QOTD

"Specificity is a word I quite like," Anderson says. "Dispense with the inessentials, keep to the vitals."

and

"I've tried to interpret the findings of the best physiologists and translate them into sound practices," says Anderson. "That's made me a radical. We've turned some coaching sacred cows on their ear."

Two for one today! Both courtesy of John Anderson, Dave Moorcroft's long time coach.

The quotes were from a lengthy profile of Mr. Moorcroft, the Briton who set the world record at 5,000m in 1982, by the great track writer Kenny Moore in an SI article from 1982. While reading the piece it became apparent why Mr. Moorcroft was able to run such a spectacular race. First, he had a knowledgeable coach who actually read up on exercise physiology (the horror!) and questioned conventional wisdom. Additionally, he kept a great attitude even as injuries caused some major setbacks in his career, including ruining his chance for Olympic glory. Finally, he and his coach had a long term plan from the beginning and he stuck with that coach from age 15 until he hung it up. The result? Only a 13:00.42 5,000m WR.