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David Mikel (MS, CSCS)

@transcend_endurance

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Transform your pace, a hybrid approach for runners.

This system has proven to be game changing with hundreds of athletes I’ve coached over the last 5 years!

Don’t hesitate to comment below or DM me if you have any questions.

#hybridathlete #hybridathletetraining #christianathlete #runforyourlife #army #dadrunner #armyfitness #tacticalstrength #marathonrunner #marathon #runner #run #running #strength #bodybuilding #bodybuilder #powerlifting #powerlifter by @transcend_endurance

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a year ago

Discover who you really are at mile 22.

Comment “Marathon” and I’ll DM you a discount code!

Check out all of the programs at Transcend-Endurance.com

Don’t hesitate to DM me if you have any questions!

#hybridathlete #hybridathletetraining #christianathlete #runforyourlife #army #dadrunner #armyfitness #tacticalstrength #marathonrunner #marathon #marathontraining #marathons #runners #runnersofinstagram #runwithyourheart #runningmotivation #runnerscommunity #runrunrun #runnersworld #runnerslife by @transcend_endurance

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a year ago

This 16 week program is for the disciplined and the dedicated.

It’s going to test your grit, but in a productive way that will not just break your body down, but build it up to be physically ready when the time comes.

It can be purchased as an Excel file or on the coaching software Training Peaks!

Training Peaks is great because it will sync with your Garmin account so you can be lead through the endurance workouts from your watch.

The strength workouts will appear on the app on your phone with quick access video links and the ability to log the weights/reps you complete.

#army #armyfitness #tacticalstrength #armyfitness #specialforces #specialforcesgroup #greenberets #infantry #infantrylife #infantrymen #3rdinfantrydivision #1stinfantrydivision #armystrong #armylife #gruntstyle #gruntlife #hybridathlete #hybridathletetraining #christianathlete #operatorfitness by @transcend_endurance

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a year ago

I haven’t enjoyed camping for almost 10 years.

After years in the Army, too many wet nights in the field and too much time sleeping on hard ground pretty much ruined it for me.

But recently, something changed. I bought a nice tent, packed up my family, including our 6-month-old, and we spent 3 days and 2 nights camping.

Part of the reason was simply to have an adventure together. But I also wanted to deliberately make ourselves a little uncomfortable.

I wanted to test my own ability to maintain a positive attitude when things weren’t convenient, and more importantly, show my 5-year-old son that our attitude toward discomfort often matters more than the discomfort itself.

I also wanted our family to experience life with less.

No comfortable beds. Fewer conveniences. Fewer distractions.

It reminded me how many things we think we need that are actually things we’re simply fortunate enough to have.

That’s something I’m increasingly trying to put into practice from the teachings of Jesus. He repeatedly warned against allowing possessions, comfort, and worldly things to become the treasures around which we build our lives.

Following Jesus isn’t just about agreeing with what He taught.

It’s learning from Him and actually trying to live differently because of it.

And sometimes a few nights in a tent with your family can be a pretty good reminder of just how much you already have.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#FaithAndFitness #Family #Camping #Jesus #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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15 hours ago

Social media has warped our expectations of what normal endurance training should look like.

We constantly see running influencers doing marathons and ultras every few weeks. It makes racing twice a year seem like you’re barely racing at all.

But there’s a difference between running a race and truly racing it.

If you race a marathon or ultra near your full potential, you’re creating substantial fatigue that takes time to recover from. Trying to do that constantly makes it difficult to follow a long-term progression of recovery → base building → intensity → specificity → taper → race.

For the average runner who has a job, family, normal recovery capacity, and wants to perform well while staying healthy, I generally prefer no more than two long-distance goal races per year.

That gives us time for a deliberate post-race transition, months of aerobic base building, and a period where we can really develop strength in the gym.

Then, as the race approaches, we can emphasize roughly 8–10 weeks of higher-intensity and race-specific work while reducing strength to maintenance.

Does that mean you can’t race more frequently?

Absolutely not.

If racing frequently is what keeps you motivated, provides community, and makes running enjoyable, race more often. Just understand that every event doesn’t have to be an all-out performance.

Sometimes you’re racing.

Sometimes you’re just running a race.

Both are okay. Your training should reflect which one you’re doing.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#MarathonTraining #RunningCoach #EnduranceTraining #RaceTraining #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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4 days ago

18 MILESSS TODAYYYY & A NEW PR🏃🏻‍♀️💨 I needed this run as we are about 3 weeks away from @nycmarathon and it was the confidence booster I needed. Training has been challenging but thankful to see it pay off.

Shoutout to my awesome coach @transcend_endurance and to my biggest fans who brought me water today at mile 14 🥹 (swipe to slide 4 🐺♥️) I wouldn’t be able to do this without them!

During this run I kept repeating to myself, “What a gift knowing that this is the hardest thing I have to do today & that my body can handle it.” Running is not only physical, but mental and spiritual. #countyourblessings 🦋

We are still fundraising for @thebookfairiesny, please donate if you can! Thank you to those who have donated! Link in my bio

Swipe for some inspo! Congrats to the GOAT @kipchogeeliud!

https://give.thebookfairies.org/fundraiser/7203110

@on
@adidas
@adidasrunning

#lifestyle #mindset #dothehardthing #running taken in New York, New York by @transcend_endurance

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6 days ago

After a marathon, I see runners make one of two mistakes:

They do too little, or they do too much.

Some take 1–2 weeks completely off. Others are so motivated for the next training cycle that they start running again almost immediately.

I prefer a deliberate 2-week transition phase. A marathon creates more fatigue than you may realize, but complete inactivity isn’t necessary either.

Week 1: Keep aerobic work low-impact and Zone 1. Treadmill walking, elliptical, or StairMaster work well. Most sessions can be ~30 minutes, with perhaps one 45-minute and one 60-minute session.

Upper-body strength can return fairly quickly. Later in the week, gradually reintroduce hips/core and potentially a very light lower-body session. Skip plyometrics.

Week 2: Begin easy Zone 1–2 jogging at very low volume. Again, ~30 minutes for most sessions, with one around 45 and one around 60.

Upper-body training can get heavier, while lower-body and hips/core progress toward moderate training.

Then, assuming you’re recovering well, Week 3 begins the next base-building phase.

The goal isn’t to see how quickly you can get back to hard training.

Recover deliberately so you’re actually ready to build again.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? I offer individualized endurance, strength, and tactical coaching through TrainingPeaks. Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching to get started.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#MarathonRecovery #MarathonTraining #RunningCoach #EnduranceTraining #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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9 days ago

3:12:45. A 20-minute marathon PR and about 40 seconds per mile faster than my previous best.

I’m incredibly excited about how the Twin Cities Marathon went. This was a huge step toward my long-term goals of breaking 3 hours and eventually qualifying for Boston, which will likely require me to get closer to 2:50.

More importantly, this race gave me a lot of confidence in the process.

I really liked this training cycle. I placed much more emphasis on lactate threshold training, with only a small amount of VO₂ max work toward the end to sharpen things up. I’m keeping that philosophy for Carmel next spring, but progressing the system.

I’ll replace my two Zone 1 incline walks with easy Zone 1 treadmill runs at 2–3% incline, increasing my running frequency. During base building, I’ll also gradually add roughly 5–10 minutes to shorter runs, 10–15 minutes to my moderate-long run, and 20–30 minutes to my long run.

The biggest thing I still need to improve?

Stress management during the taper.

I think excessive stress contributed to my previous two marathons not reflecting my fitness. I handled it better this time, but there’s still room to improve.

Race-day fueling was nearly perfect: 10 oz of honey across two soft flasks, taking about ⅓ of a flask every 30 minutes, plus electrolyte capsules every hour.

And I’ve learned something important about myself: I need more water than some runners. The bottles my wife handed me around miles 8 and 18 were crucial. Instead of fighting that, I’ll plan around it again.

Now it’s time to recover, rebuild, and start working toward Carmel Marathon next spring.

Sub-3 is getting closer.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#MarathonTraining #RunningCoach #MarathonPR #Sub3Marathon #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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10 days ago

This one was absolutely epic, both physically and mentally.

20 min PR (40 sec/mile faster)

A marathon takes absolutely everything out of you.

It takes focus, consistency, and discipline for 4-6 months with a goal a long way off.

In the taper, it forces you to refine your mental strategies to deal with anxiety and to maintain your confidence.

In the race, it forces you to hold your attention for hours and be patient, to figure out how to re-perceive the pain, and then leave nothing left in the tank in the final 6 miles that feel like a max effort 10k after a 20 mile warm up.

If you can get in the zone, it can almost feel like a near death experience where you visualize all of the good things in your life that you have to be thankful for (God, my wife, and my sons).

It can also be a transcendent experience that will leave your soul open before God when you constantly call out to him for his presence.

It’s all for him.

He is an awesome and loving God that has proven his existence to me so many times I can’t even count, and his path is filled with peace and purpose. by @transcend_endurance

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13 days ago

Stay on the path by @transcend_endurance

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13 days ago

Two days before a marathon is when things start to get interesting.

You spend months training for one day, but somehow it still feels far away—until you start physically packing your bags, laying out your gear, and getting ready to leave for the airport.

Then it becomes real. And with that can come some anxiety.

Today I tried to keep things simple: take it easy, do a little extra recovery, stay on top of high-quality food and my carb load, and even take an ice bath—which I almost never do.

I also spent some time deep breathing and intentionally calming my mind.

But the most effective thing I’ve found for managing stress has been continually realigning my mind toward God whenever I notice anxiety creeping in.

It reminds me what actually matters. And often, the thing that seemed so important a few minutes earlier gets put back into its proper place.

Jesus asked:

“Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying?” — Matthew 6:27 CSB

I’ve done the training. I’ll prepare as well as I can. But worrying about Sunday’s outcome won’t change it.

Now I get to enjoy traveling with my family and be grateful for another opportunity to race.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? I offer individualized endurance, strength, and tactical coaching through TrainingPeaks. Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching to get started.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#MarathonTraining #FaithAndFitness #RunningCoach #TwinCitiesMarathon #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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15 days ago

3 days until the Twin Cities Marathon, and today the carb load begins.

I started the morning with another short race-day simulation:

Dynamic warm-up → 4 min Zone 1 jog → leg swings, A-skips and B-skips → another 4 min jog with the final minute at 7:30/mi → 1 mile at race pace → 20 min easy Zone 1–2 cooldown.

The current race plan is to start around 7:30/mi and gradually increase the pace by roughly 5 seconds per mile until I’m around 7:15/mi, depending on how I’m feeling. From there, I’ll try to hold it as long as the day allows.

Now it’s time to fuel.

Today’s target is about 600g of carbohydrates.

That doesn’t mean spending three days eating junk food. I’m mostly increasing portions and adding easily digestible carbs around the foods I already eat. Today that included a large serving of white rice and juice between meals.

I also took 35g of carbs from honey before AND after today’s run. Honey will be my exclusive carbohydrate source during the marathon, so I’m continuing to give my gut exactly what it will see on race day.

Normally I’m around 350–400g of carbs/day, so the goal now is simple:

Top off glycogen. Keep my stomach comfortable. Reduce fatigue. Don’t do anything stupid...

The fitness has already been built. Now I’m preparing to actually use it.

I’m David Mikel, a strength and conditioning coach who helps runners and tactical athletes pursue excellence in faith and fitness through evidence-based endurance and strength programming and the teachings of Jesus.

Need help building your training around your goals? I offer individualized endurance, strength, and tactical coaching through TrainingPeaks. Go to the Transcend Endurance website and apply for private coaching to get started.

Train with Purpose.
Embrace the Process.

#MarathonTraining #CarbLoading #RunningCoach #TwinCitiesMarathon #TranscendEndurance by @transcend_endurance

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16 days ago