GAINcast Episode 296: The adaptation conversation (with Dan Cleather)
As coaches we like to think of the training process as predictable and controllable, but the reality isn’t that straightfoward. As guest Dan Cleather explains on this week’s GAINcast, we don’t dictate training outcomes, we simply guide a conversation with the body. In the interview he looks at how to best guide that process, the role of overload, and rethinking recent trends in athlete profiling.
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Dan Cleather are author of the several books, including the recently released The Practice of Change: The Art and Science of Training. Cleather is a professor and course lead of the Masters in strength and conditioning program at St. Mary’s University and previously worked at the English Institute of Sport.
Dan Cleather are author of the several books, including the recently released The Practice of Change: The Art and Science of Training. Cleather is a professor and course lead of the Masters in strength and conditioning program at St. Mary’s University and previously worked at the English Institute of Sport.
Related resources
The following links were referenced in the podcast or provide some additional reading material on the topic:
- The GAINcast is sponsored by GAIN and by HMMR Media. Join HMMR Media to get access to a vast library of online training resources, video, articles, podcasts, and more.
- Cleather was previously a guest on GAINcast 269, together with John Goodwin, where they discussed force and speed.
- Cleather’s most recent book is The Practice of Change: The Art and Science of Training. This landed on Vern’s top 10 list for 2025.
- Previous books include The Little Black Book of Training Wisdom (discussed here by Craig Pickering), and his series on force: Force: The Biomechanics of Training, Force 2: The Biomechanics of Sprinting, and Force 3: Strength Training for Endurance Performance.
- Vern’s own new book was recently released. Learn more and order here: Building the Complete Athlete.
Key quotes and topics
- 0:00 – Introduction
- 2:00 – Cleather’s background
- 5:45 – Beyond prediction addiction
- 9:00 – Biology and the conversation with the the body
- 15:15 – Recovery and adaptation
- 20:30 – Rethinking overload
- 23:45 – Understanding force for endurance athletes
- 29:30 – A reality check on force-velocity profiling
- 40:45 – Evaluating science as a coach
Complete transcript
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