running. They're so fun, they'll make you want to run an ultramarathon (or at least a 5K).

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheEnduranceAthlete?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

Check out the pic below for a sneak peek at some of the designs. These tees will make you look like a like a million bucks when you're completely out of breath.

So, skip the burpees and check out my Etsy store and snag your favorite one. You'll be looking so good, you'll forget how much pain you're in during a workout. I'm always adding new designs. Have an idea that you want to see? Let me know.

Dan

Road Trip Recap, Day 1: Our 2022 adventure from San Diego to Dallas to celebrate Lady Jane’s 100 birthday began with stops in Tucson and Tombstone.
Brigid and I managed to workout most days of the trip!

Classy, but likes to party and work hard.

Are you looking to improve your performance in triathlons, marathons and other races in 2022?

Let me know your goals for the coming year!

If your training and performance has suffered during the last two years, get back on track with VO2max testing and online/in-person coaching programs.

Metabolic testing will allow us to identify weak links in your fitness levels AND give you actionable steps to improve performance.

Coaching programs are designed for you goals and will help you stay motivated and accountable.

Join the Endurance Athlete Strava group
https://www.strava.com/clubs/theenduranceathlete

The Endurance Athlete Club We are all endurance athletes. Join the group and check out the Endurance Athlete Podcast while you train. We interview athletes with amazing stories from across the spectrum of endurance sports. Our focus is on having fun and talking with other amazing athletes about their experience with endurance...

New Episode of the Endurance Athlete Podcast. Jermaine Jones and Ben Swift of Boomerang Loop Au are training to cycle around Australia (14,251 kilometers or 8,855 miles) in 50 days.
Download wherever you listen to podcasts.

Someone once asked me how far an ultramarathon was. Here is a list of some ultra distances along with a description of each.

Comment and let me know how you would describe ultra distances.

Ever since talking with Dr. Peter Francis , I have been more aware of making sure that my training includes variability. Variability is important because it not only reduces our risk of injury, but it also helps us to improve as an athlete because we can get stronger and move more the way our body was designed to. As a runner it is easy to get stuck into spending as much time on my feet training for a specific race and neglect variability. Remembering that “miles don’t matter”, from an earlier post, I am enjoying training more because I know that I am not just a runner…but an endurance athlete.

Moving in multiple planes of motion is essential and it should be part of your daily routine. This includes strength training, running barefoot (on grass), mobility drills, cross-training on a bike, playing soccer or other multi-planer sports, trail running, sprinting, walking, hiking, backpedaling and more.

Examples of adding variability
1. Warm-up before a long run by doing barefoot running drills (on grass). Your feet will be happy and stronger.
2. Add two strength workouts a week. Stronger muscles work harder and longer before getting fatigued.
3. Replace one of your aerobic or interval runs with a bike workout. Reduce the impact stress on your body.
4. Play soccer, or basketball once a week. This is great for adding jogs, sprints, backpedaling, and change of direction.

When you run, a lot of muscles are functioning simultaneously to propel your body and stabilize its position. Compared with field sports there can be little variability in running. A lack of variability can lead to poor performance due chronic overuse injuries and limitations in flexibility, strength, mobility and muscular imbalances among other issues.

Sorry for the long post, but I saw this article and had to write something down. The links are both listed below.
Is it the intervention, DASH, or is it the structured program that helped reduce blood pressure? Based on my reading of the research mentioned in the article, there are some important points to make, the biggest is that this was both a dietary and exercise study.
I'm not knocking any program, I'm just thinking about the interpretation. News articles like this can often be misleading. If you see an article that sounds interesting, take the time to read the research.
Following the DASH, mediterranean, keto, carnivore, etc. diets will lead to improved health benefits. Because all of them require putting thought in to what you eat, consuming more whole foods (i.e you have to preg and cook yourself) and guess what...EATING LESS SUGAR (CARBS).
Here's their DASH plan...
"Eat more veggies, fruits and low-fat dairy foods; limit foods high in saturated fat; and limit your intake of sodium to 2,300 milligrams a day -- that's about 1 teaspoon of table salt."
The results...
"People in the guided group reduced their systolic blood pressure by at least 12 points, compared to a reduction of 7 points in the group who had no structured help."
BOTH groups had access to the DASH diets protocol. Both groups received exercises recommendations. The difference was that the treatment group had weekly nutritional meetings AND supervised fitness classes THREE times per week.
The p value of the blood pressure data was .005 which means that there is a very statistically significant difference between the two groups. However, in 4 months, if you were to lose 7 points of SBP, I'd say that you were off to a great start with very little support.
Here is what they say...
"While some people can make lifestyle changes on their own, a structured program of supervised exercise and dietary modifications conducted by a multidisciplinary team of health care professionals in cardiac rehabilitation programs is likely more effective." Really? Of course having a whole healthcare team helps.
Here's a caveat...
One important note: People did not stop taking their blood pressure medications during the study, but because of the reduction they achieved may be able to reduce medications after a discussion with their doctor.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/health/uncontrolled-high-blood-pressure-wellness/index.html

Here is the full research paper.
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.121.055329

DASH diet and exercise helps uncontrolled high blood pressure, study finds Young men and older women are at high risk for uncontrolled high blood pressure, but it can be managed with the DASH diet and exercise, two new studies have found.

Hills (and stairs) should be a part of every running program. A great way to improve Running Economy, VO2max, and Running Strength.

Science Says Hill Repeats Will Make You A Better Runner — Trail Runner Magazine All the physiological proof you need that you should definitely be doing hill repeats if you're trying to become a more efficient, faster, and injury-free runner.

“Mileage is all that matters for runners” as the saying goes. But is that really true? After years working with runners and endurance athletes, the two factors that relate more to improving performance are time spent running and consistency, not weekly or daily mileage. Runners who focus mainly on miles tend to burn out over time. It’s great to have a run streak, but is it worth it? If your goal is to get better without getting injured, focus on…

✅ Running for Time: A runner’s body is more influenced by the duration of effort (how much time you spend running) rather than distance (how far you run), meaning slower runners should not focus on running as many miles per week to match that of faster runners. This will only put them at a greater risk for injury due to increased stress on fatigued muscles and tendons.

✅ Being Consistent: The main problem with runners who have inconsistent schedules is injury risk - it increases a lot when you're not consistent about your runs during different weeks or days because those small differences accumulate over time. The aerobic and tissue (tendons, ligaments, etc) adaptations that lead to improved running economy will be slower and take longer to accomplish.

Races are back! Start your training on the right foot with a VO2max test. Learn how to improve running economy so you can train smarter and perform better!

Message me to schedule your VO2max test.

The Carlsbad Beer Mile is this Sunday at Do you have what it takes to drink 4 beers (or white claw) and run 1-mile?

You can participate as a solo runner (4 beers, 1 Mile) or as a team (2 beers and 1/2 mile each).

If you don't want to run but would still like to DONATE to our friend at , you can do that via the race registration link in my bio.

Don't forget, we also have a VIRTUAL option for those that can't make it in person. As always, you don't HAVE to drink beer. We will have some "Seltzer" and "Water" options for you as well.

Back to basics. With no races on my calendar after , this is the time to re-focus on those components of training that will make a huge impact later on. Today I did a 1RM Deadlift test. Finished at 250lbs for one rep. It’s not my best but it’s a start.

The Last Annual Vol State 500k starts tomorrow…today we board the buses at Castle Rock to drive the course backwards to the start. Greg and I sit down in person and do a little Vol State preview in episode 18 of The Endurance Athlete Podcast.