👋 Hey. Welcome to issue #135 of The Everyday Athlete Newsletter.
I'm on my honeymoon. The phone is off. This newsletter was scheduled last week. Enjoy #135 🙂.
Here are my 3 favourite ideas, learns and resources to help you improve your performance this week (4 min read):
🚴 Nils van der Poel's training approach
Nils van der Poel is a Swedish speed skating legend — double Olympic gold and a handful of world records.
And he published his entire training approach for anyone to copy.
My summary: Keep it simple.
Van der Poel boiled down speed skating success to just two things:
- ⏱️ How fast can you skate at competition pace
- 🫁 How good is your aerobic engine?
That's it. No fancy metrics. No overcomplicated programming.
He obsessively focused on skating laps at his target race pace (30.0 seconds) and building a monster aerobic system.
Other interesting notes:
- 😴 Rest: His schedule was 5 days training, 2 days completely off. These weren't "active recovery" days—they were proper do-nothing days. He found this was a sustainable rhythm for his life and training.
- 🎯 Specificity: He practised racing, not just skating. Solo sessions with lane changes, matching competition conditions exactly. As he puts it: "You become good at what you practice."
Sometimes simplicity is the answer.
🧂Mingle
Last week I recommended the Yuka app.
After scanning everything in our pantry with it, the app recommended some better alternatives for a few condiments.
Coincidentally recommended to me the week before by my aunty, a brand that kept appearing was Mingle.
Healthy seasonings and sauces.
Looks elite.
Time to start transitioning the condiment shelf.
Check it out here.
💊 The $11 version of eightsleep
The right body temperature is critical for quality sleep.
See, our bodies need to cool down to fall asleep—it's a natural signal that tells our brain it's bedtime. And the optimal body temperature changes during the different phases of sleep.
And so, on the “when we’re rich” list, is the $4k eightsleep pod.
Until then, the amino acid glycine is now going in the trolley.
It’s shown to lower core body temperature – by increasing blood flow to your skin and extremities, allowing heat to escape more efficiently.
Which lets us fall to sleep faster and get better-quality sleep.
Dan Garner (wizard) recommends 3-5g within 30-60 mins of bed.
I’ll let you know how I get on.
That's it!
Have a great weekend 🤙
Matt
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The Everyday Athlete Newsletter is not a licensed health service nor a substitute for professional health advice, treatment or assessment. The information shared in this email is general and written for a specific audience. If you’re struggling, please see a healthcare professional.
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