A couple of thoughts…
.
1) The Dalai Lama has said that since Buddhism is concerned with the nature of reality, its religious presuppositions must always be subject to change in the light of scientific discovery.
.
2) I once had a teacher who said, "The devil can quote scripture for his own purposes."
.
What does any of this have to do with coaching? Particular coaches have a persona and philosophy that they sell. If they have had a former life as an athlete, this often revolves around their exploits as an athlete and what happened to work for them. The problem is that as athletes become better educated about the science of training, they begin to lose credibility. Rather than adjust their philosophy, however, they may choose to attempt to shore up their brand through the creative (mis)use of scientific studies.
.
Our goal as sports professionals is not to adhere to some preconceived philosophy or brand image. Our goal is to help athletes achieve excellence in sport. To do this effectively, we must be willing to evaluate what is known of the science of sport dispassionately and objectively, and then adjust our practices accordingly. To adhere blindly to our personal, perhaps closely held and cherished beliefs (or those of our particular "guru") in spite of best evidence and practices smacks of something akin to religious zeal rather than objectivity. It is a disservice to both our athletes and our profession.
.
Athletes would do well to consider these points as they prepare to seek professional help in pursuit of their goals. Are you looking for a belief system or shaman, or are you looking for reality?

I posted this on a triathlon website in response to a question, but I think it is worth making sure the wider triathlon community reads, so here it is (with a few edits and expansions).
.
The wider use of software that permits the measurement of training load is leading to a dangerous trend. People are beginning to believe, either from reading (or misreading) things on the Internet, or listening to other braggadocious athletes / coaches (who may or may not be truthful or properly measuring training), that there are particular, objective training goals that they should aspire to.  Chasing particular stress "point" totals, using RaceDay or other software, is a fool’s errand. Moreover, the idea that you should chase particular totals is leading to really bad trends in training and injury patterns, which I observe in my medical office on a regular basis.
.
Those comments may seem a bit unexpected coming from someone who coaches at the elite level  and sells software that follows points, tracks trends, and attempts to model and predict performance, but hear me out. Your approach to training needs to be absolutely customized if you are going to be the best you can be. The point total on any given day that will lead to your optimal performance is highly individualized. The way to find it is to train appropriately, specifically and at a reasonable volume for your fitness level, mechanical durability, chosen event, etc.
.
Appropriately and Specifically mean you need to do training that has to do with triathlon. Doing a gazillion sets of squats has practically nothing to do with sensible triathlon training. Getting on the elliptical for hours on end in an effort to improve your running is nonsensical. You don’t get extra points for that sort of thing. Or rather, you get points in some sense, but they have little or nothing to do with being a good triathlete.
.
Reasonable means a level at which you are able to recover from day to day without a problem, and at which you do not risk injury.
.
Once you have addressed the above, you should regularly test your ability to perform. Observe the training composition that leads to improving performance. Then, and only then, look at the training load total that helped you go there. Then, use the "big picture", that is, the composite of the two, to determine what you need to do to get better.
.
Finally, be very careful when looking at the combination of stress scores from different sports, even if they are all triathlon specific. Those totals are useful to determine "shelled" or "not shelled", and that is all. You will find that 100 "points" that are composed of 55 from running and 45 from cycling yields very different results than the reverse.
.

We haven’t updated in a while…the last few weeks have been insane. But here is a small recap…

.

PhysFarm Pro Results:
.

Catriona Morrison: Wins UK 70.3, and sets a new course record
.
Joanna Zeiger: 4th place at Rev3 in a field of heavy hitters
.
Bjorn Andersson: 4th place at UK 70.3
.
Ayesha Rollinson: 3rd at ITU Pan-American Cup
.
Anne Fallows: 7th pro at Ironman Japan
.

PhysFarm Age Group Results:
.

Rob Chance: Qualifies for World Champs in Clearwater at 70.3 Kansas
.
Colleen Capper: Wins her AG at IM-CDA, sets a PR by 1 hour (!) and gets her slot at the Ironman World Championships