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Crushing Iron Triathlon Podcast

Find out why thousands of beginner, intermediate, and advanced athletes are improving their training and racing with accessible, functional and genuine conversation about triathlon. Two coaches, who aren't afraid to laugh at themselves, look for smart and enjoyable solutions in a sport that's often dumb and painful. Mike Tarrolly and Robbie Bruce explore the mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual side of training and racing everything from Ironman to a Sprint. on Monday and Thursday.
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Now displaying: April, 2022
Apr 28, 2022

Ironman is never easy and Texas 2022 was no exception. Today we go over lessons learned and how they can be applied to any race. We look at dealing with wind, virtual training, and heat, but also get into the differences between training and exercising, how to practice patience, and overtraining. If you’re racing outside you need to train outside, a lot. 

Topics: 

  • Check out the C26 Chatt 70.3 Expo Booth
  • Athlete Observation from Texas 
  • The Heat Relativity 
  • “Hardest Race Ever”
  • Virtual “riding on the course”
  • Get outside
  • 90% Above the Chin
  • Light vs strong
  • The key to wind riding
  • Relative wind feel
  • Sacrificing performance for comfort
  • Exercising vs. Training
  • Overtraining and recovery
  • 1% overtrained
  • Knowing when you’re training too much
  • 70.3 training good enough for Ironman?
  • Driving analogy
  • Hydrating on the bike in wind
  • Rattle Snake running
  • Apple Cider Vinegar 
  • It’s so hard
  • Do it again and again and again

Buy C26 Gear Here: https://c26triathlon.com/c26-store/

Check out our coaches:Â https://c26triathlon.com/meet-the-coaches/

Mike Tarrolly: CrushingIron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce: C26Coach@gmail.com

Apr 26, 2022

This was a tough one to do as Coach Robbie says goodbye to his best buddy, Kona. The bond between a man and his dog runs deep, and today Robbie shares his heartbreak, struggles and vulnerability. Ultimately it's a story of sweet girl who stood by through the highest highs and lowest lows -- always with unconditional love. 

Topics:

  • We are simply humans on this planet
  • This podcast is about life
  • Wake up calls
  • Difficulty accepting love 
  • Not taking things for granted 
  • The power in Vulnerability
  • Letting others in 
  • When we’re too hard on ourselves 
  • Self Sabotage circle 

Buy C26 Gear Here: https://c26triathlon.com/c26-store/

Check out our coaches: https://c26triathlon.com/meet-the-coaches/

Mike Tarrolly: CrushingIron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce: C26Coach@gmail.com

 

Apr 20, 2022

Today we focus on Ironman Texas strategy, but this podcast is great for anyone racing an Ironman, especially when it’s hot. We always talk about not obsessing about the weather, but when you know it might be hot, it’s smart to prepare. We look at all kinds of hot racing strategies, talk about why Texas is a sneaky challenging course, and why you will want to prepare to suffer. This is a C26 Team race, so be sure to say hi out on the course. 

 

Topics:

  • Mushy Open
  • Wetsuit legal?
  • Swim strategy
  • Prepare for a slower swim
  • Red to Orange buoy transition
  • Spectator’s paradise
  • T-1 Concrete
  • Bike - windy and flat
  • 1st outdoor ride?
  • Ice bottles before the swim
  • Core temperature
  • Cooling on the bike 
  • Fueling on the bike
  • Coming off the bike
  • Walking early aid stations
  • It’s gonna Hurt
  • Tough Love
  • Find a mantra

Buy C26 Gear Here: https://c26triathlon.com/c26-store/

Check out our coaches: https://c26triathlon.com/meet-the-coaches/

Mike Tarrolly: CrushingIron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce: C26Coach@gmail.com

Apr 18, 2022

We start by looking at our “big” training weekends and what we learned. It turns into an interesting discussion about energy expenditure during a race and when to cash in your energy chips. We look at how digging deep teaches you to be a better racer, how to measure and understand your run economy, and how most people spend money (energy) on the bike that they don’t have. 

Topics:

  • IMTX - The Heat is On
  • Mike and Robbie’s big training weekends 
  • Burnt Biscuits for Robbie
  • Mike’s “longest” ride since IMCHATT
  • Do we lose strength or aerobic?
  • Energy expenditure
  • The double edged sword of coaching
  • Inside Burn Out
  • Strides, High Cadence, Big Gear
  • More energy to go to the same pace
  • Run Economy
  • You have finite energy to burn in a race
  • What drains the battery faster?
  • Understanding the size of your tank
  • Knowing the effort you can hold
  • Training Experiment 
  • What are we getting in return for the effort?
  • Cashing your race out slowly
  • Choosing when to spend energy
  • Bankrupt by the run
  • Put your Ego Aside
  • Spending bike money you don’t have

Buy C26 Gear Here: https://c26triathlon.com/c26-store/

Check out our coaches: https://c26triathlon.com/meet-the-coaches/

Mike Tarrolly: CrushingIron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce: C26Coach@gmail.com

 

Apr 14, 2022

Peaking, Burning Matches, Taper, Open Water Swimming.

More great questions from listeners, including how close together can an athlete burn matches on races? We look at peak training, what it means and what it should feel like going into taper. A deeper look into the theory of taper and if you need less or more. Older athlete discussion involving strength and speed vs. endurance. We also dive deep into open water swimming and how to prepare for the conditions in a pool. 

Topics: 

  • Coaching collides with training
  • Old Man Kickball 
  • Burning matches back to back?
  • Wet matches don’t burn as hot
  • 6-10 weeks of peak training per year
  • Simmer to Boil
  • What exactly is Peaking?
  • Peak drag 
  • Taper theory
  • Don’t remove intensity in taper
  • Aging up strategies
  • Older athletes - Strength and speed vs. Endurance
  • Prepping for an ocean swim without an ocean
  • Lake swims vs. ocean
  • What strong swimming means
  • Open water vs. the pool and how to compensate
  • Stay straighter in open water
  • Anaerobic benefits of swimming 
  • Swim and Bike impact on the run
  • Swimming is mandatory!

Mike Tarrolly - CrushingIron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce - C26Coach@gmail.com

 

Apr 12, 2022

Back in Chattanooga with some great questions from the listeners. Fueling for Ironman bike, Heart Rate variability in sleep, HR testing, how much and when, Bike cleat fits, riding in wind, compact chain rings, prep vs. build, how to run the IM marathon, and playing mind games with yourself.

Topics:

  • Getting deeper sleep
  • HR Variability while asleep
  • Stress on the down low
  • The Gap and the Gain
  • List the accomplishments not failures
  • Bike fueling for Ironman (or a Century Ride)
  • HR formula
  • Average vs. Max HR
  • RPE
  • When and how often do HR tests
  • Re-adjusting Zones
  • Using a Sprint or an Olympic to test
  • IMTX - Be prepared
  • Dealing with the wind
  • The mental drain of riding outside
  • Cleat placement is overlooked
  • Bike fits and run problems
  • How much should you PUSH?
  • Prep vs. Build phase
  • Compact vs. standard chain rings
  • How to run the entire IM marathon
  • Playing mind games with yourself
Apr 7, 2022

Race Season is here and it’s easy to get caught up in the things you didn’t do, but we’re here to tell you, you’ve done hard work and what matters is what you do with it next. Well, that and having fun in a sport that we PAY to do. We look at “PR Mentality” and how it can hurt your training and racing. We get into comparing courses year to year. And we also get into the “Gallon of Gas” analogy that simplifies strategy and may be all you need on race day.

Topics:

  • What are we already worried about maybes?
  • Clamoring for being back to normal
  • the traveling toll
  • the pr trap
  • everyone wants a return on your investment
  • the point is to get the very best of themselves
  • 20 hour Jim vs. 8 hour Gary
  • i think i have more to squeeze out of me
  • early season races
  • Comparing year to year
  • Turning the race into a Fun Day
  • It’s not about a time
  • expectations gone while
  • The goal on race day is to get everything you have out of you
  • The Gallon of gas analogy that could be all you need for your race
  • Focus on the positive
  • Deal with problems after the race

Mike Tarrolly - crushingiron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce - c26Coach@gmail.com

Apr 4, 2022

Races can unfold as a series of flight or fight episodes, so how will you deal? Not giving too much, but not giving too little is a fine line, so it’s good to know your body, mind, and understand effort. Today, we look at how to approach a race, how training should line up, and how you can mentally approach the day for your best performance. Did you really give it your all . . . or did you back down?

Topics:

  • Oceanside prediction re-cap
  • Jackson Laundry
  • chipping away - you never really know
  • race differences
  • the difficulty of early season races
  • we forget how hard racing is
  • how do you know what your best performance is?
  • dusting the rust off
  • going to the hurt locker
  • not the best biker or runner.. the best triathlete
  • patience is confidence
  • the race is the whole package
  • it’s easy to feel confident if you don’t have to prove it
  • seized up in the moment
  • where’s the edge? not too much not too little
  • Are you proud of yourself when you finish?
  • Did you really give it your all or back down?
  • Going for 80% and being 100% at that
  • Only YOU know how much you have left
  • Not going for it when you feel great

Mike Tarrolly - crushingiron@gmail.com

Robbie Bruce - c26coach@gmail.com 

Apr 1, 2022

"I am not interested in how much somebody is doing? I am very interested in how they're doing it because that's what changes the quality of who we are."

- Sadhguru

Topics: 

vacation training

let it fit in your life

the mirage of control

how long is your ride?

sitting is stress

how do you react to life?

prisoner of the moment

lightning in a bottle

how are you doing it?

yoga as a training mentality

don’t try to hit winners 

sending positive messages to yourself

fitness interest 

stay the course

texas 70.3

riding with wind

oceanside 70.3 pros predictions

watch on tv

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