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How To Return To Cycling After Illness

Returning to riding after an illness can be tough for the best of us.  But returning to training after an illness can be even harder.  Should you be getting back to where you were as fast as possible or just work through it slowly?  How do you go about planning your workouts in order to get the most out of them?  What can you do to avoid getting sick again?

On this episode of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast, I'll tell you how to get back in the saddle and start your cycling training again after you've been down and out sick for a while.  Click through the jump to listen and get a few helpful tips and tricks on how to get your fitness back fast.

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Making The Most Of Your Indoor Cycling Training

Whether it's escaping the weather as winter sets in or grabbing a quick hour workout, the indoor trainer is a valuable tool in any cyclist's arsenal.  It can be mind-numbingly boring though.  That doesn't mean that it can't be one of the most valuable training modalities available to you.

In this episode of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast, I'll show you why the trainer is such a valuable tool.  I'll also give you a few of my favorite workouts and interval progressions.  These won't just get you fit: they'll keep you motivated to get on the trainer again and build even more fitness.  And the variety they offer will help you round out your fitness and get you strong and confident when you get back out on the road.

So click through the jump and learn how you can get the most out of your indoor cycling training.

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Motivation Monday: Fall Fitness and Fun

Autumn is quickly approaching here in the northern hemisphere and that means falling leaves and falling temperatures.  The crisp mornings and mild days are a welcome reprieve from the oppression of the summer heat and humidity.  But as the leaves litter the ground and the temperatures dip, motivation can wane like the length of the days.

After a long season of intervals, structured training, and watching power numbers, it can be difficult to find a reason to get in the saddle.  Fortunately, the change of seasons offers more than one way to stoke your motivation as opposed to killing it.

For this Motivation Monday, it's time to give you a few ways to get your mojo back.  Click through the jump to explore a few ways of cranking up your motivation and finishing your season strong.

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How Much High Intensity Interval Training Is Too Much?

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT or HIT) is a great way to get fit fast.  It's one of the go-to training tools when you need to build a bunch of fitness fast.  But like anything else in training or in life, there's something called “too much of a good thing.”

While it's very effective at raising your fitness, there's still a cost to high intensity training.  Between the high metabolic cost and the potential for a lot of repeatability, you can get into trouble fast.  Recently, I've gotten a ton of questions about how much is too much.  So it's time to delve into high intensity training again and figure out what you can and can't get away with.

Before we get started: take a look at my “HIIT The Science” podcast for some in-depth information about high intensity interval training pros and cons.  It's a great primer for this podcast and it'll give you a good idea of what high intensity interval training is all about.

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Functional Threshold Power Training Intervals

Functional threshold power intervals are the staple of any build program.  While VO2 max is the genetic parameter that determines your body's upper limit of aerobic fitness, functional threshold is the parameter that determines how much (or what percentage) you can use.

How do you build Functional Threshold Power?

Functional Threshold Power really is what most people try to improve in a training program.  While efficiency plays a role and VO2 max capacity is important, FTP is the big comparison number.  Well, W/Kg really is the king, but FTP is the most well known and compared in amateur circles.

That said, how do we go about improving FTP?  Well, you have to have the VO2 max ceiling first.  Once you have that, the goal is to force your body to work right at or just above FTP to create endurance adaptations.  You can do that in a number of different ways, each with their own outcomes.

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