Long-distance triathlon glossary·Banister

Banister : the model behind CTL/ATL/TSB

Load

The mathematical model that computes fitness/fatigue/freshness from your TSS history.

Eric Banister proposed in 1975 a model where each session leaves two imprints: a long-decay one (fitness) and a short-decay one (fatigue). Today's freshness = fitness − fatigue. It's the foundation of every modern tool (TrainingPeaks, intervals.icu, TriPaced) using CTL, ATL, TSB.

In TriPaced:

TriPaced reimplements Banister from your actual Strava activities, not an estimate. The initial seed (before your first imported activity) starts from a conservative value tied to your declared archetype.

Source Banister, Calvert, Savage & Bach, 1975 : A systems model of training for athletic performance

Related terms

  • TSS : Training Stress Score
  • CTL : Chronic Training Load (fitness)
  • ATL : Acute Training Load (fatigue)
  • TSB : Training Stress Balance (freshness)
  • Sweet spot : the efficiency zone
  • Threshold : the upper sustainable limit