Relinquishing Control: First Season as a Fully Coached Athlete

[@lifefindsawayx3]

Question: what about strength training? Is it possible to have some light shed into Lionel’s strength training…video? That would be soooo educational!

[@aleksytherunner9267]

This is gonna be a season to remember 🔥

[@sportscientist]

Hi Lionel, I have been following you from a distance for some time and really appreciate your openness. I am kind of seen as "the father" of polarized training from a research perspective. I was the sport scientist that introduced the concept based on observations of different athlete groups like rowers and XC skiers. This was over 15 years ago. Of course, we never stop learning and I am happy to be working in Norway where the mentality is to be best in the world at the daily training process. In this video you revealed how you trained EXTREMELY polarized and you interpreted the term exactly as it sounds. This tells me that my choice of terms many years ago was easily misinterpreted. The term DOES suggest not ONLY that athletes need a lot of low-intensity aerobic training, but also that the hard sessions should be as hard as absolutely possible. This is not what we observed, so the term misinterprets "best practice" as we quantified it. In reality, some of the best endurance athletes in the world were distinguished by yes, doing the large volumes of LIT, but also by choosing to ease off the gas just a little during hard sessions, but trade that small intensity reduction for accumulating many more minutes at slightly lower intensity (Z4 instead of Z5 in a 5-zone model). That is, they did NOT and do not become too "anaerobic" in these HIT sessions. I think this self-selection of a kind of "two intensity poles at ~65% and an ~87-92%" induces the adaptation package needed, but helps keep recovery demands from becoming excessive, in addition to more specific signalling advantages for not driving glycolytic adaptations too excessively. It seems this is the adjustment you are making now and it makes a lot of sense, particularly for the long duration events you are focusing on. Best of luck!

[@Upsidestrength]

Fantastic insight 🙌

[@tommythomasson1]

Thanks for the inside. ;) I think many athletes and coaches go very fast into one specific concept very deeply without thinking about general characteristics every sensible training concept should include. 1. Achieve a high general training load over a long period of time (in between 10 and 20 hours\week for international athletes). Sustainability is key. 2. Do in between 80% and 90% of your training volume at low intensity (Z1 and Z2 in 5-zone-model). 3. Do in between 10% and 20% of your training at medium and high intensity (Z3, Z4 and Z5). 4. Establish a micro periodization (often including one week) allowing you to recover from the training effort and allowing adaptation to occur. The rest depends on the circumstances the specific athlete has to face: what kind of event is he competing in (f.e. 800m run vs IronMan Triathlon) ? Is he a beginner in the sport or an already well trained athlete ? Where are his strengths and weaknesses (in relation to his event and competitors) ? Is he at the beginning of his training season or near his most important competition ? Before making decisions about training intensity distribution and choosing a specific concept (polarized training, pyramid training, sweet spot training...) athlete and coach should really think about these general characteristics, analyze the athlete and his situation, set clear goals and make further decisions after that process.

[@theonlyartist1992]

i really do hope we can see Lionel win those "to the finish line" battles with the best of the best this year. I feel this is a different Lionel and you can see he is calmer but more confident.

[@BAJF93]

Older and more experienced for sure.

[@scottholland2558]

The “little knowledge” that’s come your way has, as many people have mentioned, resulted in some super positive results with the trending continuing upward! Well done to team Sanders and looking forward to watching you race/grow this season!

[@shannonsides6017]

I’d say a lot of Lionel’s willingness to trust a coach with his training should be given to his swim coach and all the improvements he’s made!

[@GimmeMoeProductions]

Super excited to see you compete this season! Number 1 !!!

[@tomasvalve930]

What a turnaround in attitude and the way you speak. I would even go so far and think that Jan think you’re doing things the right way now. Hopefully you get it all right and can stick it to Wurf!

[@theapexpursuit4388]

Can’t wait to see the outputs of this training during the race season

[@CleanDogz]

Fantastic to ser you working with Mikael and Ari. Great team you are building! Looking forward to seeing wherecyou can take it!

[@gecko1322]

I agree about the Norwegians. They don't claim to know everything. But they're really good at exploring and putting old things together in new ways.

[@tbone-ip5fi]

I'm not surprised by his comment about what characterizes the Norwegian team. Those who don't think they know it all, but who are extremely open, curious and learning from own data and others, are very often those who develop the most.

[@timlentz3045]

Get it! You look better than ever!! I love seeing the passion to become better by be coached! Just race

[@patrickpapst9572]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Champ!!! Wish you the best of luck, a strong season and plenty of FUN too!! 🤘😎🤘

[@aidanwilson8248]

I had a dream last night that Lionel was telling me to be consistent in my workouts rather than trying kill my body on every workout.

[@rbcism]

Continue to not suck! Thanks for the inspiration and really looking forward to 2022!

[@blainetaylor2272]

Super pumped for this season!

[@adam_tri_hard]

Love your video logs Lionel. You inspire me to be a better athlete even at the ripe old age of 57. 😀

[@bubsarenoadventures6839]

Been watching you for years now and your video’s are only getting better! Great work 🤙

[@MarceloG..]

We all can learn something new when we open up. You are going to kick ass!!!

[@dhrumilprajapati77]

you inspired a lot of us to keep posting these videos, they are energy for my workouts.

[@myateem]

Really appreciating your honesty and how open you are with your fans! Wish you all the best champ and can't wait to see you in action!💪🏼

[@jamieb2865]

So much raw strength despite that hobble and power imbalance. Guessing a strained right side psoas causing a lifted hip reducing efficiency across all 3 disciplines by 10%. Easy gains getting that fixed up.

[@kevinrens4827]

Looking forward to 2022 season. Feel the water

[@Upsidestrength]

Those vlogs are great Lionel! Keep it up 👌💪

[@jessicamichalofsky4978]

"Autodidact". Love this intro

[@markmcfadden7428]

Love your vids, very inspiring. I'm very interested in your new training strategy, more info on it is something I'd like to see. Good luck in 2022!

[@onkelsort5381]

You're a great dude man. Wish you the best of luck, hope your new style gives you what you 're looking for!!

[@DanielUnterrainer]

you're one inspiring guy!!

[@kyleglass9871]

Man... can the season be here already?

[@birdofprey108]

it's gonna be hottt

[@mikecatley3837]

I’m so excited for Lionel this is a big move and it’s gonna be epic 🔥🙌🏼🤩

[@ivanfrolov1344]

Happy birthday, Lionel))

[@davidgonzalez5682]

You are the man God bless you. Pray and listen the guidence

[@akdrn3624]

Excellent content, as usual. Keep crushing 😜

[@MathisW20]

Happy birthday Lionel 🔥😊

[@waynemacdougall8667]

As a former addict. I'm wondering if this has come into play. A recovering addict has to be selfish. Has to put his life first to live the life or the new chosen path. To submit to a coach and have trust In that person. I see as your greatest achievement. All you have to do is go out and execute.

[@robertbalfour4313]

I think I understand what you are saying Wayne. Similar to having a sponsor in recovery. A coach is someone that you trust w your career/future and believe in his wisdom,knowledge and focus to follow thru on the athletes daily growth. Let's do this LS, its show time brother!!!! #blockbusterseason

[@radrunning8535]

Thanks for the tips! Help a lot, for sure!

[@joshfirlotte]

Very good, can’t wait!

[@E4zyp34zyl3m0nsq33ZY]

Where do you get the lactate test kits you've been using between intervals ? Do you have a recommendation for which one to get, how much should they roughly cost? Thanks and good luck with training !

[@stephenwoodhouse3137]

An honest video right there 👌🏻

[@OFFSHOREDOUG]

I think it will help him focus on what he does well. Once he trusts the coach.

[@danchanner]

Still think that LS and Brett Sutton would have been box office. Oh well, look forward to seeing LS do himself justice this year.

[@o11378]

No way at all. Brett Sutton had great success with a few, specially female athletes. His methodes are shit in terms of scientific.

[@rainbowmonkMC]

i'm never considered the word autodidact as a word to use for an athlete. usually, i think of people who are very well read, extremely mentally intelligent, who have learned on their own time. one quality most autodidacts have is stubbornness. almost every autodidact i have met fails at university, not because they are not smart enough, often they are smarter than the professors, but they fail because they want to learn on their own time, own pace, own interests. not on anyone else's schedule, often doing so hinders their drive (i.e. following a syllabi or training plan). however, there are times when an autodidact realizes the value of following a particular person or line of though (in Lionels case, a particular coach), having realized for themselves (at their own time, pace, and interest) the limitations of their approach. only then are they ready to take on advice from others, never before. and i think it makes sense of Lionel. i mean he had to learn on at his own pace and time that he needed a coach, after years of rejecting the possibility. so cheers, to an autodidact of triathlon :)

[@rainbowmonkMC]

like when Lionel says 'i wish i'd done it 10 years ago' is like when an autodidact first goes to Uni at 18. they think its a good idea, but they hate it. i don't think Lionel would have listened then. he needed these 10 years of learning to reach his limit of knowledge in order to expand that limit through the aid of someone else (i.e. Justin and Mikal). otherwise it wouldn't have worked

[@jaxonbilchuris5370]

here he comes!!

[@terrykurtz1445]

I’m dumbfounded that it took Lionel this many years to understand that there are people who study and understand physiology and actually are better prepared to coach a professional athlete better than he can. That said I appreciate his dedication to his craft and I root for him!

[@peterblanchard4109]

Gotta say it was probably money related. Just my opinion.

[@TalbotCoxMedia]

@@peterblanchard4109 money related in what sense?

[@jimg8321]

@@TalbotCoxMedia It's impressive that Lionel has achieved so much without a coach. I too am baffled about why he didn't have a coach earlier in his career. Does money factor into it? I assume that coaches don't work for free. But I don't know the pro triathlete business model either. It seems like a pro tries to get sponsors and then uses that money to support their training and to buy food and rent. But I could be way off too. Were coaches beating down Lionel's door for years only to have Lionel say "I'm sorry, but I've got to do it myself because I'm either an idiot or I am an autodidact.":🙂 All that being said, great videos, great inspiration. Keep up the good work!!!

[@jimjamthebananaman1]

@@TalbotCoxMedia costs money to get a coach - Lionel isn’t a millionaire

[@TalbotCoxMedia]

@@jimjamthebananaman1 money was not the issue. Pro triathlon coaches charge very little. It has nothing to do with the cost.

[@zachbennett3102]

Lets go Lionel! My pick for SG WC

[@potatophonepeace9950]

LOVE THIS

[@johndavidalexander6646]

Does this mean your new coach is prescribing less polarized workouts? I currently train in a very polorized way.

[@Bristol182]

Are you going to move to Norway for some time?

[@valtersilva6359]

Parabéns , aqui and Brasil , treinar top e inteligente.

[@cospinan]

Lionel you should includ training camps in high altitude... like top cyclist do or like Kenyan runners do .. They're all from the Rift Valley region... of course a lot is genetics but big par is adaptation to live and train at high altitude, in dry an tuff environment. Training there (in those conditions for a good block of time) means more physiological adaptation that will payoff in races... that needs time... the effort and the sacrifice... you always put it!!!. For the swimming... I mentioned in a comment some time ago... that you should try a technique like ocean walker' swim technique. you will be more effective and efficient... you will be the ultimate triathlonist... keep training smart and improving!!!

[@bonn1771]

great video

[@bodhizafa6323]

LS = RELENTLESS!

[@brunovieira6901]

Are those trainers in the treadmill hoka?

[@joshuafoulds8107]

What happened the Lionel edited vlogs?

[@NikdGrik]

I think after this offseason, Lionel’s physique started resembling more that of Patrick Lange or Iden. I guess this is a good sign!

[@StanleyCup919]

He's looking waayyyy more lean. Probably from all that aerobic work.

[@mpatrikik]

At 9:10 he checked the 6 pack? I saw well?😂

[@larrylem3582]

Someday, someone close to Lionel will teach him to pronounce "Coeur D'Alene".

[@hboardz133]

Is Ari being coached by Mikal as well?

[@jameswestgate4896]

Sounds like Ari’s music at the beginning

[@TheVikingProject]

🐐

[@PK-qq1lz]

Greetings to Ari...

[@TheFitDragon]

he knows how to dig deep, we'll see if that translates to winning under coaching

[@KARANGTARUNARW20]

Wow, this is what I was looking for, looking for this content, I just played the video until it ran out. The video is really cool, really top. I'll follow it right away (SUBCRIBE)👍🔔 Always healthy and enthusiastic. I'm waiting for the next video... "Don't forget to see my work, greetings from Jakarta Indonesia..🙏🙏🙏

[@rogerherndon8384]

Hi LS Team. I have been looking for a track in the Tucson area that is open to the public. I have not found one. It looks like you have. Care to share? Thanks.

[@enjoythehard7034]

what's for headphones ?

[@squash_is_life7996]

Lionel, your running has always appeared "jerky/stiff" to me as opposed to fluid and balanced. Is there risk of injury in the long term in this regard, or is this simply how your body behaves, and as such, is completely fine? Perhaps just my own interpretation of what I'm seeing in your videos, but thought I'd pose the question to see what your thoughts may be. Cheers and thanks for all the inspiration!

[@danmartin9086]

I agree. Inevitably his running technique needs improvement

[@simonnalder4394]

Is Cam Wurth still Ls cycling coach?

[@dianes.1909]

No

[@bizdoct]

when's the very first race

[@laniernelson1019]

Rock n Roll

[@salsalawyer]

Onward and upward 👆

[@sunshinecycling]

I would argue most people in this world are something that they don't know just because they don't know there is a word for it.

[@cosmin3565]

"Fully coached" meaning a whole team + Lionel, as First Chief Coach

[@Tizzledk]

Who's Coach McCall?

[@EmilianoDOnofrio]

No limits.

[@cerchcerchington359]

Brroooooooooooooooooooo!!!

[@afonsoguilhon8012]

I just can’t believe that there is no coach in US or Canada that can’t give you the training that you need instead to get what the Norwegians have left to you

[@BobTheCratchit]

What does he mean by "225 is possible off the bike?"

[@rosslacey8555]

A 2h25m marathon

[@BobTheCratchit]

@@rosslacey8555 ah that it's it! Thank you!

[@amblincork]

An ad breaking in after 1 minute 45 ? Life is too short..

[@francisgerz1281]

10:58 = legs are in swimming all over the place ... Only power without technique ...

[@timw4369]

The best and biggest efforts should be on race day not in training. That's the hardest lesson people have to learn and it's not easy

[@ironman140.6]

Time for you be be called Cam's coach. Looks like all the demons are out your system now. Show them who rules 2022 - Go Lionel Go!

[@Ju11i]

I always thought that once Lionel starts to train with brain he will be unbeatable. I guess this year we´re going to find out if that is true ;-)

[@ubit123]

So if polarised training is out of fashion, what is in fashion these days? Asking for a friend.

[@jerre1236]

It’s probably still polarised but now he is also working zone 3 and 4 (if you look at it in a 5zone model). Where he mentioned he was doing either really slow (zone1-2) or really hard (zone 5) and completely ignoring the inbetween (zone 3-4).

[@matthewk3233]

I think since triathletes never use vo2+ in races it's not as important to do as much and use more of the middle ground. It maybe works more for cyclists since they need to do those efforts more often.

[@francisvidal9208]

Blood lactate measurements? In his previous video he mentioned training at the limit of zone 2.

[@skiparock]

sounds like doing volume at his MAF (lactate threshold 1)?

[@jonnyallen9288]

400w for 55 mins - get him the WT

[@eitanshushu]

as good as they are, i dont think they should be elevated and glorified to a point were they beat you on the startline. you ll believe they cant be beaten.

[@kastierV]

have you been "amateur on the professional level" or "professional on the amateur level" before?

[@bobbybostic7947]

Weren’t you coached a few years ago or was that only “partially coached”? Seems like we’ve been down this road before.

[@TalbotCoxMedia]

If you watch the video he said he has never been fully coached. Did you check it out?

[@chadoc.4109]

Finally the Idiot 🤣 has learned. Wish you had done this 5 years ago. Oh well, live and learn. Still the most inspirational triathlete for me, so thank you Lionel.

[@matskarlsson4513]

Hope all this lactate testing doesn’t lead to anemia…😎

[@jamiefishpond1982]

you look healthier cuz :)

[@jaychu3850]

Let’s see how long this lasts 😂

[@TalbotCoxMedia]

✊🏾

[@TheCanadianBeaver]

Keep following your nose Lionel

[@DublinDapper]

Lionel > Trudeau

[@stevedgolfer]

Same old story.Lionel your great just get on with it.No need for the dramatics.

[@fritsgerms3565]

Who wants to bet this will change again? Flip flop.

[@Dogboy2004]

Let's go Brandon 😁