David Tilbury-Davis coaches or has coached triathlon household names such as Ashleigh Gentile, Lionel Sanders, Skye Moench, Corinne Abraham, Cody Beals, and Matt Hanson, and he’s been doing so for three decades. In this episode, David explains his “evidence-led” in contrast to “evidence-based” approaches, how he gives athletes autonomy within structured training blocks, and why understanding your race day "poker hand" matters more than race-day magic. We discuss block periodization across the four disciplines of triathlon, how the Norwegian Method is more a product of excellent professionalism, cognitive load in VO2 work, and why even successful performances need analysis. In the moment I found most affecting, David talks about how an athlete deals with setbacks separates the great from the merely good.

Links mentioned in this episode:

David's website: tilburydavis.com

David on Instagram: @tilburydavis

Book: Think Like a Rocket Scientist by Ozan Varol

Book: The Scout Mindset by Julia Galef

Book: Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb

Book: How to Decide, by Annie Duke

Resource: Swim Smooth