For the CEO of Lululemon, the sport of triathlon has become the ultimate executive trainer, teaching him to push hard, adjust on the fly and make time to put in the work, every day
Calvin McDonald is on his stationary bike this early Monday morning, alternately putting his head down and eyeing the iPad that’s serving up his Zwift virtual ride course. He’s tackling three epic climbs in nearly 30 miles.
The cumulative 915m of elevation gain isn’t for the faint of heart (or the tired of legs), but McDonald is all in with his virtual training buddies, who deliver a mix of support and typical bike-pack trash talk to grind through the pain. The workout ends with a merciful four-mile downhill.
After that, the 51-year-old Lululemon CEO shuts it down, turning off the fan next to him, hopping off his trainer and wiping the sweat from his forehead. One workout down, one to go. And yes, you read that right: McDonald tackles two workouts a day.
In a world full of busy execs who struggle to fit in any workouts at all, McDonald (an accomplished triathlete) packs his workouts tight to keep his engine and schedule fine-tuned. And he certainly has an engine: this past December he placed in the top 10% of the whole 2,300-plusperson field at Ironman 70.3 Indian Wells, a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run. That qualified him for this year’s 70.3 World Championships.
Lululemon bested market expectations with double-digit year-over-year growth in 2023, and McDonald says that’s not in spite of the 10 to 12 hours a week he spends training – it’s because of it. With three disciplines to train in and seven days to do it, ‘you’ve got to be deliberate with your time’, he says. It’s an approach he takes to training as well as to life in general. ‘I look at where the bigopportunities and challenges are, and that’s where I spend my time.’
McDonald loves the bike leg (the longest portion of any tri) most. He’ll do up to six bike sessions a week, along with two swims, two or three runs and two strength sessions. Zwift workouts (which let you use a standard bike for indoor workouts) with friends offer camaraderie, but he’ll ride alone as well. Aset-up in his office helps him to be efficient with time.
Each of these sessions is about more than just gains, though. ‘I use the training time to work through any mental roadblocks or challenges that I’m facing,’ he says. ‘After the workout, this clarity allows me to be more present and focused in conversations throughout my day.’
Triathlons suit McDonald down to the ground. He’s always beenactive (and used to play ice hockey), but the three-sportsin-one nature of a tri pushes his time management skills, especially
