Broadcasts
PERFORM PODCAST
Martin Buchheit: Have We Become Slaves to Performance Data?
Episode 2 | The PERFORM Podcast
What happens when the pursuit of better decisions in elite sport creates more complexity, more metrics, and more noise?
In this episode of the PERFORM Podcast, Martin Buchheit, High Performance Lead at Aspetar and one of the most influential voices in sports science, joins Steve Ingham for a candid conversation about the state of performance technology and the future of athlete development.
Drawing on more than two decades of experience across elite football, including roles with PSG, Lille, Olympique Lyonnais, Aspire Academy and Aspetar, Martin shares his perspective on how sports science has evolved, where it has delivered real value, and where it may have lost sight of what matters most.
Together, they explore:
• The growing reliance on GPS and workload monitoring
• Why “normal” training loads may not be as meaningful as we think
• The risks of becoming slaves to performance metrics
• The balance between athlete availability and performance development
• Why context should matter more than dashboards
• The rise of AI and what it means for sports scientists and coaches
• The importance of integration, communication, and decision-making in high-performance environments
• The future role of technology in supporting athlete performance, health, and longevity
This is a thought-provoking discussion about evidence, expertise, and the human judgment that sits behind every important decision in sport.
As Martin argues throughout the episode, collecting more data is not the same as making better decisions.
If you’re a coach, practitioner, sports scientist, performance director, clinician, researcher, or simply fascinated by how elite athletes are supported, this episode will challenge some of your assumptions and offer a fresh perspective on where the industry is heading.
About the Guest
Martin Buchheit is a globally respected sports scientist and high-performance expert with over 20 years of experience in elite sport. He currently serves as High Performance Lead at Aspetar and has authored more than 250 scientific publications alongside bestselling books including EGOals. His work focuses on bridging the gap between research and practical performance optimisation.
Key Quote
“You don’t prepare players by running. You prepare players by playing.”
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham
Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-steve-ingham-9b39391b/
Twitter/X: Steve Ingham, PhD (@ingham_steve) on X
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drsteveingham
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3lVYn4nVKdQrpInzuhfHT5
Find more about High-Intensity Interval Training Courses for Coaches & Scientists (HIIT Science): Optimize Athletic Performance with HIIT Science Training Courses
Visit Sport Performance & Science Reports: Sport Performance & Science Reports – Submit, Publish & Discuss
Follow Martin Buchheit:
Website:Martin Buchheit – Martin Buchheit
Twitter/X: ᴍᴀʀᴛɪɴ ʙᴜᴄʜʜᴇɪᴛ (@mart1buch) on X
LinkedIn: Martin Buchheit – Aspetar | LinkedIn
Stay tuned and follow PERFORM SportsTech on:
Website: https://performsportstech.com/
LinkedIn: Perform SportsTech | LinkedIn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PerformSportsTech/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/performsportstech
Twitter/X: Perform SportsTech (@performsprttech) on X
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033OMXlVHD5wz00wNHvwba?si=8e20f12aa7584e60&nd=1&dlsi=8840624796134ffe
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerformSportsTech
Join 5,000+ elite practitioners receiving weekly validated insights directly from the field: https://performsportstech.com/#subscribe
Martin Buchheit: Have We Become Slaves to Performance Data?
Episode 2 | The PERFORM Podcast
What happens when the pursuit of better decisions in elite sport creates more complexity, more metrics, and more noise?
In this episode of the PERFORM Podcast, Martin Buchheit, High Performance Lead at Aspetar and one of the most influential voices in sports science, joins Steve Ingham for a candid conversation about the state of performance technology and the future of athlete development.
Drawing on more than two decades of experience across elite football, including roles with PSG, Lille, Olympique Lyonnais, Aspire Academy and Aspetar, Martin shares his perspective on how sports science has evolved, where it has delivered real value, and where it may have lost sight of what matters most.
Together, they explore:
• The growing reliance on GPS and workload monitoring
• Why “normal” training loads may not be as meaningful as we think
• The risks of becoming slaves to performance metrics
• The balance between athlete availability and performance development
• Why context should matter more than dashboards
• The rise of AI and what it means for sports scientists and coaches
• The importance of integration, communication, and decision-making in high-performance environments
• The future role of technology in supporting athlete performance, health, and longevity
This is a thought-provoking discussion about evidence, expertise, and the human judgment that sits behind every important decision in sport.
As Martin argues throughout the episode, collecting more data is not the same as making better decisions.
If you’re a coach, practitioner, sports scientist, performance director, clinician, researcher, or simply fascinated by how elite athletes are supported, this episode will challenge some of your assumptions and offer a fresh perspective on where the industry is heading.
About the Guest
Martin Buchheit is a globally respected sports scientist and high-performance expert with over 20 years of experience in elite sport. He currently serves as High Performance Lead at Aspetar and has authored more than 250 scientific publications alongside bestselling books including EGOals. His work focuses on bridging the gap between research and practical performance optimisation.
Key Quote
“You don’t prepare players by running. You prepare players by playing.”
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham
Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-steve-ingham-9b39391b/
Twitter/X: Steve Ingham, PhD (@ingham_steve) on X
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drsteveingham
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3lVYn4nVKdQrpInzuhfHT5
Find more about High-Intensity Interval Training Courses for Coaches & Scientists (HIIT Science): Optimize Athletic Performance with HIIT Science Training Courses
Visit Sport Performance & Science Reports: Sport Performance & Science Reports – Submit, Publish & Discuss
Follow Martin Buchheit:
Website:Martin Buchheit – Martin Buchheit
Twitter/X: ᴍᴀʀᴛɪɴ ʙᴜᴄʜʜᴇɪᴛ (@mart1buch) on X
LinkedIn: Martin Buchheit – Aspetar | LinkedIn
Stay tuned and follow PERFORM SportsTech on:
Website: https://performsportstech.com/
LinkedIn: Perform SportsTech | LinkedIn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PerformSportsTech/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/performsportstech
Twitter/X: Perform SportsTech (@performsprttech) on X
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033OMXlVHD5wz00wNHvwba?si=8e20f12aa7584e60&nd=1&dlsi=8840624796134ffe
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerformSportsTech
Join 5,000+ elite practitioners receiving weekly validated insights directly from the field: https://performsportstech.com/#subscribe
PERFORM Podcast Launch: Finding Clarity in Performance
Episode 1 | The PERFORM Podcast
What if the real edge in high performance sport is not more data, but better judgment?
Marco Cardinale cuts through the noise on global sport, multidisciplinary teams, and why too many practitioners are chasing trends instead of building real expertise. From Qatar to Italy to Team GB, Marco shares what 25+ years across Olympic sport, professional teams, and research leadership have taught him about adapting to different cultures, communicating across wildly different personalities, and leading departments made up of 15 nationalities and multiple specialties. If you work in sport, performance, health, or leadership, this conversation will challenge how you think about roles, responsibilities, and what actually moves performance forward. You’ll discover:
• Why high performance looks similar everywhere, but the social, legal, and communication realities are completely different
• How to lead a multidisciplinary team without micromanaging it into mediocrity
• The hidden cost of overgeneralists in sport science and the opportunity in deeper specialization
• Why cargo cult science, social media hype, and low-quality courses are distorting the profession
• How critical thinking, humility, and the ability to speak the right language at the right level matter more than ever
Marco also opens up about his own writing, his early radio-hosting days, and why he sees blogging as both therapy and a way to defend a profession he fears is being squeezed out by medicalization and misinformation. The conversation also turns to AI, analytics, and what the future of performance work looks like when machines can process more data, but humans still have to make the call. Marco Cardinale is the Executive Director of Research and Scientific Support at Aspetar, Qatar’s national sports medicine and orthopaedic hospital. His career spans the British Olympic Association, Olympic sport, university research, and professional sport across Italy, Spain, and beyond.
Essential listening if you care about sport science, coaching, performance leadership, or how to stay useful in a world full of noise.
About the Guest
Professor Marco Cardinale is Executive Director of Research and Scientific Support at Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in Qatar, Honorary Senior Lecturer and Honorary Reader at University College London, and a globally recognized leader in sports science and performance research. His work focuses on optimizing athletic performance and health through evidence-based practice, sports physiology, performance monitoring, and the application of innovative technologies in elite sport. Having led scientific support for Team GB across three Olympic Games, he is widely regarded as an expert in translating research into high-performance outcomes for athletes and sporting organizations.
Follow Marco Cardinale Website: https://marcocardinale.com/
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
Dr. Nicky Keay | Understanding the Female Athlete’s Hormonal Health
Episode 3 | The PERFORM Podcast
What if your menstrual cycle is not an inconvenience, but one of the clearest indicators of how your training, nutrition, and recovery are really working? In this episode of the PERFORM Podcast, Dr Nicky Keay, one of the leading voices in female hormone health, joins Steve Ingham to explore the relationship between the menstrual cycle, athletic performance, RED-S, contraception, training load, and long-term health. Drawing on her experience in endocrinology, anti-doping research, sports medicine, and clinical work with athletes and dancers, Dr Keay explains why hormones matter far beyond reproduction. Together, they explore how the menstrual cycle can provide valuable insight into energy availability, bone health, sleep, perceived exertion, recovery, and resilience. You’ll discover:
• Why the menstrual cycle can be viewed as a monthly health check
• What really happens during the follicular, ovulatory, and luteal phases
• Why the standard 28-day cycle does not reflect everyone’s experience
• How to distinguish normal variation from potential health concerns
• The relationship between under-fuelling, overtraining, RED-S, and disrupted cycles
• How estrogen and progesterone can influence training, sleep, heat, energy, and recovery
• Whether period-tracking apps and wearables provide useful information or create more noise
• Why the contraceptive pill suppresses hormonal fluctuations rather than simply “regulating” them
• How coaches can support female athletes without relying on one-size-fits-all advice
• What athletes and practitioners should understand about PMS, menopause, injury risk, and hormone health
This is a thoughtful and practical conversation about female health in sport, evidence-based decision-making, and the importance of understanding individual responses rather than relying on averages or assumptions. If you are an athlete, coach, dancer, performance practitioner, clinician, or simply want to better understand the connection between hormones and performance, this episode will challenge common misconceptions and offer a clearer way forward.
About the Guest
Dr Nicky Keay is a sports and dance endocrinologist, Honorary Clinical Lecturer at University College London, and a leading expert in female athlete health, Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S), and hormone health. Her work focuses on helping athletes optimise health and performance through a better understanding of endocrinology, energy availability, and the body’s hormonal responses to training. Key Quote “The menstrual cycle is one of the most powerful indicators of overall health and how well the body is adapting to training.”
Follow Dr Nicky Keay
Website: https://nickykeayfitness.com/
Find her books “Hormones Health and Human Potential” and “Myths of Menopause”: https://nickykeayfitness.com/new-book/
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
Martin Buchheit: Have We Become Slaves to Performance Data?
Episode 2 | The PERFORM Podcast
What happens when the pursuit of better decisions in elite sport creates more complexity, more metrics, and more noise?
In this episode of the PERFORM Podcast, Martin Buchheit, High Performance Lead at Aspetar and one of the most influential voices in sports science, joins Steve Ingham for a candid conversation about the state of performance technology and the future of athlete development.
Drawing on more than two decades of experience across elite football, including roles with PSG, Lille, Olympique Lyonnais, Aspire Academy and Aspetar, Martin shares his perspective on how sports science has evolved, where it has delivered real value, and where it may have lost sight of what matters most.
Together, they explore:
• The growing reliance on GPS and workload monitoring
• Why “normal” training loads may not be as meaningful as we think
• The risks of becoming slaves to performance metrics
• The balance between athlete availability and performance development
• Why context should matter more than dashboards
• The rise of AI and what it means for sports scientists and coaches
• The importance of integration, communication, and decision-making in high-performance environments
• The future role of technology in supporting athlete performance, health, and longevity
This is a thought-provoking discussion about evidence, expertise, and the human judgment that sits behind every important decision in sport.
As Martin argues throughout the episode, collecting more data is not the same as making better decisions.
If you’re a coach, practitioner, sports scientist, performance director, clinician, researcher, or simply fascinated by how elite athletes are supported, this episode will challenge some of your assumptions and offer a fresh perspective on where the industry is heading.
About the Guest
Martin Buchheit is a globally respected sports scientist and high-performance expert with over 20 years of experience in elite sport. He currently serves as High Performance Lead at Aspetar and has authored more than 250 scientific publications alongside bestselling books including EGOals. His work focuses on bridging the gap between research and practical performance optimisation.
Key Quote
“You don’t prepare players by running. You prepare players by playing.”
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham
Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-steve-ingham-9b39391b/
Twitter/X: Steve Ingham, PhD (@ingham_steve) on X
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drsteveingham
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3lVYn4nVKdQrpInzuhfHT5
Find more about High-Intensity Interval Training Courses for Coaches & Scientists (HIIT Science): Optimize Athletic Performance with HIIT Science Training Courses
Visit Sport Performance & Science Reports: Sport Performance & Science Reports – Submit, Publish & Discuss
Follow Martin Buchheit:
Website:Martin Buchheit – Martin Buchheit
Twitter/X: ᴍᴀʀᴛɪɴ ʙᴜᴄʜʜᴇɪᴛ (@mart1buch) on X
LinkedIn: Martin Buchheit – Aspetar | LinkedIn
Stay tuned and follow PERFORM SportsTech on:
Website: https://performsportstech.com/
LinkedIn: Perform SportsTech | LinkedIn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PerformSportsTech/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/performsportstech
Twitter/X: Perform SportsTech (@performsprttech) on X
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033OMXlVHD5wz00wNHvwba?si=8e20f12aa7584e60&nd=1&dlsi=8840624796134ffe
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerformSportsTech
Join 5,000+ elite practitioners receiving weekly validated insights directly from the field: https://performsportstech.com/#subscribe
PERFORM Podcast Launch: Finding Clarity in Performance
Episode 1 | The PERFORM Podcast
The PERFORM Podcast launches with Dr. Steve Ingham, exploring the science, technology, and strategies that truly impact elite athlete performance. From Olympic athletes to professional teams, we cut through the marketing hype to focus on what actually changes outcomes. Listen to long-form conversations with the operators, scientists, and practitioners shaping elite performance, applying the same signal-over-noise standard as everything else on the platform.
Follow Dr. Steve Ingham
Website: https://drsteveingham.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-steve-ingham-9b39391b/
Twitter/X: Steve Ingham, PhD (@ingham_steve) on X
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drsteveingham
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3lVYn4nVKdQrpInzuhfHT5
Stay tuned and follow PERFORM SportsTech on:
Website: https://performsportstech.com/
LinkedIn: Perform SportsTech | LinkedIn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PerformSportsTech/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/performsportstech
Twitter/X: Perform SportsTech (@performsprttech) on X
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033OMXlVHD5wz00wNHvwba?si=8e20f12aa7584e60&nd=1&dlsi=8840624796134ffe
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PerformSportsTech
Join 5,000+ elite practitioners receiving weekly validated insights directly from the field: https://performsportstech.com/#subscribe
