In this episode, Dr. Martin Buchheit is joined by Dr. Scott Frey, a neuroscientist and founder of Cerebral Performance, to explore how brain science can improve athletic performance. The conversation focuses on central fatigue and why cognitive load can meaningfully reduce physical output, decision making quality, and error recovery in sport.

Scott explains why athletes often taper the body but rarely taper the brain, and shares practical ways to reduce mental load in the lead up to competition. They also discuss how cognitive testing, mood and motivation ratings, and HRV can be combined to monitor central fatigue, plus how cognitive training can be integrated into gym work or interval sessions to build fatigue resistance when it matters most.

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Today’s speakers:

Dr Martin Buchheit https://martin-buchheit.net/

Dr. Scott Frey https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-scott-frey-51995620b/

In this episode of the Training Science Podcast, Prof Paul Laursen is joined by Stephan Nüsser, performance physiologist and founder of a performance diagnostics lab in Germany, for a deep and practical discussion on lactate testing and endurance performance. Drawing from decades of applied work with cyclists, endurance athletes, and motocross professionals, Stephan explains how lactate can be used to individualize training, define true Zone 2 intensity, and guide long-term athlete development.

The conversation explores why lactate is often misunderstood, how production and clearance reflect underlying metabolism, and why longer step protocols can provide clearer insight than fixed threshold formulas. They also discuss carb-optimized nutrition, metabolic flexibility, and why training and fueling should be viewed as a single integrated system rather than separate decisions.

References:
https://sndc.de/

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Today’s speakers:

Prof Paul Laursen https://www.paullaursen.com/

Stephan Nüsser: https://www.instagram.com/sndcde/

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In this end of year catch up, Prof Paul Laursen and Dr. Martin Buchheit reflect on the biggest lessons, debates, and breakthroughs from the past 12 months in training science. They share updates from the front lines of rehab and high performance work, unpack what is changing fast in sports science 3.0, and discuss how AI and better monitoring frameworks are reshaping how athletes and coaches make decisions. The episode wraps with their most downloaded podcast highlights of the year and a look ahead at what 2026 may bring.