Entries

Entry #001 - Welcome to the Lab

Thomas Mortelmans

28 Dec 2025 — 1 min read

Hi Endurance Enthousiast,

Most training advice is based on anecdotes and marketing. This is where we change that.

I’m Dr. Thomas Mortelmans, and I started The Scientist’s Notebook because the gap between sports science research and what athletes actually do is far too wide.

You are joining as one of our first subscribers. Because this is the Beta phase, your presence here is unique. I’m not just sending you information; I’m looking to build the most useful endurance hub on the internet—and I need your help to do it.

As a Beta member, your feedback is highly appreciated. Every Monday, I’ll send you a new "Notebook Entry"—a distilled, actionable briefing on physiology, pacing, or fueling.

If a topic is too technical, or if you want more data on a specific metric, please let me know. Your input will directly shape the content and products we develop next. I’m treating you as a partner in this lab — I have the research, but you have the real-world 'why.' Let’s co-author the next few briefings together.

Tell me which specific training concepts need a scientific audit by filling this form.

One quick favor to start: To ensure these briefings land in your inbox, please reply to this email with the word "Science."

Glad to have you in the inner circle.

Best,

Dr. Thomas Mortelmans, The Scientist’s Notebook

Entry #004: The ergogenic potential of caffeine and sodium bicarbonate in endurance events

Hi Endurance Enthusiast, The pursuit of marginal gains in endurance performance often leads athletes toward the pharmaceutical cabinet of evidence-based ergogenic aids. Among the most rigorously studied are caffeine and sodium bicarbonate—two substances that target the physiological limiters of endurance through distinct, yet potentially complementary, pathways. While caffeine operates

Snippet #001: Reducing Oxygen Diffusion Distance Through Capillary Growth

Endurance training stimulates angiogenesis, a biological process that generates new microscopic blood vessels around muscle fibers. This adaptation increases capillary density, which significantly reduces the physical distance oxygen must travel to reach the mitochondria where energy is produced. By expanding the surface area available for diffusion, the muscle becomes more

Science for Your Morning Coffee: Introducing Friday Snippets

As we continue to evolve The Scientist’s Notebook, I want to thank you for being an essential part of this beta phase. Your readership and engagement have been invaluable in shaping the direction of this project. Based on your initial feedback, I am excited to introduce a new addition

Entry #003: How to prepare for a cycling race, pre-race fueling timeline, 24 hours to the start

Hi Endurance Enthusiast, Now that we have talked about the long-term aerobic development required to build your engine, we need to address the structural integrity of the chassis before you take it to the redline. Too often, I see athletes invest months in meticulous Zone 2 volume and threshold/Vo2

Read more

Entry #004: The ergogenic potential of caffeine and sodium bicarbonate in endurance events

Snippet #001: Reducing Oxygen Diffusion Distance Through Capillary Growth

Science for Your Morning Coffee: Introducing Friday Snippets

Entry #003: How to prepare for a cycling race, pre-race fueling timeline, 24 hours to the start