I have to agree that there is a little bit too much biology for me. I still listen but find it easy to tune out like in the last episode talking about the immune system and IgG, IgA etc.
I find Pete’s racing insights pretty interesting - more Pete.
Amber Pierce was a great guest as well.
I will always listen from start to finish. But the 20+ minute segments about these little cellular level differences that the body sees when comparing organic vine ripened tomatoes harvested in September with genetically modified hydroponic grown tomatoes harvested in February from more nitrate rich soil…
I’m like, “cool…So what kind of pizza are we getting tonight?”
I like the deep dives. Even when they are of no value to me personally (like anything to do with food intolerances). While some of them are kind of niche (again, food intolerance), many of them have a lot of valuable bits about how the body works. That’s fundamentally what we’re doing here, manipulating the body based on evidence-based principles. It pays to at least hear about the biology.
The podcast seems to go in streaks of being heavy on a particular kind of content for a while. It also seems that this causes people to complain every time. I think the lesson from that is to employ a little patience.
I personally love the deep dives, and as a coach, I really appreciated the discussions with Amber about women’s issues. They don’t apply to me, but they could apply to clients, and they apply to my wife’s athletes that she trains as a gymnastics coach and program director. She listened to the last episode with @ambermalika with great interest - that is once she got over the initial shock of hearing what the TrainerRoad podcast was delving into while we were on our road trip.
Some of the information is way more than I can digest at once, but I get pretty excited for deep dives, particularly on nutrition and physiology. I could honestly give two flying 
about plan adjustments any more. It’s been quite a while since I gleaned anything new from JoeTRuser’s question about what he should do when he’s got 24 weeks instead of 28 weeks before his A race, or whatever. Then, I’ve gone back and listened to the whole podcast library at this point, so those new to the podcast probably still find those questions interesting. In which case I’d suggest starting at episode 1 and really appreciating the evolution of the podcast from then to now… it’s striking.
Love the deep dives. I can understand that they aren’t going to appeal to everyone, but they are great for the people who really nerd out on the science of training and nutrition. I really like to understand the “why” before I’m convinced something is going to work.
Disagree strongly with the OP. I love the biology and the deep dives. The TR team always relates it back to “does it make you faster”. Data and science is much, much more interesting than a gear review. And the team does certainly relate the biology to the plans and how they are executed. Keep it up Jonathan, Chad and Nate!
I agree. Immune information is of no use to me TODAY!!! But who knows what could happen to myself or one of my family members in the morning. A co-worker was the picture of health for 48 years. About 5 years ago she was diagnosed with Wegener’s, a severe immune disease. No warning, no cause and her life is a battle just to stay alive it seems!
I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE ALL THE EFFORT AND RESEARCH THAT IS GOING INTO ALL OF THIS INFORMATION!!!
Thank you All!
The deep dives are what separates real science from bro science.
I like to know why instead of dumbly following what someone says is the latest and greatest.
Unfortunately, I could see how many listeners don’t care and would prefer bro science…
Onto a more important topic, @Nate_Pearson tell us about the Live Valve!
I don’t mind the deep dives but I do miss them opening their shows with their own personal stories from the week. Following their process, progress and failures can be so helpful, inspiring and motivational. The information that we receive from the weekly questions are so helpful, but I’m hooked on the TR family. Thank you Nate, Chad, Jonathan and Pete.
Re: deep dives
I understand what Chad is saying.
It’s just that I don’t understand what he’s saying.
Know what I’m saying?
I love the podcast. I have to admit I’ve been skipping forward on some of really deep dive stuff lately. I want to know what works and what doesn’t but I don’t necessarily need to know exactly why and how it works. a quick summary would keep me satisfied. As I listen sometimes I find myself thinking “I’m just trying to ride my bike fast, this is crazy!” My favorite episodes are athlete interviews. I really enjoy the Kona interviews with the amateurs. I find the different way everyone trains and eats really interesting.
I preferred the podcast when it was shorter and more concise, two hours plus is the norm these days, far too much in depth biology for me. I’d like to hear more about how people can personalise their training, or what the plans are for Trainer Road, as others have said, there hasn’t been any discussion on polarised training, yet we have had deep dives on white and brown fat cells. I’ve found I’ve gone from listening every week to just scrolling through these days. Shorter and more on point for me please.
I love and need the deep dives.
I want to get as fast as possible as quickly as possible. So I’m all about anyone throwing science to back up how I should train.
It’s what makes trainerroad great. Even though I use trainerroad I still feel I’m self coaching, so having the scientific knowledge behind I think is really helpful
To continue to come up with current content every week for 2 hours , they need to do deep dives.
I love it, it’s applicable, and insightful. I love learning from them , and appreciate it all.
Tremendous efforts. Way to go TR and keep up the awesome work.
Learning and applying the science helps us all get faster!
Me too. Easy to do. Still a little annoying.
I wish they would have a deep dive into biology podcast. Maybe call it TheBioBreak or TheDive. Maybe TheFastForward.
I miss that too. I don’t mind expanding the format (but it would be nice to have topics with time listed so fast forwarding is easier for those of us driving to work and listening to the podcast, not watching on YouTube), but your post made me realize that what I REALLY miss is the personal side. I’ve never skied in my life, but the stories from the ski lodge sucked me right in! I love to hear the personal experiences and learnings, and man, Amber was just fantastic.
Yeah, I’m thinking the same at times. Seems like some significant portion of the deep dives end without any real conclusion or actionable information.
Where does the 2 hour requirement come from? Maybe it would make sense to break it into 2 separate podcasts with an emphasis on biology, nutrition, etc in one and the other on race tactics, equipment, training plans in the other.
I also LOVE the deep dives and often listen multiple times. Oddly, as a triathlete, the race tactics really don’t apply to me, but I enjoy them also as I always pick up something of value. We all find jewels and some things that don’t pertain to each of us. The deep dives have really helped me as a very long time triathlete who has seen the various trends, nutritional products galore, and training methods. I’m also a certified coach so having real studies instead of anecdotes to refer to is huge for both potential clients as well as myself. Keep it up guys!