Mainly to say just that LS's bike strength has always seemed to be a "masher". and even on the bike he's slightly gawky looking (knees flare outward); it certainly it'snt "smooth" (generally you don’t need smoothness to put out the fastest, most powerful bike power…you truly can “fight” through the pedals to achieve a fast bike split). Which for the most part is sorta the opposite of what you want in the water. I mean you can have "ugly" strokes and swim really really fast, but for the most part if your not "connected" trying to rely on high engine through the water is kinda the worst take you can have. So in a way it's almost irrelevant how much of an engine he has. I've not deep dived his swim stroke analysis to slowing it down to milliseconds like I do my own athletes, but you can just watch videos and see the disconnect; hips sit very low in the water, doesn't look like great rotation. I think his greatest issue is just his flexibility or lack of; he just looks like he swims "tight", like he truly is trying to just go as fast as possible, instead of being smooth as possible. But again that's a lot from the AOS and lack of time in the water.
Likely all very fixable things, but the timetable to fix them likely doesn't match the needs/career for LS at this point. Again this is something that should have been done 7 years ago, but the racing demands back then weren't as dynamic as they are now, so he got away with it back then basically. Now he can't because there is 18 guys in a race "filling the gaps" what used to only be a handful back in the day.
ETA: Again he's a fast AF swimmer for a triathlete. It's not like he's a bum in the water, but it's to the point that if he doesnt reach the chase pack, his dreams of winning a world title are over; that's the "demands of competition" that has certainly changed over the years in the sport. And this "all in" may result in him not getting there. Not every goal is achieved simply because you go "all in" on it; he may be going for a goal that is unatinable for the time table he needs it to be.
Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II
Likely all very fixable things, but the timetable to fix them likely doesn't match the needs/career for LS at this point. Again this is something that should have been done 7 years ago, but the racing demands back then weren't as dynamic as they are now, so he got away with it back then basically. Now he can't because there is 18 guys in a race "filling the gaps" what used to only be a handful back in the day.
ETA: Again he's a fast AF swimmer for a triathlete. It's not like he's a bum in the water, but it's to the point that if he doesnt reach the chase pack, his dreams of winning a world title are over; that's the "demands of competition" that has certainly changed over the years in the sport. And this "all in" may result in him not getting there. Not every goal is achieved simply because you go "all in" on it; he may be going for a goal that is unatinable for the time table he needs it to be.
Brooks Doughtie, M.S.
Exercise Physiology
-USAT Level II
Last edited by:
B_Doughtie: Dec 23, 23 5:23