Original episode & show notes | Raw transcript
This document explores the key themes from a conversation between coach Kolie Moore and athlete Cole Tamburri, a national-champion-winning cyclist who concurrently pursued a PhD in astrophysics. Their discussion offers profound insights into the nature of athletic development, mental fortitude, and the symbiosis between life and sport.
A core theme is the psychological benefit of facing challenges early in an athletic career. Cole began with a modest FTP (Functional Threshold Power) of ~276 watts and had to fight for every result.
The Problem with Early, Easy Success: Athletes who dominate from the start (e.g., winning all their lower-category races) often develop an identity tied to winning. When they reach the elite level, where winning is rare and suffering is constant, they can become frustrated or fall out of love with the sport. They haven’t developed the tools to cope with not being at the front.
The Value of Early Struggle: Cole’s journey was the opposite. He was “always” struggling, even in local races. This cultivated a deep appreciation for every small success. Making the selection in a local pro/1/2 road race felt like a monumental achievement because he remembered when it seemed impossible. This perspective fosters long-term motivation and gratitude.
Key Takeaway: Early struggles build a resilient athletic character. Learning how to lose, how to suffer, and how to value incremental progress is a more sustainable path to long-term success and enjoyment than an early, unbroken winning streak.
A high FTP is a prerequisite for competing at a high level, but it is not a guarantee of success. The podcast uses the Green Mountain Stage Race (GMSR) criterium as a perfect case study.
Fitness as a Blunt Instrument: In many races, a superior engine can compensate for tactical weaknesses. An athlete can ride away from the field or make up for poor positioning through sheer power.
Race Craft as the Sharp Edge: Elite races, especially technical criteriums like GMSR, neutralize raw fitness advantages. Success depends on a different skillset:
Positioning: Fighting for a spot in the top 10-20 wheels from the very start.
Bike Handling: Navigating tight corners and a chaotic pack with confidence.
Energy Conservation: Knowing when to pedal and when to coast, using the draft effectively.
Aggression: Having the confidence and “go-get-‘em attitude” to take a spot when it appears.
The Lesson of GMSR: Cole’s multi-year quest to finish the GMSR crit highlights this distinction. Despite having a world-class FTP, his initial attempts were thwarted by a lack of these specific skills. His journey to finally being competitive in that race was a testament to deliberately practicing and embracing the uncomfortable, chaotic situations that build race craft.
Cole managed to increase his FTP by over 100 watts while pursuing a PhD in astrophysics. This was not an accident; it required specific strategies.
Compartmentalization: The ability to be fully present in the task at hand. “When I’m working, I’m working. And when I’m training, I’m training.” This mental separation prevents the stress of one domain from bleeding into and compromising the other.
Strategic Periodization of Life: Recognizing that there are distinct “seasons” for both work and training. Cole identified periods in his academic calendar (like Thanksgiving break) where he could implement massive training blocks (e.g., 40-hour weeks) and other times (like right before exams or project deadlines) when training had to take a backseat.
The “All-In” Mindset: For Cole, the sheer volume of commitment required was only sustainable because he was “all-in” on both pursuits. The passion for both cycling and astrophysics provided the fuel. A half-hearted approach would have led to burnout in one or both.
The Flexible Lifestyle: A PhD program, while demanding, offers more flexibility than a traditional 9-to-5 job. This allows training to be scheduled around academic work, a crucial component of success.
The podcast provides a model for an evolving, maturing coach-athlete relationship.
Phase 1: Building Trust: The initial phase involved Cole learning to trust the process. This meant following the training plan, resting when told to rest, and, crucially, pushing harder than he thought possible when prescribed (e.g., double VO2 max days). The coach provides the “permission” to do what seems impossible.
Phase 2: Developing Agency: The relationship’s pinnacle is when the athlete develops their own agency. This is the ability to:
Listen to one’s body: Recognize deep fatigue beyond normal training tiredness.
Communicate effectively: Articulate that fatigue to the coach.
Make autonomous decisions: Decide to cut a workout short or skip it entirely, knowing it’s the right long-term decision.
The Plan is “Written in Sand”: This analogy is key. The training plan is not written in stone (unmovable) nor in water (meaningless). It’s written in sand—it provides structure and a clear path, but it can be easily rewritten based on the athlete’s feedback and life’s circumstances.
The “no free lunch” principle is a harsh reality. High achievement demands sacrifice.
The Social Cost: In the beginning, Cole’s social life was the area that was sacrificed to make time for both school and cycling.
The Physical and Psychological Cost: The most significant cost was a damaging relationship with food.
Toxic Sport Culture: Cole internalized the harmful rhetoric of the sport, epitomized by the phrase “train like a horse, eat like a rabbit.”
Underfueling: For years, he severely restricted his food intake, believing it was necessary for performance. This is a direct path to Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S), a condition with severe health and performance consequences (hormonal disruption, poor recovery, mental fog, etc.).
The Turning Point: The breakthrough in his performance and well-being came when he actively worked to heal this relationship, a process he describes as slow and difficult. He had to learn to trust that fueling his body adequately was the key to unlocking his potential.
This is the podcast’s most powerful message. Cole’s biggest leaps in performance did not come from training harder, but from becoming happier and more balanced.
The Danger of a Singular Identity: When cycling is everything, an athlete’s self-worth becomes dangerously tied to their last workout or race result. This creates immense pressure and anxiety.
Filling the Cup: Cole found fulfillment in other areas of his life—his academic work, his relationships, his family. This “filled his cup,” reducing his reliance on cycling for validation. A bad race was just a bad race, not a reflection of his worth as a person.
The “Fatigue Security Blanket”: This term describes the comfortable, fulfilling exhaustion that comes from pursuing things you love. It’s a stark contrast to the draining, stressful fatigue of being over-trained and under-fueled.
The Ultimate Proof: The most striking anecdote is Cole’s performance on the Mount Greylock hill climb.
At his lightest (~145 lbs), under-fueled and obsessive, his time was 49 minutes.
A few years later, after gaining 20 pounds and finding a healthy relationship with food and life, his time was 40 minutes.
He became profoundly faster by becoming heavier, healthier, and happier.
This journey illustrates that the relentless pursuit of a single metric (like body weight) is often counterproductive. Sustainable high performance is a holistic endeavor, built on a foundation of physical health, mental well-being, and a balanced life.