Name: Anastasia Hofmann (Amateur)
Level of fitness: Good
Sport: Olympic Triathlon
BaseLab service: Endurance & Athletic Performance
Methods given: A tailored training plan with coaching and mentoring, regular remote meetings and assessments, daily Heart Rate Variability measurements for performance and stress reaction
Zürich-based Anastasia Hofmann approached us in February 2021 for specified athletic performance training, after deciding she wanted to complete the Zurich City Triathlon later in the year. With her initial lack of experience related to triathlons, the aim of the data-backed training program was to help Anastasia to make significant progress in a short period of time, with technique improvements and increased endurance across the three different disciplines of swimming, cycling, and running.
A two-pronged approach was based on Anastasia’s main goals: to increase fitness and durability gradually, and to complete the triathlon in under three hours. In addition to providing a detailed training plan based on a range of physiological and biomechanical analyses, BaseLab tracked her fitness metrics every day and provided her with knowledge on how to recover intelligently.
Anastasia had never competed in a triathlon before, and approached BaseLab with just sixteen weeks of time left before the competition’s start date. This falls within the expected time frame for a beginner triathlete, however, Anastasia is a startup entrepreneur with an intensely busy weekly schedule. The lack of free time to adequately perform training sessions for such a time-intensive sport presented as an extra challenge.
The overall strategy was to increase the training plan gradually over the four months, to gain a base-level of fitness that escalated towards the end, tapering off just before the event start date. Throughout this process, new steps were continuously adapted as her athletic development progressed. For example, Brick Training workouts (swim-to-bike or bike-to-run) were introduced mid-way through the program to improve transitions between sports, and open-water ocean swims soon supplemented swimming in pools. Her swimming technique needed to first improve in the pool: with the correct stroke, body positioning, and kick, before transitioning into the more challenging element of open water.
Beyond the training program, BaseLab offered multiple check-ins that were done completely remotely, with video calls and emails occurring as needed. Daily HRV measurements of the density of oxygen in Anastasia’s blood were recorded via the HRV4 app, to understand how the training program was impacting Anastasia’s body in real time, and to see how her stress levels were faring. In addition, we gave her targeted prevention training for her knees, which were prone to pain and injury.
Despite her lack of experience, a high level of motivation for athletic achievement in combination with the BaseLab services offered, meant there was generous potential for success. Anastasia recorded a peak performance finishing time of 2 hours 44 minutes, well under her desired goal of three hours. Happily, she also experienced no knee pain during the competition. The results left her empowered and energized to begin a new version of BaseLab’s services.
Working with Baselab felt like a breeze. I was able to Check-In with Jan remotely which allowed me to squeeze in 45 min of athletic performance review on my calendar. What I liked most is the calming feeling to be "on track" and the accountability created without disregarding my health. I would recommend Baselab's to anyone who serious about achieving challenging goals.