Mark Ellison
Age-Group Triathlete | Ironman 70.3 Racer | Data Analyst
20 articles published
About Mark
Mark Ellison is a 41-year-old triathlete from Cardiff who brings an analytical mindset to endurance sport. A data analyst by profession, Mark is fascinated by training metrics, heart rate zones, and the science behind performance gains. He races Ironman 70.3 events and writes in-depth guides on training technology, periodisation, and race strategy.
Articles by Mark
What an 83-athlete Kona study can—and can’t—tell us about why women race
A 2026 paper surveyed 83 women who raced the 2023 Kona IRONMAN World Championship. Its findings offer a useful coaching prompt, not a universal profile of women triathletes.
XTERRA Ruidoso: what 6,900 feet means for triathletes
The XTERRA World Championship lands in Ruidoso on 10 October, with a 1.5km swim, rocky 27km mountain-bike loop and 10km trail run above 6,900 feet. We explain what moderate altitude can change, what one small cycling study found, and how athletes can pace the course without treating sea-level numbers as gospel.
Can cycling replace a run in triathlon? What the 2026 evidence really says
A 2026 review found no clear performance difference between short running and cycling programmes, but it does not prove that bike sessions can replace run training one-for-one.
What a 48-week triathlon study really says about polarized training
A 2026 longitudinal study of 18 elite Indonesian triathletes found improvements after a 48-week polarized programme. The design is useful, but it does not prove that one training model suits every athlete.
Elite triathlon training load: what a 2026 biomarker study says about urea and fatigue
A 2026 longitudinal study followed 20 elite triathletes through structured training. Urea tracked with hard loading, but the authors warn that no single blood marker can diagnose non-adaptive fatigue.
Triathlon training load in 2026: what six months of data from 95 age-groupers really says
A 2026 study analysed 34,731 sessions from 95 age-group triathletes. The useful lesson is not a magic weekly number, but how race distance and training phase change the load athletes carry.
Exercise-associated muscle cramps in triathlon: what the 2026 evidence changes
A new systematic review found that a previous cramp is the clearest predictor of another one. The findings challenge simple hydration and salt explanations for triathletes.
Running and cycling in triathlon: what a new study found
A 2026 study of 31 well-trained male triathletes found strong cycling-running links for maximal aerobic capacity, but more discipline-specific submaximal markers.
Training-load monitoring in triathletes: why urea is a signal, not a verdict
A cautious, practical reading of new 2026 triathlete research on urea, training load and performance, with an age-group monitoring framework.
IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship Nice 2026: the evidence-based race-week taper
An evidence-based seven-day taper for athletes heading to the 2026 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, with course-specific pacing and travel guidance.
Supertri’s repeated-sprint format: how age-group triathletes can train for three hard resets
Supertri’s 300m swim, 4km bike and 1.6km run stages create a very specific challenge. Here is how age-group athletes can borrow the useful skills without copying professional intensity.
Polarised triathlon training: what a 48-week study really tells age-group athletes
A 2026 longitudinal study followed 18 elite Indonesian triathletes through a 48-week polarised programme. The improvements are interesting, but the missing control group matters just as much.
Recovery tools for triathletes in 2026: what the new evidence says to keep
A new systematic review of competitive endurance athletes found no recovery modality that consistently beat passive recovery. Here is how to apply the result without throwing away useful routines.
Wahoo 3DP and Dimensional Training Load: what triathletes need to know
Wahoo's current app puts three-dimensional running pace alongside cycling power and a sport-specific training-load view. Here is what it can add to a triathlete's decision-making — and what it cannot prove.
Triathlon training load in 2026: what 34,731 sessions say about building your week
A new six-month dataset of 95 age-group triathletes offers useful benchmarks for training phase and race-distance load — but not a universal weekly prescription.
IRONMAN 70.3 training in 2026: why the bike still sets up the run
A 2026 systematic review of 86 IRONMAN 70.3 studies found cycling was the strongest performance correlate, while pacing, conditions and fuelling shaped what happened next. Here is the cautious practical reading.
Ten heat sessions are not a magic bullet: what a 2026 triathlete study found
A 2026 crossover study in trained amateur cyclists and triathletes found useful heat adaptations after 10 sessions, but no clear endurance-performance gain. Here is the practical reading for age-groupers.
The best test for your triathlon run may start on the bike: what a 2026 study found
A 2026 reliability study tested well-trained triathletes after strenuous cycling, then measured their running under fatigue. Here is what the protocol can teach age-groupers—and what it cannot.
90g vs 120g carbohydrate per hour: what the 2026 evidence actually means for triathletes
A 2026 review discusses whether trained endurance athletes may benefit from carbohydrate intakes above the familiar 90g per hour ceiling. Here is what is established, what is only suggested, and how to test a higher-fuelling plan without turning race day into an experiment.
Carb loading before an Ironman: what 2026 research changes
A 2026 study found that only 6 of 23 female Ironman World Championship athletes met its carbohydrate-loading guideline. The practical lesson is not to eat more at random, but to rehearse access, timing and lower-fibre choices before race week.