triathlete

Breathe and Splash with Swim Instructor Christine Garrido

Breathe and Splash with Swim Instructor Christine Garrido

On this episode, we’re joined by my long-time friend, Christine Garrido! Christine is a certified swim instructor and has taught swimming for over 10 years. She recently founded @breatheandsplash swim school, which serves swimmers of all levels throughout Miami Dade and Broward County.

Christine has been swimming since she was seven years old; she was a competitive swimmer throughout her childhood all the way to college, and even swam for the Peruvian National Team!

She’s also provided sports mental performance coaching and consulting services to many high schools and private swim teams. When Christine’s not coaching swimmers, she spends her time with her son, Joaquim, who is 16 months old and already loving the water. Christine also continues to swim herself and regularly competes in open water swims and triathlons. I’ve raced with her before, and she’s very fast!

Christine shares with us her journey of how she got into swimming as a kid and how she fueled her passion for the sport to eventually start her own swim school. She explains why kids should learn how to swim, gives tips on how we can train our mind to get out of a “rut”, and even gets into how she kept health and fitness as a top priority throughout her pregnancy.

FORM Swim Goggles with Dan Eisenhardt - Creating the World’s First Smart Swim Goggles

FORM Swim Goggles with Dan Eisenhardt - Creating the World’s First Smart Swim Goggles

Dan Eisenhardt is the CEO of FORM, the company behind the world’s first smart swim goggles. Dan is no stranger to swimming and emerging technology - before starting FORM, Dan swam competitively for 14 years and founded Recon Instruments, which introduced the world’s first smart eyewear for sports in 2010. Recon made smart eyewear products for skiing, cycling, and running, and was acquired by Intel in 2015. FORM employs many of those from the original Intel-Recon squad, and thus leverages decades of combined expertise in sports-eyewear design, activity-tracking algorithms, and augmented-reality optics. Basically at FORM, they really know swimming, and really know tech.

Dan and I discussed his journey to creating FORM, all of the goggle’s features (metrics, build quality, open water functionality, etc.), their rigorous development and testing lifecycle, and other fun topics like Dan’s experience filming their promo commercial and his vision on the future of triathlon tech.

I’ve tested the goggles out in both the pool and open water, and I think they’re pretty amazing. They really do what they say they’re going to do, and work pretty damn well.

I had a great time with Dan, and it was a pleasure to have him on the podcast today! I really felt his passion and excitement for the goggles…and I hope that you do too.

Enjoy the chat!

Diving into Sweat and Hydration with Andy Blow

Diving into Sweat and Hydration with Andy Blow

Today we dive into sweat and hydration - two essential but often overlooked aspects to any athlete’s training - with Andy Blow, the Co-Founder and CEO of Precision Hydration.

Andy is a Sports Scientist with a degree in Sports and Exercise Science from the University of Bath, UK. He’s an expert in sweat (swexpert?), dehydration, and cramping, and previously worked as the Team Sports Scientist for the Benetton and Renault Formula 1 teams. In his younger days, he was an elite level triathlete and finished in the Top 10 of Ironman and Ironman 70.3 races. He even won an XTERRA Triathlon World Title!

We discussed a variety of topics including salty sweaters, hydration for endurance training sessions and races, dehydration and hyponatremia (over hydrating), the effects of having a beer before/after a race, and so much more.

This was a really fascinating and fun chat with Andy. You’ll definitely learn a few things about hydration, and his tips will hopefully help you on your next swim, bike, run, walk, hike, workout, etc. I hope you enjoy this episode!

Jan Matt: Biking, Running, and Doing What Makes You Happy

Jan Matt: Biking, Running, and Doing What Makes You Happy

On today’s podcast we have my very good friend, Jan Matt. Jan Matt is currently a Real Estate Finance Associate and loves running, cycling, and lifting weights. We’ve been close friends since meeting at our alma mater, the University of Florida, and while we don’t play basketball, eat froyo, and drink boba together like we did during college, we do try to go running and drink craft beer whenever we link up nowadays.

In this episode we discuss a bunch of topics, including how Jan Matt got into running and cycling, his first triathlon, his first 10k, and running with his puppy, Zuko. He’s also completed some very interesting and inspiring self challenges that include running 30 miles in 30 days, and running 13 miles in 13 hours. I thought these were really fun goals that anyone can set and achieve for themselves and do with friends, at any time of the year - especially during these times when pretty much all races are cancelled due to COVID-19.

Jan Matt is a great example of someone who follows his passions and interests, especially when it comes to physical fitness, and isn’t afraid to “taste something new”. He’s always stepping out of his comfort zone, keeping things fresh, and through this, always challenging and bettering himself as a person.

This episode was filled with a lot of laughs, a lot of stories, and it was really just a great time catching up. I hope that you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!

Kim Urmaza: From 5k to Marathon and Half Ironman Duathlon in 1 year

Kim Urmaza: From 5k to Marathon and Half Ironman Duathlon in 1 year

On today’s podcast, we have a very special guest - my long-time friend Kim Urmaza. Kim is the Head Athletic Trainer at a high school down here in South Florida, and is pursuing a Master's degree in Kinesiology with a double concentration in sports performance and orthopedic rehabilitation. She’s a certified personal trainer, a member of the USA National Duathlon Team, and a blackbelt in Nisei Goju Ryu Karate.

In this episode, Kim shares with us how in just one year, she ran her first 5k, bought her first bike, completed her first multisport event, and then went on to qualify for the Duathlon World Championships. Oh yeah, AND she ran her very first marathon. She’s had an absolutely tremendous year in multisport, and is a shining example that hard work, consistency, and dedication really pays off.

Kim gives plenty of key tips and insights into her training and racing for duathlon, and also imparts the mindset needed to endure some of the toughest moments when you’re out there, exhausted, in pain, and ready to give up, during a race.

Sports Mental Performance with Seth Rose

Sports Mental Performance with Seth Rose

On today’s podcast episode, we welcome Seth Rose of Transition Performance to the show! Seth is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) under the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) and has consulting experience with diverse athletes and performers in sports such as baseball, softball, golf, pole vaulting, rugby, soccer, basketball, martial arts, endurance athletes (swimming, cycling, running, triathlon), and many more at both the club and intercollegiate levels. Seth is super passionate about his craft and is an endurance athlete himself.

I’m very grateful that we connected online and were able to set up this podcast episode. Our chat is packed with some great stories and practical tips to help you train and prepare for your next triathlon, or any athletic event in general. Be sure to check out Seth and give him a follow at all his social links below!

Sports Physical Therapy with Dr. Ryan Balmes

Sports Physical Therapy with Dr. Ryan Balmes

The Triathlete Beat podcast welcomes its FIRST GUEST EVER…Dr. Ryan Balmes! Ryan is a sports physical therapist who co-runs the ENDVR Health physical therapy clinic in Atlanta, Georgia. He is passionate about helping all athletes enjoy and play their sport. I was lucky to catch him while on a weekend trip to Atlanta and really glad we met up to make some content. Definitely check the episode that we recorded on his podcast, The ENDVR Health Podcast as well.

Triathlon Training - Swim:Bike:Run Ratios

Triathlon Training - Swim:Bike:Run Ratios

How much training time should one spend on swimming vs. biking vs. running? This is a very common thought that every beginner triathlete experiences when first entering the sport. For those just starting out, I discuss why one shouldn't initially think in terms of swim/bike/run training ratios. Instead, focus more on training to one's weaknesses and building up overall fitness, which will get you primed and ready for that first triathlon and more.

Triathlon Tips: Swimming Basics

Triathlon Tips: Swimming Basics

Are you not a good swimmer? Want to get into triathlon but don't know how to start swim training? Maybe you don't even know how to swim? Took lessons ages ago and forgot how to swim? Need to improve your swimming? Need a refresher on a few swimming fundamentals? If so, then this episode is for YOU!