Training

Athletes that are willing to put some thought and dedication into designing a personal training strategy can be quite successful

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Frank Overton gives guidelines for developing your own annual training program

Training in the heat improves performance in cool conditions, a study finds.

LeMond’s Revolution, the same trainer used by Garmin-Transitions at this year’s Tour, is a marked step away from the status quo.

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A few nutritional adjustments for cyclocross season.

Coach Frank Overton shares some of his favorite 'cross workouts

In the first question and answer column in VeloNews.com's new Training Center feature, a reader asks whether he should buy a cyclocross bike that is smaller than his road bike.

"Fo ahz hahd": Imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger saying, "four hours hard." That's a workout Dave Wiens learned years ago from Euro rider Gerhard Zadrobilek.

For six-time LT100 winner Dave Wiens, the road to Leadville is a well-trodden route, one he's written on and off about over the last few years in a training diary. Leading up to the August race Dave is once again chronicling his training, which we'll have here on Singletrack.com.

You may not be able to race the Tour de France, but you can simulate it at home.

A reader asks how to best peak for a race just two weeks away.

The third part in our series on training for Grand Fondos and other long rides. This week's subject: climbing.

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Yoga helps in stretching, strengthening, and lengthening muscles. It is also a fabulous method of preparing for cycling

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Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Luna Chix Katerina Nash and Marla Streb offer some off-season training tips for the Sea Otter Classic in April.

The first article in a new training series for riders preparing for Gran Fondos and other challenging events.

A profile of HTC-Columbia's innovative trainer, Darcy Norman, and his techniques.

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A reader asks whether he should continue his training when he is a bit under the weather.

Competitive cyclists can be wound a little tight, so Singletrack.com columnist Judy Freeman is resolving to indulge more and abstain less.

Nutritionist Monique Ryan answers some more questions about the effects of cycling on bone density.

Do bodies absorb warm or cold water faster?

New book, "Racing Weight," is the first to help endurance athletes train for weight-loss using healthy and effective methods.

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Getting through cycling's 'transition season.'

Frank Overton lays out what it takes to step it up a notch: planning and ... more hours on the bike.

Paul Swift answers a reader question about what pedal system is best for bow-legged riders.

How can bike fit fix a 'dropping hip'?

Should base training consist of only long, easy miles?

It is not unusual during a full season of racing to hear about a pro cyclist or two breaking a clavicle or other bone in a multi-rider pile-up. But is there something inherent to cycling that increases your risk for developing a break when you hit the pavement hard? A growing body of research indicates that being fit through cycling training alone does not guarantee optimal bone density. Cycling only may be bad for your bones.

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Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Gale Bernhardt, USA Cycling and USA Triathlon coach, and author of numerous books, including Training Plans for Cyclists, has some fitness tips for flatlanders looking to head to the high country.

Excess weight increases risk for a number of diseases, and the current weight epidemic is actually an overeating epidemic.

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Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Race simulations are a great weapon to have in your belt. Try these training tips and you'll be plenty prepared for exploding off the start line and getting a jump on the competition.

Some experts believe that poor vitamin D status can often be a problem among athletes, and affect your overall health and ability to train.

Stage 17 of the Tour de France was bound to be a make-or=break affair for those aiming at a podium position in Paris. Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck predicted stage 17 would be important during Monday's rest day press conference, “We will see a lot of damage in stage 17 with the Col de Romme and the other four climbs."

Stage 15 was the first major test of the Alpine stages and included a mountain top finish, the second of three in this year’s Tour. The finish in Verbier, Switzerland, has never hosted the Tour de France before, but many of the riders know the finish quite well since the Tour of Switzerland has finished in Verbier several times.

The overall classification for the top 10 in the Tour de France has not changed since last weekend’s stages in the Pyrenees. Monday was a rest day and stage 10 and 11 have been won in field sprints by Team Columbia-HTC’s Mark Cavendish. Team Saxo Bank’s Chris Anker Sorensen continues to ride well within his first Tour de France. He is recovering quickly and has been well within his comfort zone the last two stages. However, many others have been, as well, so we should expect some real fireworks as the Tour enters the Alpes in a few days.

Stage 10

As the Tour de France wraps up its first week of racing on the lower slopes of the Pyrénées, it seems the racing action among the general classification favorites has been put on hold for a while. Stages 8 and 9 had similar scripts — allow a lead break of non-GC contenders to escape, race the major Category 1 climbs at a cautious pace, and limit all losses.

This past May the Food and Drug Administration moved to ban the diet product Hydroxycut after receiving 23 reports of health problems

I’m back. After my last fit session, I rode several times with my new saddle, new pedals and new position. I felt good, but I was still feeling that all-too-familiar burning sensation after about 90 minutes of recovery-pace riding. I was beginning to get really frustrated. I thought that I had plateaued and really wasn’t making any improvements. I decided to take a few weeks off the bike; the decision was partially my own, and partially dictated by my schedule — final exams were coming up and I really had no time to do anything but grade my students’ work.

Now that summer is here, I am guessing just about all of the VeloNews readers are training for a goal event that’s coming up soon. You’ve prepared for months, meticulously laying down your “base;” performed intervals up the wazoo and participated in numerous group rides. Now what?

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Don’t take this the wrong way, but there is a lot more to riding bikes than just training for the next race. And while I know that might sound obvious, for me anyway, that simple truth got lost for a little while. During the last year, I’ve been willingly immersed in an exciting new world of power meters, intervals, thresholds and watts. I trained indoors on powder days, bailed on friendly group rides so I could stick to my workout plan, and skipped a few Friday night bacchanals so I’d be fresh for Saturday’s ’cross race.

A look at the diet used by some Garmin team pros

Roasted Gingered Salmon with Mango Salsa and more

I’m back.

Christian Vande Velde came into his own last season with a run of stunning successes: A strong showing at the Tour of California, the pink jersey at the Giro, a stellar fourth place in the Tour de France, and to cap the season, the Tour of Missouri overall win. This year Vande Velde scored a stage win at Paris-Nice, and looks set for another top season that he hopes is set back only slightly by his injuries in Monday's stage 3 crash at the Giro.

Team Columbia’s Marco Pinotti reached the line in the front group in Wednesday’s Fleche Wallone classic, finishing 40th, 54 seconds behind the winner Davide Rebellin. More importantly however for Pinotti was the sixth-place finish of his teammate, Thomas Lövkvist, who crossed the line just six seconds behind Rebellin.

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Fueling up once the alarm sounds is critical.

There’s a commonly held sports adage that says the best way to get better at your chosen activity is to play with people who are better than you. I certainly don’t agree with this in all cases. Hoops with LeBron would only equal thunder dunks in face. I’d probably drown in Michael Phelps’ wake. And clearly Troy Polamalu could rip all our heads off.

Of all the lessons I learned during this past year of getting coached, No. 1 by a long shot is this basic tenet: More time on the bike does not necessarily translate to increased fitness. Instead, the key is finding that critical balance between high intensity and adequate rest. Better to crush yourself a couple times a week, and then have several short truly easy days, than to noodle around whenever you can and rarely take time off.

Optimal recovery nutrition is essential.

I got involved with Diabetes Training Camps about three years ago. I’ve been to seven camps since then. I just wrapped up a camp in Tucson with the Triabetes group, which was a departure from the other camps I’ve done in that all the diabetic campers were training for the same goal, an ambitious one, to complete the Ironman in Phoenix in November ’09. All the campers have type one diabetes.

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Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Editor's note: Tom LeCarner, VeloNews' copy editor, is an avid cyclist who has been unable to ride and train for most of 2008 because of knee pain. He is being treated at the Boulder Center for Sports Medicine, using Specialized Body Geometry equipment and services at Specialized's expense and reporting on his progress in regular columns.

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Team Saxo Bank's Gustav Larsson recorded some impressive numbers on his SRM power meter on Monday as he worked for his team leaders. Not only was the second stage of the Amgen Tour of California contested over a tough route with two major climbs, but the weather conditions again added that unpredictable element of "man v. nature."

Pre-season strength training carries its own nutritional demands

A simple 20-minute field test can determine your power at threshold and is the best starting point for a power-based training plan. Knowing one’s threshold wattage gives you the ability to use wattage-based training zones and to understand power readout in real time on the bike. Most importantly, you will be able to analyze training data on your computer and measure your cycling improvement. What

I remember my college days at University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, with the fondest of memories. It was a great time to be a Georgia Bulldog, perhaps the greatest. The football team was the best in the nation, with the phenomenal Herschel Walker routinely running over, around, and away from hapless defenses for touchdowns. Dominique Wilkins led the Dawgs to the final four in my senior year.

Editor's Note: Drew Geer is an endurance mountain bike racer who has been using a computer training log since 1998 and has hand-written training logs going back to 1972. He's been an Apple Mac user since 1984. Geer paid retail for each of the products he reviewed in this article.

Editor's Note: Tom LeCarner, VeloNews' copy editor, is an avid cyclist who has been unable to ride and train for most of 2008 because of knee pain. He is being treated at the Boulder Center for Sports Medicine and using Specialized Body Geometry equipment and services at Specialized's expense, and reporting on his progress in regular columns. You can read LeCarner's previous columns here.