I'm getting dropped out riding. Which of the programs in the Cyclist's Guide to Home Training e-book that I bought from you might be a good place to start with?

Two tips to help you through the live televised coverage of the TDF

This is a quick clip from my HR data talk that was presented that the RaceRight Cycling Camp May 2008 and discusses the analysis of polar HR data capture over the summer criterium racing at Glenvale run by Carnegie Caulfield Cycling Club.

When is come to weight training for cyclists there is a raging debate on as to what sort of strength training produces the greatest results. The first thing to remember with strength training is that a sprinter will be training differently to an endurance rodie. Sprinters by nature need to recruit large amounts of power in excess of 2kw at world championship level. For that they will spend a huge part of their training life in the gym performing strength training. As for a rodie, which we would best describe as an endurance athlete, strength training is also an important part of helping to develop power on the bike. A rodie still has to sprint at the end of a race, still have to chase down or initiate attacks and needs sustained power to climb hills and to time trial well. It's a proven scientific fact that endurance cyclist can greatly benefit from doing weight training as well. Weight training even applies to the recreational cyclist who rides cycling endurance events like the AUDAX, Round the Bay in a Day, Sydney to Wollongong and our very own original spring and summer Alpine Bright Boot Camp. Also, one of the great spinoffs from weight training is the ability to ride faster for longer and with more comfort. This article discusses the myths of weight training and how to specifically train for cycling.

Home trainers help you improve

Just like your heart rate monitor your indoor home trainer is a fundamental tool in improving your cycling fitness. During your building and peaking phases the humble home trainer becomes the most important corner stone to help you perform high intensity intervals and sprints. Sadly skipped by many cyclist these high intensity efforts are critical to your success as a cyclists and stop you from being spat out of the back of bunches when climbing hills, responding to vicious attacks and hammering into cross winds while riding in the gutter. Not only that, training on an indoor home trainer is the most important key to improving you time trial performance for road races and triathlon events. It's is scientifically proven that a structured six week session on a home trainer can improve you average speed by several kilometres which can cut minutes of your personal bests for these events. This article discuss the merits of home training and how to keep motivated while doing it.

Resting heart rate indicates your fitness

Your resting heart rate is often a good determination as to how fit you are. It is also a good indicating to determine if you're either over training or unwell. If this is the case it will usually show up as as unexplained increases in resting heart rate. This article discusses the basics of resting heart rate, how it relates to fitness and provides a table indicating how fit you are based on your own personal resting HR.

Cheap way to monitor your performance

The Heart Rate monitor is valuable training tool for you to monitor and evaluate your cycling fitness and progress. Here is a group of articles that help explain what it is all about and how you can use it to improve the efficiency of your training; saving you time while maximising your training results. The first page talks about the different HR zones. This is how to use heart rate monitors to improve your cycling

Cycling interval training at your VO2MAX zone is one of the few ways to improve your VO2 measure. This short article briefly discusses VO2MAX training and the energy system involved. Simply put and without going into to much scientific jargon your VO2MAX energy system is different to other energy systems you use while riding. It is the energy system you primary rely on when racing at high intensities and has a high blend of anaerobic respiration; that is burning energy without oxygen. It's kind of like adding nitro to petrol. You use it to go really fast. But there is a down side to it...

I'm a big fan of monitoring the amount of vertical meters climbed for the week. It's a number that's important if you are a recreational rider that's riding hilly events... Especially if you are riding some of these epic events in Europe this year. It's also a very important number if you are now transitioning into road racing. While climbing is not a important part of criterium racing it's still a great way to improve your strength and VO2MAX values. So even if you are spending this road season just doing the flatter criterium racing make hills your friend and use them to build strength, power and improve your VO2MAX. 

Saddle Sores Can be a Real Drama

Saddle sores can become a serious problem that can create havoc for any cyclists working to a weekly training schedule. Once the cyclist's saddle sore becomes serious enough it can ruin weekly goals and force you to stop training for a couple of days. It is very important to prevent saddle sores from even developing. Here are some tips...

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