A PhD in Exercise Physiology Shares Masters Swimming Wisdom: Eddie Tiozzo, EP 297

It's on deck with Eddie Tiozzo—age 52, former water polo player, and PhD in exercise physiology—to unpack how smart training, strong shoulders, and a dynamic mindset can carry you through decades in the sport. Eddie’s story moves from Croatia and Italy to Florida pool decks as a member of Swim Ft. Lauderdale Masters, and along the way he shows how curiosity and consistency beat rigid formulas every time.

We dig into his favorite events—the 100 back and 100 IM—and the weekly plan that keeps him fast and healthy: four swims of 3–4.5K, two focused gym sessions, and one stretching session. Eddie breaks down why “broken,” varied sets trump cookie-cutter 10x100s, how to use bands effectively without ignoring weights, and the power of alternating lighter, high-rep days with heavier, low-rep sessions. If pull-ups are out of reach, he shares a scalable assisted variation that builds true pulling strength for better catch mechanics, stronger starts, and shoulder resilience.

Beyond sets and reps, Eddie opens up about earning his PhD later in life, tackling an open water 10K as a dedicated sprinter, and why community keeps him coming back to the blocks. We swap notes on Federica Pellegrini, reading real books, and the quiet discipline that turns good habits into lasting performance. Whether you’re chasing a Masters best time, trying to stay pain-free, or craving a fresh training spark, you’ll find practical ideas you can apply at your next practice.

If this conversation gave you a boost, follow the show, share it with a teammate, and leave a quick review on Apple to help more swimmers find us. Your support keeps the momentum flowing—see you on deck.

Email us at HELLO@ChampionsMojo.com. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

You can learn more about the Host and Founder of Champions Mojo at www.KellyPalace.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

It's time for an on-deck interview to help you live well and swim well. Welcome to Champions Mojo. And now your host, Kelly Palace.

SPEAKER_01 0:12

We are on deck at the beautiful city of Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center at the Fall Classic Short Course Meters Meet. And we're going to be talking with a very fast, very excellent swimmer. And give us your name, age, and your team.

SPEAKER_02 0:31

Eddie Tyotso, age 52, uh swim for Lauderdale.

SPEAKER_01 0:36

And Eddie, what is your swim history?

SPEAKER_02 0:39

Actually, it's a water polo history. I used to be a water polo player, and then uh before college I stopped. And uh when I moved to the States, I joined this team about 15 years ago. So I'll be doing master's swimming for about 15 years now.

SPEAKER_01 0:54

Where did you move to the States from? Croatia. Croatia? Okay, that's why my husband says you're his Croatian brother, right? So spell your last name.

SPEAKER_02 1:05

Uh uh T-I-O-Z-Z-O.

SPEAKER_01 1:09

Tiatso. Okay, beautiful. Tiatso. Is that Croatian?

SPEAKER_02 1:14

No, that's Italian. I'm I'm uh half Croatian, half Italian.

SPEAKER_01 1:18

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

Now one-third uh American, so it's a little bit of everything.

Favorite Races And Training Routine

SPEAKER_01 1:22

Beautiful. All right. So um what is your your favorite swimming accomplishment?

SPEAKER_02 1:29

Oh, that's a tough one. Uh maybe swimming at 10K in Bermuda. That was about maybe seven, eight years ago. Uh I'm pretty much a sprinter. So 10K was a huge stretch for me, but I I did it.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

That is quite an accomplishment for a sprinter. So on that note, what is your best or favorite event? They don't have to be the same one.

SPEAKER_02 1:56

Um, my best, maybe 100 back, my favorite 100 IM show course.

SPEAKER_01 2:04

Okay, and what kind of training regimen are you doing?

SPEAKER_02 2:09

Uh currently it's uh four swims a week, between three and four and a half, I would say, per workout, uh, two gyms and one stretching session.

SPEAKER_01 2:20

That's a beautiful summary of a training regimen. I I love it. I asked some people that question, they just they they don't answer it as concisely. So wonderful. And how about let's drill down and what's your favorite set?

Strength Advice From An Exercise Physiologist

SPEAKER_02 2:34

Uh my favorite set. I don't know if I have a favorite set. Maybe I'm still in a search of my favorite set. I don't like to do sets where it's you know 10 100s or 10 200s. I like sets that are broken and sort of dynamic where you do uh when you where you do different distances, different strokes, different intervals. So it just needs to be um dynamic and not boring.

SPEAKER_01 3:07

I hear ya, I hear ya. Um you're talking to a woman that's favorite set is 2100, so okay. All right. What is your biggest comeback either in life or in the pool?

SPEAKER_02 3:23

Comeback. Uh maybe, maybe my PhD because I did it at a fairly old older age. I started when I was 32 and then I finished it in my late 30s. So it was uh it was a huge sacrifice at the time, but it's it's definitely paid off.

SPEAKER_01 3:43

And what is your PhD in?

SPEAKER_02 3:46

Exercise physiology.

SPEAKER_01 3:48

So we're talking to a doctorate in exercise physiology. What what piece of advice this isn't even on my list of normal questions? Would you would you give master stormers as far as like our recovery?

Heroes, Fun Facts, And Masters Community

SPEAKER_02 4:03

Well, just overall, do your resistance training. Uh keep your shoulders flexible and strong.

SPEAKER_01 4:12

So that's even better than recovery because you can't recover if you haven't done the hard work. Yes. Do you think resistance bands are enough to create strength?

SPEAKER_02 4:21

Yes. I I would say yes. That's better than doing nothing. But if you want to maximize a little bit more, I would say add some weights, add some body weight exercises. But resistance bands by all means, they're fine too.

SPEAKER_01 4:41

And if um, do you recommend for masters swimmers in general, high repetitions, lower weights, or do you like the range or heavier?

SPEAKER_02 4:53

I would say mix both. On certain days, maybe maybe that's your recovery day where you do lighter weights, more reps, and then on certain days where you want to push and challenge yourself uh in the gym, then then you do heavier, maybe less less reps.

SPEAKER_01 5:08

What's your favorite body weight exercises for maybe people that can't do a pull-up?

SPEAKER_02 5:13

Oh, assisted pull-up, where you place your feet on a bench, you're flat, and you're doing pull-ups that way.

SPEAKER_01 5:19

Okay, good, good, good stuff. Okay. Okay, this these are the easy ones now. What Olympic swimmer, dead or alive, that could be all throughout history, would you want to have lunch with?

SPEAKER_02 5:34

Federica Pellegrini. She's she's a legend, and so I can also practice my rusty Italian.

SPEAKER_01 5:41

She is a legend. Federica Pellegrini. Love her. Okay. What is a fun fact about you that we do not know?

SPEAKER_02 5:50

I love to read. I love paper. I love to turn pages and read. But I I hate audiobooks.

SPEAKER_01 5:59

Very good. That is a fun fact. Is there anything else that I have not asked you that you would like to share with the master swimming community?

SPEAKER_02 6:08

I personally love being part of this community because it just makes us moving. He makes us keeps us healthy. And um, yeah, there's some great people uh on the pole deck. Every every swim meet, every practice.

SPEAKER_01 6:24

I love it. Awesome. Thank you so much.

Closing And Listener Review Request

SPEAKER_00 6:31

Thank you for listening to the Champions Mojo podcast. Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? That's like getting a best time for us. Kelly and our team would be so grateful. See you next week for another Boost of Mojo.