Triathlons are unique compared to other sports as athletes are required to master three distinct disciplines: swimming, cycling, and running. This article lays out a training program that focuses on a balance between strength training and sport training to avoid overtraining and overuse injuries and to maximize performance in a multi-sport athlete.

This excerpt briefly discusses components of interval workouts, including recommended volume and intensity, to increase overall endurance in athletes.

Live high/train low: what changes can be expected, what dose is required, and is it preferable to other training models for improving performance in endurance sports such as running, swimming, and cycling?

This review analyzes relevant variables involved in acute interference effects of concurrent training (CT) sessions of aerobic exercise followed by strength exercises. The aerobic exercise intensity, mode, volume, duration of recovery interval between exercises, muscle groups involved, and utilization of ergogenic aids are the variables identified in this review. High-intensity interval aerobic exercises result in more pronounced negative effects on strength-endurance exercise but not in maximal strength. Cycling results in more negative effects on strength endurance performance exercise than running. A 4-hour to 8-hour recovery interval seems to be enough to avoid interference on strength-endurance performance. Reduction in strength-endurance performance is located in muscle groups involved in both exercises. Low aerobic exercise volume (3 km) with; 18 minutes of duration does not diminish strength endurance, whereas higher volumes (5 and 7 km) with ;30 and ;42 minutes of duration, respectively, generate impairments. Caffeine, carbohydrate, and beta-alanine are not able to revert the deleterious effect on strength-endurance performance, whereas creatine and capsaicin analog supplementation are. Thus, these variables must be taken into consideration to prescribe and organize a CT session. This information may help coaches to organize exercise sessions that minimize or avoid the impairment in strength performance after aerobic exercises.

This article discusses the background, statistics, mechanisms, timing, dosing, influences, and practical applications for the use of caffeine as an ergogenic aid.

This article from NSCA Coach explores how beet juice and nitrate supplements can enhance athletic performance. Learn more about nutrition and exercise physiology online at NSCA.com.

When isolating aerobic capacity as a determinant of performance, traditional interventions have focused on increasing an individual’s VO2max. Based on the large acute improvements from a single positive psychology research study, investigations into the application of integrated psychophysiological strategies to optimize performance should be explored.

The Dirty World of Triathlon: Training and Racing Demands of Xterra

The purpose of this article is to help both personal trainers and clients with seven main concepts within exercise physiology that will improve training effectiveness and assist in explaining the body’s response to exercise.

This excerpt from the book Developing Endurance, published by Human Kinetics, presents a sample 5K training plan for runners.