2007 Ironman Canada Race Report

My 2007 Ironman Canada race report took a while to write. After the race, I contemplated walking away from Ironman, and it took about one week for me to reflect on my race experiences. Below are the cold hard facts about one day of my life in 2007.  

No pain, no gain

Sport is a fun pastime as well as the training ground to practice for the challenges you will inevitably face in the course of living.   I picked the quote below because of the intimate connection that the journey towards our BIG DEALS plays with all aspects of life. Especially sport. The …

2006 Ironman Florida Race Report

Below is the race report I wrote after my 2006 IM Florida race. I wrote it in part because I needed to document my experience for future reference, but also to motivate my training for the next season. There are lot of interesting insights in the report, especially because it …

Got enough iron, man?

Endurance athletes are always looking for a competitive edge; that is why we put so much time and energy in to proper training and state-of-the-art equipment. For those who are serious about their performance (or, more importantly, are serious about their health), you may want to look beyond heart rate …

Embracing pain so you can grow

We just wrapped up the 2018 ECo EPIC weekend.  From my perspective, it was a great weekend. The athletes had their fair share of challenges, but each person dealt with it in their own way and came out the other side stronger. During the weekend, I happened to read a …

eat right during the metabolic window

WHAT you eat and WHEN you eat have a huge impact on recovery. By focusing on nutrient timing you can maximize the previous workout’s effect and get yourself ready to have a great workout tomorrow.

The importance of collecting data…

I attended a meeting a couple of years ago where we spent two days discussing how to apply science and technology to lead to improved athletic performance.  This meeting highlighted the vast array of tools that are currently available to collect and analyze data.  But the meeting also stressed the …

The difference between WORKING OUT and TRAINING

Exercise, as it relates to physical activity, is defined as “a particular movement or series of movements done to become stronger and healthier.” In 2015, over 54 million people enrolled in fitness centers in the U.S., and there are around 34,000 membership-based exercise facilities in the U.S. Despite that, people …

Six take-home messages from years of endurance training

The original version of this article was published on my first website, gojoeco.com in 2006. It summarized my thoughts on ‘necessary elements of successful Ironman training.’ I thought the since a high percentage of us are training for a longer race this fall, it would be appropriate to resurrect this article. I modified …

Nutrition for the long run

It is not uncommon for athletes to tell us that they had heavy legs, low energy, and no ability to run at the end. Often times, a common theme from among these athletes is that they didn’t take in many (if any) carbohydrates during the run. There is a lesson …