Real Coaching Podcast

Joel Filliol revisits the purpose of the Real Coaching Podcast and the Substack long-form series with accompanying episodes focused on simplifying endurance training into "world class basics." In this episode he expands on his 2012 article "Top 20 Swim Rules for Faster Triathlon Swimming," arguing that conditioning and frequency drive improvement more than traditional drills, and that athletes sho...

The Mental Edge in Triathlon: Risk, Confidence, and Leaving One Rep in the Bank Joel Filliol introduces the Real Coaching Podcast, his background coaching elite triathletes, and the origin of "Real Coaching". Inspired by Jan Frodeno's Going Mental interview with Alistair Brownlee, Filliol reflects on the mental side of performance, distinguishing competition confidence and assertiveness from train...

Slowing Down to Go Faster: In this episode of The Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol, an international triathlon coach, delves into the significance of Zone 1 training. Contrasting the popular high-intensity training methods, Joel argues that consistent, low-intensity work over time is crucial for long-term athletic performance and talent development. He discusses the common training errors, part...

Progression: A powerful training heuristic In this episode of the Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol, an international coach based in the UK and Spain, dives into the concept of progression as a training heuristic. Reflecting on the lessons from his substack article 'Don't Be a January Champion,' he discusses the importance of timing and avoiding the common pitfall of too much intensity too soon....

Avoiding the January Champion Trap: Insights on Season Planning and Performance Longevity In this episode of the 'Real Coaching Podcast,' Joe Filliol, an experienced international coach, delves into the concept of effective periodization and the pitfalls of peaking too early in the season. Drawing on his extensive coaching background across multiple countries and elite athletes, Joe discusses the...

Championship Reflections in Triathlon: Common Errors and Key Insights In this episode of the Real Coaching Podcast, high-performance coach Joel Filliol reflects on common errors and key insights from championship performances in triathlon throughout 2025. Joel discusses the importance of managing training loads, avoiding early peaks, and respecting environmental conditions and travel. He also dive...

In this episode of The Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol welcomes Matt Bottrill from Matt Bottrill Performance Coaching. The discussion delves into Bottrill's extensive expertise in bike fitting, aerodynamics, wind tunnel testing, and optimising performance for world-class triathletes and cyclists. Topics include the process of refining bike positions, myths and trends in bike fitting, the impor...

In this episode of The Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol speaks with Gavin Smith, Head Coach of the Loughborough University Triathlon Program, about his experience coaching Olympic champion Cassandre Beaugrand to a gold medal at the Paris Games. They delve into the preparation, challenges, and strategies that led to her historic victory. The discussion also explores the dynamics of building trus...

In this episode of the Real Coaching Podcast,   Joel Filliol speaks with Italian coach Fabio Rastelli about his coaching experiences with his Turbo Tribe Squad, including French Olympians in Paris 2024, Leo Bergere, the Bronze medallist, and Leonie Periault. Fabio discusses the origins and success of his squad, the balance between individual and group training, and the nuances of managing athletes...

In this episode of the Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol is joined by Katie Zaferes, former World Triathlon Champion and double Olympic medallist   turned coach. The discussion delves into Katie's transition from being a world-class athlete to embarking on a coaching career. They explore Katie's reflection on her experiences, the inception of her new project 'AUXO Collective' based in North Caro...

In this episode of The Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol engages in an insightful discussion with Peter Leo, an endurance training scientist at Aus Cycling, and coach for the world tour cycling team, Jayco Alula. They delve into Peter's transition from a student to a researcher and coach, and explore his research interests, practical applications, and significant insights on durability, training...

In this episode of the Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol sits down with Drew Box, the co-coach of the JFTcrew squad, to discuss Drew's journey from being a coached athlete to becoming a coach himself. They delve into Drew's reasons for making the transition, the challenges he's faced, his advice for his younger self, and what makes good coaching. They also explore broader topics like the influen...

In this episode of The Real Coaching Podcast, Joel Filliol transitions the Real Coaching Podcast into The Real Physio Podcast, with guest Brad Beer from the Pogo Physio Clinic and The Physical Performance Show Podcast. The discussion dives deep into the importance of physiotherapy, the value of embedding a physio within training squads, and Brad's approach to high-performance sports physiotherapy....

Real Coaching Podcast: Wisdom in High Performance with Joel Filliol Joel Filliol reintroduces himself and his podcast, 'The Real Coaching Podcast,' after a hiatus. As a high-performance coach with extensive experience, including three Olympic Games and multiple world triathlon championships, Joel aims to share his unique insights and lessons learned from coaching across various contexts and countr...

In this episode of the Real Coaching podcast Joel discusses preparing to coach athletes in championships with Swedish coach Joachim Willén, coach of rising star Vasco Villaça of Portugal. "The more you look, the more you see." Topics discussed include what's different about championships and the Olympic Games, how coaches can get the best out of their athletes. Preparation, the physical and mental...

In this episode of the Real Coaching podcast Joel revisits the topic of effective triathlon swim training, on the basis of the original popular "Top 20 Rules for Faster Triathlon Swimming' article. Joel coverers why conditioning trumps drills, the role of frequency and volume in swim training, how to use swim 'toys' such as band, pull buoy and paddles, and different types of paddles. Joel also cov...

Canadian triathlon legend Barrie Shepley joins Joel on Episode 2 of season 3 of the Real Coaching Podcast. Barrie and Joel talk about Joel's progression from athlete to coach, and lessons learned along the way. From Joel's start racing in the Kids of Steel series in Ontario Canada, to the move to Victoria British Columbia to start 'real coaching', the Beijing Olympics, and how to work with top ath...

The Real Coaching Podcast is back for Season 3. Joel reflects on the 2020 season, where finding process in uncertainty was necessary for success, and answers questions on managing training within the covid19 context, coaching remotely, planning changes over the short and long term. Joel talks about his background in coaching, advice for ITU focused coaching. Also discussed are tips for athletes wh...

Arild Tveiten the Triathlon Norway Head Coach sits down with Joel to discuss all things triathlon and high performance, from the rise of Norway as a triathlon power, to testing, organization of sessions, altitude, season planning, the 70.3 world best time, Tokyo 2020 and more. Show Notes: http://joelfilliol.com/podcast/2019/1/21/arild-tveiten-norway-head-coach

The Real Coaching Podcast returns, with Joel answering questions on training, racing, performance, squad dynamics and more following the Gold Coast ITU Grand Final where the JFTcrew men went 1-2-3 in the WTS podium, and Katie Zaferes took silver for the women. Show notes:  https://joelfilliol.com/podcast/2019/1/17/17-questions-and-answers  

The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games may change to a sprint format combined with a mixed team relay: we discuss the background, history, racing and training implications. Lab testing season for triathletes is here, and we break down this trend, and why this doesn't move athletes performance forward. The marginalization of coaches, over-promising and under-delivering of sport science. Decision making and w...

Training needs in terms of importance are discussed, from total frequency and volume of training, to high intensity, to training distribution, to periodisation and tapering. We discuss Vicky Holland's interview, comparing and contrasting her training with Darren Smith and the Leeds Triathlon centre, the polarized approach, historical trends of planning and intensity distribution. Follow up questio...

Kona analysis including Frodeno vs Keinle, Ryf vs the clock, front pack dynamics, drafting, penalties, which pros should race Kona, and why we need smaller fields for better racing. We breakdown Triathlon New Zealand, and the resignation of the HPD, the history of success in New Zealand and the challenge of re-building the culture there. Back on the ever green doping topic, we discuss the ongoing...

The importance of Kona for triathlon, and the professional circuit, prize money, progression of the sport. Salinas ITU World cup, and development of runners into triathletes. High Performance funding and organisation, how "athlete-centered, coach driven" has become jargon and not reality. Key run sessions, organising run training, minimal effective dose, healthy training load and what causes injur...

The ITU WTS end of season races are reviewed including WTS Edmonton, the Grand Final in Cozumel, including the conditions, the tactics, the Brownlee drama and how the World Champions were decided. The 70.3 World Champs including the dominance by Holly Lawrence, the controversy around motor-pacing, entourages and transparency, are discussed along with the Fancy Bears WADA hack and TUE abuse and whe...