Chicago is already renowned for its Fall marathon but is becoming a focal point for cyclists with the landing of Rapha’s Clubhouse, and most recently triathlon thanks to the launch of a coaching service from elite athlete Alberto Hermoso Diaz – 3 Bulls Endurance Coaching.

In this interview, Alberto outlines the thinking by 3BEC and how he defines training methods and identified two common mistakes to help athletes achieve longevity.

What is your background in triathlon? Where have you raced, which distances
I have been doing triathlon since I was 15 years old, and have been very lucky to experience how races and the amount of people practicing the sport has changed over this time. I have raced every distance, from super sprint (half of sprint distance) to a Full Ironmon in Kona, participating in three 70.3 World Championships and one Ironman World Championship (Kona 2018).

How long have you been in Chicago? Where else have you trained
I have been living here for three years now. I moved right before COVID-19 and it was challenging at the beginning to find people to train with. Before I was living in San Francisco where there are great opportunities for triathlon training. Before I moved to the USA in 2013, I used to live in Granada, Spain where the opportunities for cycling are endless. In fact many of the top cyclists prepare for their competitive season in Granada (this year Wout Van Aert was in town).

What’s your training approach with Three Bulls Endurance Coaching?
I focused on creating a tailored program for each athlete’s time availability and goals. Each athlete’s needs are different depending on their background and it is important to create a program where improvements are maximized with the available time. In order to achieve that an initial assessment is performed to get to know the athlete and create a plan that will get the best out of the athlete. Once the athlete has started the training plan, communication is key to get feedback from the athlete and make adjustments as needed, because life happens and everyone has bigger commitments than only training.

How will you be setup? What services will you be offering and will there be a community / team element
All the programs are online and include communication through video calls. Depending on the experience of the athlete and the communication/adjustments needed there are different training levels, golden, silver and bronze. 

What common mistakes do you see from triathletes when they’re compiling and executing their training programmes?
There are two mistakes that are very common. First is the athletes that struggle to take easy days easy, it takes time until they understand that taking an easy day is as important as a hard effort day. On the other hand there are some athletes that are “afraid” to tell the truth when they skip a training day or don’t hit the determined pace – this has a big impact on performance because the training program will not fit the actual fitness of the athlete. Honest communication is key for the success of the athlete, everyone has bad weeks even months and should not be embarrassed of skipping workouts.

Do you have a long-term vision for the 3BEC beyond the initial offering? Where would you like to be in five and ten years?
Yes, I would like to keep athletes for the long-term and see their improvement and how they grow as triathletes. As a longer term goal I would like to create a team and community that could help each other and provide an identity when showing up at races. 

Visit 3bullscoaching.com for more information