Words Zine

Blog

Training smarts, dev stories, and Flotti opinions.

Dev Log

Teaching an AI to Coach

Flotti reads your actual training data before giving advice. Here's how the prompt engineering and context assembly works.

Flotti's Corner

The Cross-Training Cheat Code

Flotti's take: the athletes who improve fastest aren't the ones who run the most. They're the ones who do the most different things.

Training Smarts

Strength Training Won't Slow You Down

Runners avoid the gym like it's contagious. But the evidence is clear: lifting makes you faster, more durable, and harder to break.

Training Smarts

Swimming: Into the Deep End

You've thought about it. Maybe for triathlon, maybe for cross-training, maybe because your physio said so. Here's what getting into swimming actually looks like — from someone who can barely do a length.

Training Smarts

Cycling: The Runner's Secret Weapon

You don't have to love Lycra. But adding a bike to your training might be the easiest way to build fitness without beating up your legs.

Flotti's Corner

Your Resting Heart Rate Is Talking. Are You Listening?

Flotti's take: that little number your watch records while you sleep is the cheapest, most reliable early warning system in all of sports science.

Training Smarts

Training Load: The Number That Predicts Injuries

You can't feel overtraining until it's too late. But there's a metric that sees it coming weeks ahead — and most runners completely ignore it.

Flotti's Corner

Stop Checking Your Pace Every 30 Seconds

Flotti's rant: that obsessive glancing at your watch mid-run is making you slower, more anxious, and less in tune with your body.

Training Smarts

Your Long Run Doesn't Have to Be a Death March

The long run is the most important session of the week. It's also the one most runners get wrong — by going too hard, too rigid, or too far.

Training Smarts

Why Easy Runs Feel So Hard

You know you should run slower. So why does it feel like torture? The problem isn't your legs — it's your brain.

Flotti's Corner

Rest Days Aren't Lazy

Flotti's hot take: skipping a run doesn't make you soft. It makes you faster. Here's the science and the vibes.

Training Smarts

Heart Rate Zones, Explained Like You're Human

You've seen the colored bars on your watch. Zone 2, Zone 4, threshold. Here's what they actually mean — and why running in the right one matters more than running fast.

Training Smarts

WTF is TSB?

Training dashboards love throwing acronyms at you. Flott translates them into three words you already understand: Fitness, Fatigue, and Form.

Dev Log

Hello, Flott

Why I'm building an AI training app at 2am — and why the world doesn't need another one (but maybe it does).