Smart Coaching, Flexible Planning & Guaranteed Results
How Steel City Endurance is Different…
Science backed principals of endurance training provide the fulcrum of our athlete’s success. Head Coach & Founder Suzanne Atkinson, MD has taken over 30 years of teaching & coaching experience, blended it with a masterful understanding of physiology, and infused it with her ability to connect with people on a one to one basis. The results are a training plan that reflects your individual needs and response to previous efforts, adequate time to recovery between workouts and races and still spend time on other pursuits, and increased speed in your planned races.
Our Core Values
- Continuous Incremental Improvement in Sport, Attitude, Nutrition
- Open Communication
- Non-judgemental Approach: There is no “fail” on team SCE
- First Move Well, then Move Often
- Technique, Efficiency & Consistency yield Performance
Our Approach to Your Success
Steel City Endurance Coaching helps you perform to your potential. At Steel City Endurance our priority is making sure that we understand and listen to your needs and your endurance performance goals, and then help craft the training plan, accountability and support that helps you reach them.
My Personal Guarantee
I guarantee that you will see results within your first 30 days, or else your first month is free! If you follow your custom training plan for the first month and do not feel fitter, faster, smoother, more efficient or do not feel you are getting the service you expect from Steel City Endurance, your first month is free.
Suzanne Atkinson, MD
HEAD COACH & FOUNDER
Suzanne Atkinson, MD is a world-class triathlon & endurance coach with over 30 years of experience coaching. She has worked with age group elite & professional triathletes in addition to designing beginning training groups for first time triathletes.
Her teaching career includes working as a wilderness instructor for Outward Bound School, Mountaineering & Rock Climbing fitness director and teacheing medical students & residents at the University if Pittsburgh Medical School.
Suzanne brings motivational skills, technical instruction and an understanding of physiology to each individual athlete’s training. She has helped both first-time triathletes as well as world champions accomplish their dreams.
Training with Coach Suzanne and Steel City Endurance has greatly improved my confidence and enjoyment of open water swimming, and by improving my efficiency has enabled me to save energy for the bike and run in triathlons. During the best if the US race (Leon's race), it was a turbulent start with the best of the us and faster men/women all together.
Due to the work on swim efficiency I was able to hold a place just behind the lead swimmers. I remember feeling like everyone around me was expending a lot of effort, while I felt pretty comfortable. I feel like the effort saved by not working extra hard to stay right there at the lead payed off with a strong bike and run.
10 Questions to Ask When Interviewing a Triathlon Coach
Choosing a triathlon coach is daunting whether it is your first time or your fifth. Knowing what questions to ask is hard when you're not even sure what you are looking for. Use these questions as a guide not only for interviewing a coach, but also to ask yourself if...
99 practices for Triathletes and Swimmers
From the Book's Introduction… Welcome to Fresh Freestyle: 99 practices for Triathletes and Swimmers, a refreshing way to approach your freestyle practice. Fresh Freestyle is perfect for new swimmers, fitness swimmers and triathletes. This collection of progressive...
What are some good VO2 Max Workouts?
VO2 max is typically achieved in an all-out effort of 3-8 minutes depending on your genetics and fitness. Outstanding athletes may be able to hold their true VO2 max for a full 8 minutes, but most people cannot. The whole idea of interval work (at any intensity) is to...
5 Ways to Become a Better Hill Climber – Bike Training
Make Climbing Hills fun by training specifically for your race or adventure! Image by moerschy from Pixabay Recently an athlete asked me the following question: I’ve noticed that I can pretty much keep up with people on rides. Except when we hit a hill, I hit a wall....
The Myth of Hypoxic Breathing
Baby (and Adult) Humans cannot breathe underwater This is a response to a forum post over on Beginner Triathlete about so-called “Hypoxic Breathing” swim drills, and originally appeared on my retired blog, exercisephysiologymd.com on January 17th, 2007 I'm a huge...
Running Threshold Field Test 20 Minute Protocol & Calculator
This is one of several articles describing different testing protocols for running. These tests are appropriate for triathlete as well as for runners. This test is for determining your estimated Threshold Heart Rate. If you'd like to determine your threshold...
I utilized Anne-Marie as a coach to increase my 5k and half marathon time as well as to complete a 70.3 distance triathlon. I met all my goals with great success and I largely attribute that success to Anne Marie’s coaching. We seamlessly work together from two different parts of the country. Anne-Marie was incredibly informative, responsive, flexible and offered amazing guidance along the way. I highly recommend her as a coach.
Contact Us For Coaching
About The Head Coach
About The Head CoachSteel City Endurance Head Coach & Founder is Suzanne Atkinson, MD. Suzanne relentlessly pursues ongoing experience in direct mentoring relationships with elite coaches and soaks up training information from primary sources, journal articles, and university level education. She has experience not only in 1 on 1 coaching for swimming, cycling & running, but has also coached triathlon and swimming camps in Cabo Rojo, Puerto rico; Kona, Hawaii; Boulder, CO & London UK.
Certifications imply a standard has been met by a national organization. While they are not a guarantee of coaching ability or knowledge, the maintenance and achievement of certification shows ongoing pursuit of continuing education, experience with athletes and a commitment to the sport.
Suzanne has achieved a Level 2 USA Triathlon Certification with Elite Mentoring Experience, qualified for USAT Level 3 Certification in 2016, as well as USA Cycling Level 2. She achieved the high distinction of Master Coach during her time with Total Immersion where she also helped lead and develop coaching education for new trainees
In addition to her endurance coaching experience & credentials, Suzanne is a Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physician, has masters level coursework in Exercise Physiology, is am a former Outward Bound instructor with experience teaching expedition skills, whitewater kayaking, rockclimbing & mountaineering.