Ryan Cooper is the founder of Best Bike Split, Chief Scientist at Training Peaks, and an expert on all things aerodynamics and pacing. We met up with Ryan in Kona to discuss how to achieve perfect pacing, aerodynamic advantages in time trialing, and triathlon tactics. Topics covered in this episode How Ryan Cooper became an…
Training Plans Update: All Off-Road Specialty Plans Are Improved!
All Off-Road Specialty training plans are improved to be more specific to your riding and racing goals. What’s New Each Off-Road Specialty plan includes a TSS progression in line with the improved Build training plans. To allow flexibility for varying racing schedules, training stress remains steady from week to week throughout this 8-week block bringing…
5 Strength Training Exercises for Cyclists to Integrate Into Your Training Plan
Importance of Strength Training for Cyclists The demands of being on the bike for extended durations, coupled with constantly turning over the pedals, brings to light the importance of functional strength for cyclists. Functional strength sounds like a bit of a buzzword, but it has real application in the world of endurance sports. Strength training…
How to Recover, Maintain and Build Fitness After Completing a Full Training Cycle
Too many dedicated athletes are hard-pressed to take some time off. Most of us even have a skewed view of vacation seeing it less as a break from reality and more as a training disruption. And while the human body is tremendously adaptive and capable of withstanding countless forms of abuse, properly administered rest is…
Why Andrew Talansky Has an Advantage in Triathlon
At 28 years old Andrew Talansky has his whole road racing career ahead of him, but he’s changing gears. Listen in to find out why the most successful American pro cyclist in recent times is moving sports to triathlon. Andrew Talansky is one of the most successful American cyclists in history with a win at…
How to Fine-Tune Your Cyclocross Fitness During Race Season
Cyclocross riders face the demands of high-level suffering for up to an hour-plus worth of all-out effort — all while enduring the mêlée of heckling crowds like those you might see in the high passes of the grand tours. Optimal Training Plan Progression for Cyclocross Racers We recommend that riders precede the Cyclocross Specialty training…
Strategies to Qualify for Ironman World Championship as an Age Grouper
If you aspire to qualify for Ironman World Championship as an age-group triathlete, this interview with sub-10 Kona-qualifier Emmet Kelly will explain exactly what you need to do. In this episode of the Ask a Cycling Coach podcast, we talk with Emmet Kelly, a 35-year-old IT technician and father of two young boys who qualified…
Time Trial Training and Preparation: 11 Things to Do Before Your Event
So you signed up for a time trial? Follow this 8-week timeline to learn how to train and what to do to prepare for your event. 8 Weeks Out 1. Enter your Specialty phase of training Two months is the ideal amount of time to start honing in your training and fitness to match the…
Time Trial Training: Practice Workouts Designed to Make Cyclists Faster
The 40k TT Specialty training plans include dedicated weekly Time Trial workouts to provide riders with opportunities to ride at their time trial pace, in their time trial position, at roughly time trial durations. These TT-focused workouts are specifically designed to help you achieve your fastest outcome on race day. Examples of Time Trial Workouts in…
How Do I Know If My FTP is Appropriate for My Training?
Answer: If your workouts are challenging but doable, that’s one of the biggest indications you properly estimated your FTP. When your workouts don’t feel like this, it’s time to make some changes. When you first start your structured training with TrainerRoad, your first workout is a Functional Threshold Power (FTP) test. The results of your…