High Performance Physiology

Chris Beardsley and Rob Mauceri

The High Performance Physiology Podcast is co-hosted by Chris Beardsley and Rob Mauceri. Each episode showcases an example of how muscle physiology and biomechanics can be used to identify the best ways to train for athletic performance.

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26 episodes
Avg 36 min
English

Episodes 26

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#40
October 3 · 24 min
40 Exercise periodization
Chris and Rob respond to the popular trend in strength and conditioning for coaches to program changes in the main exercises every couple of weeks rather than just sticking with the same exercise for meaningful periods of time.
#39
September 19 · 28 min
39 Organizing a training week
Responding to a listener's question, Chris and Rob explain how to organize a training week that includes two strength training sessions (in accordance with the High Performance Physiology Method) in addition to either two sports practices or one sports practice plus a game or competition. They also comment on how to add cardio on top of those training sessions where desired.
#38
September 12 · 38 min
38 Clusters, RIR, and VBT
In this episode, Chris and Rob first describe how clusters, repetitions in reserve (RIR), and velocity-based training (VBT) work from a physiological perspective. Secondly, they talk about how to make use of these techniques in practice during strength training programs.
#37
August 29 · 50 min
37 Warm-ups
Chris and Rob tackle the topic of warm-ups, starting with the basic exercise science concept of increasing muscle temperature before moving on to tackle the additional rationales proposed in the fitness industry, such as [1] potentiation, [2] changing psychological state to one that helps maximize adaptations, [3] practicing form or technique, and [4] making sure that the main set of the exercise is safe and comfortable to perform.
#36
August 22 · 45 min
36 Contact team sports
In this episode, Chris and Rob describe how to program for contact team sports (like rugby and American football) within the context of the High Performance Physiology method four-part workout structure (high-velocity, heavy strength training, plyometrics, and supramaximal eccentrics).
#35
August 15 · 26 min
35 Isometrics
In this episode, Chris and Rob explain [1] what adaptations isometrics are best suited to stimulating, and [2] how to include isometrics in a standard strength training program for stimulating those adaptations. They also talk briefly about some common misunderstandings and misapplications of isometrics in the fitness industry.
#34
July 31 · 46 min
34 Study review
In this episode, Chris and Rob analyze the strength training program used in the study: "Exploring the Upper Limits of Resistance Training Volume for Muscle Hypertrophy and Strength in Trained Athletes" by Räntilä and Ahtiainen, which was published in 2026. The reason for the review is that the subjects were national-level track and field athletes, so the training program reflects what many S&C coaches are currently programming for this population. The paper is currently open access and table 1 shows the training program that we talk about.
#33
July 25 · 41 min
33 Block periodization
Finally, Chris and Rob tackle block periodization, explaining why it makes very little sense for athletes in any strength or power sport. This episode references material covered in previous conversations, especially the preceding two (31 dose-response of adaptations and 32 supercompensation) as well as frequent discussions about the rate of loss of adaptations during detraining and fatigue accumulation.
#32
July 18 · 33 min
32 Supercompensation
As a preparatory topic before covering block periodization, Chris and Rob explain the concept of supercompensation. Supercompensation is the observation that outcome measures (like strength, speed, power) can reduce during a high-volume training block and then rebound (supercompensate) during a subsequent deload or taper. But that does not happen because of a delayed adaptation. It happens because fatigue was accumulating during the high-volume training block and reducing the value of the outcome measure.
#31
July 11 · 41 min
31 Dose response of adaptations
The dose-response of hypertrophy to workout volume is a famous phenomenon. In this episode, Chris and Rob talk about how all adaptations display dose-responses (even though they have not been as carefully studied). That affects how we program for speed, maximum strength, stretch-shortening cycle, and maximum eccentric strength.
#30
July 4 · 49 min
30 Single-leg vertical jumping
Following on from the earlier episode about two-leg vertical jumping, Chris and Rob tackle single-leg vertical jumping and explain how it relates to power training (with power cleans and jump squats).
#29
June 20 · 22 min
29 Training while sick (colds and flu)
Chris was sick this week so this week's episode is a short one covering some practical suggestions on how we can still get productive training sessions while suffering from either a cold or flu.
#28
June 5 · 37 min
28 Combining bodybuilding and athletic training
Chris and Rob describe exactly how to combine bodybuilding with athletic preparation training for people who want to pursue multiple goals at the same time. They give three separate options depending on whether the two goals have equal weighting or whether one goal is currently more important.
#27
May 29 · 34 min
27 Strength without size
In this very practical episode, Chris and Rob talk about how athletes can increase maximum strength without gaining weight (or without gaining too much muscle mass).
#26
May 22 · 43 min
26 Contrast training
Following directly on from last week's podcast episode on potentiation, Chris and Rob talk about contrast training from a physiological perspective. They explain why in most cases, a more traditional approach to athletic strength training workouts (starting with high-velocity exercises, moving on to heavy strength training exercises, and finishing with plyometrics) is much better than doing contrast training methods that mix the various types of training up into complexes.
#25
May 16 · 43 min
25 Potentiation
Potentiation is a temporary and reversible increase in exercise performance as a result of a previous bout of exercise (note that this is the exact opposite of the fatigue definition). In this episode, Chris and Rob explain the physiology behind potentiation and describe the most effective ways of using the various different potentiation mechanisms in strength training workouts.
#24
May 9 · 36 min
24 Tendon injuries
Following on from the previous episode about muscle strain injuries, Chris and Rob talk about the physiology of tendon damage and how it likely leads to both tendinopathy and tendon ruptures. Afterwards, they describe how isometric training is probably the best training method for reducing the risk of such problems and Rob goes into detail about how he currently programs isometrics.
#23
May 1 · 39 min
23 Muscle strain injury
Chris and Rob talk about how muscle strain injuries happen, and what we can do in strength training programs to help reduce the risk of them happening.
#22
April 8 · 36 min
22 Sprinting muscles
Chris and Rob talk through what the literature says about the relationship between track sprinting performance and the muscle volumes of the hip extensors, hip flexors, knee extensors, knee flexors, and ankle plantar-flexors.
#21
April 2 · 31 min
021 Speed training frequency
Chris and Rob continue describing how their proposed workout plan template (speed, maximum strength, stretch-shortening cycle, and eccentric strength) can work even when speed exercises are varied greatly over the week.

Showing 1–20 of 26 episodes