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Road Race Training and Racing Tips

A cycling road race is one of the purest forms of head-to-head competition there is.  It's a test of strength, cunning, endurance and a little bit of luck.  It's also one of the most rewarding aspects of riding a bicycle that you can find.  But what should you do if you want to start road racing?  Do you need to buy a fancy bike and spend your life training?  Or can you just pin on a number and take your chances?

Well, you can do either.

In this episode of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast, I'll teach you what the essential components of a road race training plan are.  You'll learn what different kinds of races are and what kind of training you need to handle the physical demands of a variety of road races.  I'll even give you some road race tips to help improve your odds of landing on the podium.

Are you ready to learn how to make the most out of your road race training?  If so, click through the jump and listen for tips on dominating your next road race.

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Criterium Training and Racing Tips

Call it a criterium, a crit, or a short circuit race.  Whatever you call it, it's a tough race for sure.  It's also one of the most common races on most racing calendars.  What makes it so tough to succeed at and what training do you need to perform well in these races?

In this episode of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast, I'll tell you how to build the perfect criterium training plan.  I'll show you what specific training needs to be included in your crit training plan to help you crush the field and hit the line first.  There are also a few tips, tricks and secrets to help you make the most out of your training and races.

So if you're ready to tune up your crit fitness, click through the jump and listen for tips on dominating your next criterium.

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Time Trial Training and Racing Tips

The time trial is an integral part of racing a bicycle.  It's the race of truth, the race against the clock and one of the truest tests of who is a stronger cyclist.  To ride a time trial efficiently is an amazing skill and watching a well executed time trial is a beautiful thing indeed.  With the racing season in full swing, I've been getting a lot of questions from athletes about time trial training and racing tips.

In this episode of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast, I'll explain some of the nuances of time trialing and give you the tips you need to race a better time trial.  I'll cover the key aspects of a time trial training plan and how to squeeze more fitness out of your body.  You'll also get some of my favorite tips, tricks, and marginal gains to help you ride stronger.

So if you're ready to turn the pedals in anger, click through the jump to listen to my best time trial training and racing tips!

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What is Aerobic Decoupling?

As a cyclist finishes their base training, it's important to evaluate how strong your aerobic base truly is.  By using a metric called “aerobic decoupling” you can quickly and easily determine if your base work was effective and if you're ready to progress into harder high-intensity interval training.  But before you can evaluate your aerobic fitness, you need to learn what aerobic decoupling is and how to use it effectively.

What is aerobic decoupling and why do we care about it?

If you're training with power, aerobic decoupling is a key measurement to evaluate as you perform base training.  Aerobic decoupling is a numerical measurement of aerobic efficiency and endurance.  It's representative of your body's ability to process oxygen and produce energy (as detailed in Biohacking Energy Systems) and is a marker of overall aerobic fitness.

Before you can appreciate the value of aerobic decoupling, here's a refresher about how your body produces aerobic energy and the concept of heart rate drift.

To produce energy, your body takes in oxygen through the lungs and passes it to working muscles via the blood stream.  Oxygen and a fuel (fat, protein or sugars) are processed in the mitochondria to create Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP).  ATP is the actual energy molecule that allows your muscles to contract and create pedaling force.  Constant demands on the aerobic energy system can create a phenomenon known as heart rate drift.

Click through the jump to read the show notes for episode 78 of the Tailwind Coaching Podcast:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 46:53 — 33.6MB)

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Two Keys To Building Functional Threshold Power

Building functional threshold power is one of the biggest objectives of most competitive cyclists.  Cyclists everywhere like to brag about how many watts they put out at threshold.  Coffee shop talk is dominated by phrases like “watts per kilogram” and “threshold intervals” in the pursuit of more cycling power.  Interval training programs are based on the concept of how much power you can put out at threshold.

I'm telling you that functional threshold power is indeed one of the biggest goalposts we measure fitness by.  The way we've consistently tried to train it has evolved over the years, but the basic concept remains the same: increase aerobic power at and under your threshold.  There are a few ways to improve your functional threshold power without having to spend hours, days or weeks doing 20 minute threshold efforts.

Quite simply, if you want your functional threshold power to grow, you can either train longer, train smarter or train harder.  Click through the jump to listen to my latest podcast.  You'll learn two keys that will help you train smarter, giving you a jump on building functional threshold power in the base phase.
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