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Hi Fellow Athlete,

Although this newsletter officially a year old (this is the 53rd issue), I have by no means found the optimum formula of:

[type of media * (subject matter + length)] * frequency

Or something like that.

But I can look back and see which content has had the most visits, shares, clicks and traffic.

Here are a few of them:

Alcohol and Triathlon had a great response
13 Things Great Triathletes Don't Do was good
Homemade Endurance Fuels? was great
#20: Pee on the bike has been popular
And of course, the video where Dave Scott talks about Lionel Sanders' and Sam Long's form at St. George has had good traffic in the past few days

But I'd rather have direct feedback from each of you.

What do you want more of
What do you want less of

Talk to me now

The Dave Scott Issue.

Everything I had learned about Dave Scott indicated that he had a domineering, maybe even intimidating personality.

All the videos I had watched, interviews I had read, and even his own writing suggested that he may be tricky to interview, and that anything could happen.

But the moment we started our Zoom call, I knew all those thoughts I had were unfounded. The six of us - five newsletter subscribers and I - were in for an hour of great discussion with a very engaged and expressive legend of the sport.

I cut the interview into 14 separate videos. Here they are, in no particular order.

Except for the first two - my favorites - if you watch any, watch these two.

Dave Scott talks about...

His 1980 world champs trophy and his family's involvement in sports - One son was a pro, another tried out for the Olympics
Lionel Sanders' and Sam Long's running form, and other athletes to watch out for - "Sam was so shockingly bad"
Whether or not if he has finally settled on a diet - He's a low-carb guy but has tried it all
Alternative race formats, PTO, Mixed Relay in Olympics, and more - He's involved in the PTO and Ironman but what's his opinion on the rest?
The Ironman brand and its future, and what makes a great tri brand - With brand reputation eroding, what's the solution?
Swimming, technique, and form and Lucy Charles - Dave agrees that her technique is rough, and comments on how even Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps could improve their form. He stresses the importance of the swim in a tri, too.
Muscles, weights, and physique in triathlon - Dave's always been big on weights.
Diversity - or lack of it - in triathlon - See what he's doing about it and what he thinks.
Depression during his racing career - Ironically, all those wins can create depression. He says it was like alcoholism to him.
What advice he'd give his former self - If he could go back in time, what would he change?
His most painful race experience ever - It's losing to Mark Allen but not in Kona - somewhere else.
Aging and racing in triathlon - He has heart issues and has advice on that.
Foot injuries and coming back to running - He broke a femur in Jan and has had many running injuries
Female athletes and low-carb diets - He works with women and has advice here.

4 Ingredients for Happiness.

Last week, I wrote about the importance of sunrises and expansive vistas, and how pairing them with a ride or run is a perfect combination.

The idea is that the sun makes you produce dopamine while wide landscapes allow you to think bigger, broader, and plan your day or your week.

So, it was noteworthy when I came across similar findings from Steven Kotler, from the Flow Institute, who states, “…broad vistas also broaden attention. When you see into the distance literally, you see into the distance figuratively. That’s why time in nature is so tightly coupled to creative insights.”

Steven Kotler is the author of the excellent book, The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer, which I introduced a few weeks ago.

Further, he talks about the importance of solitude – and in our context that could be training alone.

“Taking a break from the sensory bombardment of the world gives your brain even more reason to wander into far-flung corners.”

The idea here is that you can come up with creative ideas and thoughts from solo sunrises. And he hasn’t left out the physical part of it.

“A daily gratitude practice, a daily mindfulness practice, regular exercise, and a good night’s rest—that is, four activities introduced in the motivation section—remain the best recipe anyone has yet found for increasing happiness.”

There are many other concepts and points from Kotler’s book that are applicable to triathlon and endurance sports. I encourage you to check it out on Amazon here.

See my full tri book list here.

A Guiness Record?

I’ve told you about Adrian Bennett in past newsletters, the athlete who was doing a Guinness Record attempt for the longest triathlon ever.

Well, he finally finished, and I was there with my camera.

I’ve always said the feeling of coming out of the water after a great swim is great, but I bet that’s nothing compared to how Adrian felt after months and months of solo swimming, biking, and running.

All this was for Practical Action, a charity which is using technology to combat climate change.

When the record has been verified, we’ll let you know.

Tales of Pain.

Langkawi, Malaysia, 2019.

Oregonian Bryce Madsen really started feeling the full brunt of the tropical humidity and searing heat at about 120km into his bike.

"Due to dehydration and lack of salt, every time I would put any pressure up or down on my bike pedals, my legs would trigger into instant Charlie horses," Bryce explains.

"All I could do to complete the bike leg was pedal as gently as possible to make it to T2.

"During this slow and painful experience, my friend Andrew rode up next to me. Seeing there was something wrong, he put his arm around me and gave me some encouraging words...that’s all it took to give me the positivity to carry on.

"When I arrived in T2, the bike catchers could see I was in trouble. They asked if I needed an ambulance and seemed surprised when I said I was going to finish and all I needed was my transition bag.

"They grabbed me and my bike and allowed me to use them as crutches to walk and get to my transition bag.

"Once I got my bag, I sat down in the transition area and worked to pull myself together. I did a little prayer and started working through my issues.

"I first downed a bottle of electrolytes and then went to a bottle of CrampFix. Usually, I would just have a small sip and the cramps would subside, but this time was different.

"I drank the entire bottle. I then rubbed out my legs and went for another bottle of water and salt tabs."

Bryce crossing the finish line, Langkawi, Malaysia, 2019

"After 30min of rubbing my legs out, drinking, and working through my dehydration, I was able to make it out onto the course and started a plan of running from water station to water station.

"At that end of this dehydration hell of a journey, I learned a lot about watching my hydration and salt intake in the tropics.

"I now understand that you can actually climb out of deep dehydration and run a marathon in the heat with a plan and some stubborn determination.

"The biggest thing I learned was the power of positive encouragement during the dark times on a course.

"Without Andrew’s encouraging words, that day would have been much harder to power through. I also had my two young boys and my Ironman wife waiting for me at the finish line. With all that love, I had no choice but to complete it!

"At the end of that race, I was two hours behind my usual Ironman time (this was my fourth full IM) but I am prouder of that race than any other races because I went through the darkness and completed it...what an amazing experience!"

I feel your pain, Bryce.

Send me your Tales of Pain

In case you missed it...

Sprint Reads

Turns out South African pro Richard Murray has artial fibrilliation, just like Dave Scott (video #12 above).

No excuses to miss that swim set! This startup in New Jersey makes pool owners $ by renting them out.

Among Sports Illustrated’s Fittest 50 in 2021 are Sara Hall, marathon, Courtney Dauwalter, ultra running, Katie Ledecky, swimming, Eliud Kipchoge, marathon, and Jim Walmsley, ultra running.

Who doesn't love Luis? He'll be in an upcoming SLT documentary series.

Time to put a ring on it? Oura Health has raised $100 million in Series C funding, bringing the company’s total funds to $148.3 million.

Foam rolling day, really?

Super League Triathlon Announces 2021 Championship Series.

When Danny Mac releases a new video, you can't ignore it.

UTMB and IRONMAN partner to launch UTMB World Series.

Follow me on Strava and Instagram and I'll follow you back.

None of the Sprint Reads are sponsored or affiliate links.

Home Massage from Addaday

If you're looking for a massage or recovery product, check out Addaday.

Turns out tri legend Chris Lieto is working for them and he set me up with an affiliate link.

They only ship to the US, for now.

15% off UCAN

If you are in the US, and you want a deal on nutrition, go for UCAN.

Get 15% off with this link: https://ucan.co/Share/IronmanHacks

Doing so gives you a good deal but also supports me.

Optimize your Nutrition

Want to know more about how food can support you with your performance goals?

Looking for a deeper understanding on how to improve your training, recovery and your sleep?

Reach out to Karelle Laurent Nutrition (DipION mBANT rCHCN), a registered nutrition therapist (and triathlete!) to get expert help around those topics, how to best implement changes in your everyday diet, and get the best out of your training.

Receive 15% off your first consultation here when you quote IronmanHacks.

Alternatively, you can book a free 15 min phone chat here.

I have personally worked with Karelle and I can vouch for her. -Andrew

Tri Planner App

Need help getting organized for your races?

The IronHacks app allows you to:
1.

Calculate race split times (swim, bike, run, transitions)
2.

Calculate how much of what foods to eat per hour (200+ endurance fuels in the database)
3.

Get organized with a packing checklist

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