"The RED-S project is a club for sustainable performance. And sustainability to me brings up a few different words, I think about fueling and enjoyment. And no, no process is sustainable unless it's enjoyable. And for me, if I was to get close to a recreational race, and I started to think about race weight, that wouldn't tie in with enjoyment for me."   In this week's episode of the High Performance Human, our guest is Alex Vendittelli, a RED-S Ambassador and a recreational runner. We discuss the prevalence and impact of RED-S Syndrome in athletes, emphasising the need for education ..read more

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is gaining more traction in our lives. It's been here awhile, but the launch of Chat GPT has really accelerated our awareness of how it can simplify our lives. AI will be a part of our athletic lives as well, certainly for the way we plan our plan, analyse, and adjust our training to get the best results.   Will this benefit athletes and coaches alike? I don’t have enough knowledge on the subject to answer that but today’s podcast guest does! Prof Paul Laursen will be familiar to regular listeners of this show. He’s spoken on this show before about Hig ..read more

A lifetime in sport inevitably leads to injuries, especially if you play contact sports. Rugby was my game until my mid-twenties, by which time I had dislocated both shoulders at least once and broken my collar bone once. Minor concerns compared to some players, but nonetheless it's these injuries that caused me to take up triathlon more seriously. I broke the other collar bone more seriously in a bike crash in 2015 (so much for avoiding injuries!). It’s fair to say my shoulders have had their fair share of injuries. I’ve managed to get by without surgery but it’s always a matter of doing lots ..read more

Since we started the podcast, I've introduced many of the UK triathlon legends, ranging from our Olympic champions to coaches who helped them there, and the folks who were around right at the start of triathlon in the UK. Today's guest, Mark Kleanthous, competed in UK triathlons since the very first event in June 1983. And he has kept on going for 41 consecutive years. Completing an impressive 535 triathlons in more than 20 countries, including finishing the Hawaii Ironman World Championships, as well as 48 Iron distance, double Iron, and 1 x triple Iron triathlon. Mark has also finished 71 ma ..read more

Who says you can’t get stronger as you get older? Today, Strength and RunForm Coach Matt Pendola is back and this time he’s accompanied by one of his clients, Michael ’Stoke’ Stoker, one member of a small group who Matt affectionately refers to as 'The Silverbacks’.   73 year old Stoke joins us to speak about how his 20 years of work with Matt has enabled him to continue powder skiing well into his 70’s, and build his strength up to the point where he can now do 7 full pull ups using the gymnastic rings (having been unable to do just 1 when he was 60).   Matt walks us through his app ..read more

You may have wondered about my choice of the phrase High Performance Human. It doesn’t relate to athletes who perform at the top of their age group. The concept of high performance can be described as a measurable state where an individual consistently performs at a higher level of operational success compared with most of their peers within the same environment at a particular time. High performance is not absolute, but relative.    Thus, a high performance human is someone who optimises their performance in many areas of their life - career, relationships, health, fitness etc. Many ..read more

LISTENER: There were some pre production audio issues. Apologies for this. Please stick with the podcast as the sound quality improves during the conversation.   The name Dr Stacy Sims is probably familiar to many of you, especially if you are a female. She's written two very popular books. Her first was ROAR in 2016 (recently updated and revised). Her second book, Next Level, is about kicking ass and crushing goals through menopause, and was published in 2022. As a result of these two books and her public speaking, Stacy has become associated with phrases such as "women are not small men ..read more

Today's guest is Margaret Sills. I met Margaret about 20 years ago when she asked me to coach her. During the time we worked together she represented GB triathlon as an age grouper and also qualified for Kona twice. I can still remember waiting at the finish line for her to complete her first Kona (which she mentions in the conversation). She had some struggles on the day but she made it and as she crossed the line I had a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.   The reason I invited Margaret on to the show this week is to talk about her 40 years as a triathlete. In 2023 she finished her ..read more

This podcast is called the High Performance Human podcast for a reason. It gives me the opportunity to showcase individuals who excel in their chosen sport, but also in many other areas of their life, while still focussing on basics such as sleep and nutrition.   Next time you take a flight, think about what you would like to know about your pilot - skills at their job (obviously) but also that they prioritise health and fitness, turn up each day having slept well and eaten the right foods to help them concentrate throughout the full duration of your flight. Today’s guest, Rick Peters, is ..read more

You might have noticed a theme with some recent podcasts, as I've been searching out inspirational older athletes to share with you just what the future might hold if you have the enthusiasm and adjust your approach in the right way for you. I've struggled to find other coaches who specialise in working with older athletes, but that's corrected today as I speak with Jo Lewis.   Jo is a female triathlete in the 65-69 age group. As you will hear in the conversation, 14 years ago, Jo started a coaching group to cater for over 50’s triathletes. As one herself, she realised that no one was cat ..read more