USA Triathlon and Fast Talk Labs announce the release of a new Polarized Training Certification Course for coaches.
New Course Is the First Polarized Training Certification Offered by a U.S. Olympic Federation
April 2, 2024 – Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA – USA Triathlon, the Olympic governing body for the sport of triathlon in the United States, and Fast Talk Laboratories, experts on endurance sports training methods, have partnered to produce a Polarized Training Certification Course. The new Polarized Training Certification offers coaches a comprehensive education in the 80/20 training method explored by Dr. Stephen Seiler and is now available to all endurance coaches at triathlonlearning.com.
The polarized training method, sometimes called 80/20 training, has become increasingly popular thanks largely to groundbreaking research by Dr. Stephen Seiler at the University of Agder in Norway and his colleagues. While examining the practices of elite endurance athletes from a variety of endurance sports, Dr. Seiler’s research found that high-performing athletes were doing workouts that were either low intensity, extensive, and low “stress” or high intensity, focused, and “high stress”—a polarized approach. In this training method, athletes devote about 80% of their training sessions to lower intensity exercise and about 20% of sessions to higher intensity workouts, often through interval workouts. This practice became known as the polarized training method, or 80/20 training, and is practiced by many elite, age-group, and masters athletes in triathlon, cycling, running, cross-country skiing, and other endurance sports.
USA Triathlon’s new Polarized Training Certification course, produced by Fast Talk Laboratories and drawing heavily from contributions by Dr. Stephen Seiler, certifies that coaches have a comprehensive understanding of 80/20 training. The course reveals tangible tools coaches can put to use immediately in coaching and training athletes. This course offers a full exploration of polarized training including:
- The principles and hallmarks of polarized training
- Intensity distribution
- Durability
- The three-zone model
- Polarized exercise physiology
- Polarized workouts for swimming, cycling, and running
- How to design and implement an 80/20 training plan for any endurance sport
“After seeing the success so many athletes have had using polarized training, coaches have been clamoring for more information on this method,” said Liana Tobin, USA Triathlon Education Manager. “Our collaboration with Fast Talk Laboratories enables us to offer coaches best-in-class coaching education on the hottest topics in triathlon.”
“It’s gratifying to see my research being applied both at the highest levels of sport and among age-group athletes,” commented Dr. Stephen Seiler. “The science shows that polarized training is a highly effective way to prepare for high performance, and I’m glad my contributions to the field have been formalized into an educational course for coaches.”
“The Polarized Training Certification course is the highest-quality educational content about this important and increasingly popular way of training,” said Trevor Connor, cycling coach and CEO of Fast Talk Laboratories. “Fast Talk Labs is pleased to help USA Triathlon show its continued commitment to coaches by investing in advanced, specialized coach education.”
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon and paratriathlon in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 3,500 events and races and connects with and supports more than 300,000 unique active members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work at the grassroots level with athletes, coaches, and race directors—as well as the USA Triathlon Foundation—USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including World Triathlon World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
About Fast Talk Laboratories
Fast Talk Laboratories is a fast-growing training knowledge base for cyclists, triathletes, runners, and coaches. We tap the most engaging experts in sports, sport science, and related fields to share knowledge and experience with our members through comprehensive deep dives, online events, and a dynamic Forum and social community. Our members are part of a vibrant community of science-minded athletes, coaches, and experts who seek to know themselves, to know the science, to understand the why behind the how, and to get more out of endurance sports. Our platform has sprung from the dynamic community of coaches, experts, and athletes of the Fast Talk podcast, originally hosted by VeloNews. We are the home of The Craft of Coaching with Joe Friel and a coaching development and education partner of USA Triathlon and USA Cycling. Fast Talk Labs is based in Boulder, Colorado. Learn more and join for free at fasttalklabs.com.
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