It can be difficult – even impossible – to maintain your fitness levels when on vacation. After all, it is a time for relaxing and chilling out with your family and friends, so your cycling training program tends to take a back seat. But lazing on the beach or enjoying a few holiday cocktails does […]
The Magic 2 Hour Cycling Training Program Read More »
Now it is more than four months since I launched the updated version of my famous 12- week winter training program. However, the 12-week winter training program has been available since 2007 as a free version. Why? Because having thousands of users leaving feedback for me about this training program, I’ve gained more information than
The Story Behind the 12-Week Winter Training Program Read More »
The arrival of power meters sparked a new craze in the 1990s, and they are now part and parcel of the make-up of most pro riders. Power meters are invaluable tools for pacing control and interval sessions and are especially useful for time trial training. But the bottom line is that they are not necessary.
Power Meters Are Not Compulsory Read More »
Most riders enjoy a sprint once in a while with the group they train with. It can be a perfect simulation of the challenges at the end of a race. If you organize these random sprints, you have the opportunity to make your sprints a lot better and still have a lot of fun battling
How to Train for Better Sprint Performance Read More »
Now it’s time to begin your winter training if you are a serious cyclist and live in the Northern Hemisphere. There are several old posts here on Training4cyclists that can be relevant for you when you plan your winter training: Off-Season Cycling Tips – It’s offseason, so read this post before you start to plan
Inspiration for Your Winter Training Read More »
Basic Cycling Training Plans Do you have a cycling training plan? If not, here are some of my best example training plans to get you started. Whether you’re looking to increase your speed or endurance, there is a plan for you. And if you’re new to cycling, these training plans will help prepare you for
Cycling Training Programs Read More »
I have previously posted three quality programs for indoor cycling that illustrate how you can save time and achieve better results. The principles used in these training programs are very similar to those in my VO2 Max Booster Program. Another advantage is that it is unnecessary to use a heart rate monitor or power meter
2 High Quality Indoor Cycling Programs Read More »
Welcome to my series: VO2 Max Booster ProgramThis training program will dramatically boost your race performance in only 14 days. Any cyclist can use the training program, but riders with an SRM or PowerTap mounted on their bike will get the best value. It is good to know your starting point whenever you begin a
VO2 Max Booster Program – VO2 Max Test Read More »
Motivation is important when you are a serious cyclist, because you spend so many hours on your bike. The best cyclists have an ability to motivate themselves workout after workout, season after season. But even though you think of yourself as a dedicated and motivated rider, you might sometimes feel that you have ended up in a training vacuum: You train every single day, but you don’t get any better.
Change training strategy
Doing the same interval procedure every Tuesdays and Thursdays are not necessarily the best way to train and certainly not the most motivating to ride. Mixing up your regular intervals with other intervals is not only motivating, but might improve some of the skills that you haven’t touched for a while. If you haven’t done focused anaerobic training that is one of the fastests skills to improve.
Unorganized intervals (fartlek)
Systematic interval training is the cornerstone in many training programs, but even the best training program needs to be mixed up with unorganized intervals. What I talk about is Fartlek, which is a combination of many different intervals with both aerobic and anaerobic events. These intervals are not organized as the intervals you know from regular interval training. Instead you use the terrain, the winds or you friends to get inspired to make attacks of various lengths. It is very challenging to train Fartlek if you train it with a couple of competitive friends.
Long Slow Distance Training
This might not sound like an opportunity if you are fed up with training hours, but if you have done a lots of systematic intervals with your power meter and got bored, there is a chance that doing couple of LSD sessions could be challenging.
Participate in Races
One of the easiest ways to increase your performance is to participate in races. In several countries there are opportunities to ride extra races every week, so that is a great alternative to your regular training. By doing races as training sessions you get targeted training that is very specific for what you aim for.
Even the best training program has limitations
Evaluating your performance is a process that shall continue throughout your career. Your training program must be optimized as you get knowledge about what works best for you. But even the best cycling program must be changed once in while.
Boost Your Performance With Alternative Workouts Read More »
Here is a very effective strength training program for cyclists. The program is based on multi joint exercises with free weights, which indicate that this program is not for beginners. If you are not familiar with lifting free weights, consider training the same exercises in a machine. Ask a fitness instructor in your training gym.
When using this strength program:
Ӣ Warm up before lifting
Ӣ Never train to failure
Ӣ Use as heavy weights as possible (still no failure training)
Ӣ Be explosive in the concentric phase
Ӣ Rest periods of at least 2 minutes between sets
12 week strength program for cyclists Read More »