Ask The Coach: Issue 01
Answering your questions on first 50ks, 70.3 swims, hill repeats and more
A lot of people ask me one-off questions about training and racing.
Readers, athletes, friends, family.
They’re usually looking for tactics. But what they’re really after is confidence.
Confidence that they’re on the right path and focusing on the right things - in pursuit of a big goal.
Over time I’ve seen the simplest tip become a major launching pad for someone’s endurance journey. Something that sticks with them forever - that they eventually pass on to help someone else.
As The 5 Hour Athlete takes shape, it feels right to bring these questions here. So more people can be exposed to key insights, gain confidence, and keep moving toward something big.
Welcome to the first edition of Ask The Coach.
This week I've chosen five questions and included two pieces of content I shared recently that seemed to resonate.
Let's get into it.
#1: I can swim, but I can’t freestyle for more than a few minutes without dying. I can side stroke for a long time, but it’s super slow. My first 70.3 is next weekend. How should I be thinking about the swim?
It’s totally ok to pause and come up for air, regroup, etc.
But the mistake I see most often… the one guys regret… is making a rash decision to quit the race when they’re hanging on to a kayak.
Do side/back/breaststroke. Pause as many times as you need. Go back to freestyle once you get your composure back.
Doing something hard. Getting uncomfortable. Calming down and getting back to work.
This is the whole point of endurance.
#2: I have a powerlifting background and just started Ironman training. Swim and run feel manageable. But 20 minutes into any bike ride my legs are completely cooked. Should I just power through or am I riding too hard?
I’ve seen guys who can squat 600+ lbs struggle to ride at power numbers that sit inside my recovery zone (and I’m not even sure I can squat 300 lbs).
The reason is simple: technique
I guarantee you’re applying excessive heavy force at some parts of the pedal stroke, then losing tension and connection at others. That herky jerky power output is what you want to smooth out. There’s a ton of wasted energy in there.
The bike is all about rhythm. You want even tension on the chain at all times.
It’s not a “push” with your quads. It’s not a “pull” with your hamstrings. It’s everything working together and feeling smooth through the entire pedal stroke.
Two things will help you:
Do some cadence sets. 5 mins 65 rpm / 5 mins 75 / 5 mins 85 / 5 mins 95. Then start back at the bottom. 2 sets of that with a warm up and cool down. Just riding easy the whole time at the same watts through the rpm changes.
Check out these one leg drills
#3: I’m running my first 50k in 7 weeks. I've been battling depression and missed several long runs as a result. I managed 30k last weekend (3.5 hours) but my ankles were shot by the end. I can’t imagine running another 20k on top of that. Am I too undertrained to finish?
If you’ve already done 3.5 hours, consider doing a weekend with back to back 2 hour days as opposed to going 4+ hours in a single session.
If you can make 2 hours repeatable, you’ll build more durability (and stay healthier) than crushing yourself with 4+ hour runs.
For a first time 50k, your biggest advantage for race day is showing up to the start line healthy.
#4: I keep seeing coaches and runners online talk about hill workouts but I’ve never actually done them. What’s the right way to run hills?
Hills are one of the first high intensity workouts I give beginner runners.
They’re a good high intensity workout, they train good form, and they build run strength.
Here’s a simple structure to follow:
10 min easy jog warm up
5 x 30 second hill repeats with 2 min recovery
10 min easy jog cool down
The 2 minute recovery can be a combo of walking and jogging back down the hill.
It helps to have a flat section of road leading into the hill so you can finish your recovery on the flat and loop back before rolling right into the next rep.
#5: I’m 8 weeks into training for my first marathon. The race is 6 months away. I’m currently running 25 miles a week with a long run at 10 miles. Training feels good but I keep wondering if I’m behind. Should I be doing more?
Here’s a reframe I present to athletes whenever they ask about doing more.
“More” is relative to what you’ve done. Not what you think you need to do.
Look back at your training over the past 3 months and compare where you’re at today.
If your volume is up by at least 5-10 miles per week (and you’re staying healthy), you’re in a good spot.
If your mileage hasn’t moved in 3 months, it’s time to bump up.
Don't get so caught up looking ahead at what you think you need to do next that you forget to keep track of what you’ve done.
Straight Shots
Two things I shared this week.
On X:
Every beginner runner gets told the same thing.
“Do more zone 2. Build your base. Slow down to get faster.”
And eventually that’s true.
But if you’re running 10 to 15 miles a week and doing all of it easy, zone 2 isn’t your problem.
You’re not running enough for it to matter that much.
The lowest hanging fruit for most beginners isn’t aerobic fitness.
It’s movement efficiency.
Half the reason you’re slow is sloppy mechanics.
And more slow running just reinforces the sloppiness.
Speed work fixes this.
Intentional, structured fast running that forces your body to coordinate better and run like a runner.
The 80/20 rule is true.
But it was built for athletes doing 10+ hours a week.
At 3 to 5 hours a week, 80% Zone 2 is a lot of slow miles that won’t teach you much.
Try 60/40 instead.
More easy runs - yes.
But lean in to the speed work.
Run fast. Rest. Repeat.
Endurance progress isn’t just fitness.
It’s skill.
Zone 2 is a volume game.
And most beginners are chasing volume gains on little time.
Build the skill instead.
On Substack Notes:
The 20 minute run between work and dad duty matters.
Respect it. Count it. Show up for it.
But if you’re an endurance athlete chasing something bigger than fitness, you can’t survive on scraps forever.
The short stuff keeps you glued together.
It won’t make you feel unstoppable.
That feeling comes from the long stuff.
The 10 mile run. The 3 hour ride.
The trail run where you’re lost in the mountains and have to find your way back.
You don’t need all of them at once.
Different seasons of life call for different tactics.
But after coaching 300+ dads in endurance, here’s what I know:
The guys who feel truly alive in this sport find a way to do the big efforts.
They rarely go two weeks in a row without one.
And when the weekend fills up with family, they move up it to Friday - not back.
Your body can survive on short sessions.
Your mindset needs the long ones.
Have a question? Drop it in the comments.
It might show up in the next issue.