Ten Minute Tips #65: Why Training Or Racing Experience Shouldn't Determine Training Volume
Our coaches address the common question of why your friend may be faster when doing less training than you, as well as why your experience level or race category probably doesn't indicate how much you should train. We look at the different returns on investment with training volume vs intensity, selection and survivor bias in cycling, a survey of power and training volume with racing cyclists in the US, and why comparison can be the thief of joy, but when it can be a useful tool for goal setting. We also answer your listener questions on genetics, time in zone progression, training time as a limiter, and more.
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1:29:34
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1:29:34
Watts Doc #58: Creatine's Actual Effects On Cycling Performance
This episode is one of our deepest dives ever, into the literature on creatine's effects and tradeoffs with cycling performance, and how the results fare against Kolie's standard for being meaningful, noticeable, or measurable. Because individual studies report such varied results, we instead look at a meta analysis on creatine supplementation in aerobic performance, another on repeated sprints, plus a bonus study with a simulated road race. There's also a brief and explicitly non-expert look at a popular paper on creatine and cognition. Instead of recommending whether cyclists take creatine or not as a binary, we discuss the pros and cons, realistic expectations of effects, and in what cases we would consider supplementation. Plus your listener questions!
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1:58:53
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1:58:53
Ten Minute Tips #64: Diagnosing And Training Weaknesses In The Off-Season
This episode we start with the old cycling adage "train your weaknesses, race your strengths" as the jumping off point to discuss strategies for diagnosing and training weaknesses in the off season. We decide for whom this would make sense as a strategy, the opportunity cost of training a weakness, low opportunity cost things to train, how race selection factors in, and much more.
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59:33
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59:33
Watts Doc #57: Finding FTP By Feel Is Easier Than You Think
This episode we look into the published literature on the surprisingly tight agreement between FTP and RPE and a couple different lab-derived measures of threshold like MLSS and critical power, along with the concept of anchoring. But first we get philosophical about how measurements often become definitions that can lose sight of our valid observations and experience. We wrap up by discussing FTP testing with RPE, plus answer your listener questions on RPE scales and anchors, RPE drift, common mistakes when using RPE, Borg's 6-20 vs 10 point scale, and much more.
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1:49:54
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1:49:54
Watts Doc #56: Strength Training Strategies To Avoid Weight Gain
This is a deep dive into four papers on hypertrophy and strength training, and use them to find guidelines around how cyclists can improve strength without gaining weight. We evaluate the stimulus and overall impact of eccentric vs concentric contractions, sets and reps, minimum dose for strength improvements, progressive overload, and nutrition.
Do you want to know how training makes you faster? Listen in. Kolie is a leading expert in endurance, sprint, and strength training for cyclists. Kyle is a NASA scientist and national champion sprinter on the track.
Empirical Cycling is a coaching company specializing in individualized training plans for all cycling disciplines. If you like the podcast, please consider a donation at http://www.empiricalcycling.com/donate.html
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