Category: Training Methodology

Periodisation

Marc Evan’s Periodisation Edge

Marc Evans is possibly the first person who referred to themselves as a triathlon coach, as opposed to a swim or run coach that helped triathletes. Marc Evans wrote a number of books about training for endurance events back in the 1980’s and 90’s and was in fact one of the first resources I purchased for my coaching business when I first started it back then. Endurance Athlete’s Edge is still a great resource. He takes a traditional approach to periodisation with five phases.

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Running Science

Owen Anderson’s Four-Phase Emphasis Periodisation

Owen Anderson, PhD is world renowned in both running and academic circles. Coaching a number of elite athletes with one world champion, three world silver medalists, two world bronzes, and an African champion in his stable of athletes. In his book Running Science Owen presents an overview of the early science of preiodisation before describing ‘his’ Four-Phase Emphasis Periodisation (I say ‘his’ because he is describing it in his book, but it has been a collaborative effort in developing this method of periodisation by a number of coaches and exercise scientist over a decade).

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New Zealand’s Red Traffic Light System

Under New Zealand’s Red Traffic Light system a large number of events are being cancelled for Public Health reasons. Here are my thoughts on how to manage your training to keep your motivation high whilst we get through the Omicron crisis.

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Distance Training Simplified

Periodisation Simplified

This weeks article isn’t from some academic or coach that inspired me early in my coaching career but a coach that I’ve only discovered this year. Sean P. O’Connor was the Boys Head Coach for Lafayette High School, MO and he wrote his book Distance Training Simplified. O’Connor or Coach OC as his athletes call him doesn’t prescribe to the traditional periodisation concepts. Now I don’t use Coach OC’s methodology with my athletes, nor will I but his concept hold’s merit in certain circumstances (that don’t fit with my athletes). I’m including his concept or methodology in this series because I like his concept and believe in it (for a specific demographic).

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Periodising Swimming Successfully with Dick Hannula

Dick Hannula is arguably one of the most successful swim coaches of all time. Under his leadership the Tacoma Swim Club won 24 consecutive state championships, a total of 323 swim meets with no loss!!! He was the US National Swim Coach multiple times between 1973 and 1985, as well as manager for both summer Olympics in 1984 & 1988. He has been inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and is credited with developing the modern swim paddle with holes in them to facilitate feel for the water. He has authored Coaching Swimming Successfully and edited The Swim Coaching Bible.

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The Art of Running Faster

The Art of Periodisation with Julian Goater

Julian Goater was a top British athlete winning a gold medal with the rest of the British team at the World Cross Country Championships in 1979. He has a 5,000m PB of 13:15.59 and a 10,000m PB of 27:34.58 (which to this day is a still in the Top 10 fastest UK times ever).
In more modern times Julian is now running a coaching company in the UK called Feel Good Factors for runners and cyclists. In his book he wrote with Don Melvin The Art of Running Faster Julian talks about his methodology of periodisation.

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Power to Perform

The Power of Periodisation With Jon Ackland

Jon Ackland was an early inspiration of mine. It was possibly him who first introduced me to the term Periodisation through articles in NZ Triathlon magazines in the early to mid 90’s. Then in the early 2000’s I attended a number of seminars he held about Ironman preparation and took on a lot of his philosophies from these seminars.

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Dave Salo’s Complete Periodisation for Swimmers

Traditional periodisation has four phases (preparation, precompetition, competition and active rest phases). Swimming is different to other sports because it is held in a water environment which is governed by a different set of physical rules than land based sports. For this reason Dave Salo modifies how he periodises a season for his swimmers.

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80/20 Triathlon

Periodisation in an 80/20 Triathlon or Running World

Arguably Matt Fitzgerald’s most famous books about training derive their methodology from Dr Stephen Seiler’s research. 80/20 Running and 80/20 Triathlon are immensely popular books. This is a summary of the periodisation concepts from them.

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The Runner's Edge

Matt Fitzgerald’s High Tech Periodisation for a Runner’s Edge

Matt Fitzgerald has written numerous books around enhancing performance for both runners and triathletes. In his The Runner’s Edge book that he wrote with Stephen McGregor he describes using TrainingPeak’s Performance Management Chart (PMC) to manage periodisation and also optimise performance.

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