Thanks for having me on to chat! I hope that people find this helpful and I'm happy to further explain any points if anyone has any additional questions in the comments :)
@@paddylogan13 I'm really glad to heat that, and good luck for the Struggle! I'm tempted to give that a go in the future, but need to take my advice and get some smaller gearing!
Great video. Excellent points in where to focus efforts for a time crunched rider. A question I have is how well cross training such as running translates into cycling aerobic and anaerobic fitness. Thanks 👍
@@dphillips9361 so running itself does help with overall aerobic fitness, and the impact work is great for bones, muscle and joints. There are some studies that lots of running alongside cycling can reduce cycling efficiency, and need to be careful about run volume as it can lead to injuries if doing too much too soon. Common to see cyclists run in the off season and pick up injuries because although they are aerobically fit enough to run a marathon they are not structurally strong enough to deal with the impact/eccentric muscle loads
I gained valuable insights from your exchange with David. Excellent job in breaking it down in a clear and easily understandable manner. I am in my early 40's and trying to navigate my way to keep improving and cycling until my body allows it.
I've seen a couple of people ask about running as cross training for cycling. I tried to reply but the replies don't seem to have sent so will add some info here: So running itself can help with the aerobic fitness element of cycling. So if there is a period when you can't cycle, running is a good way to keep that aerobic fitness. However you need to be careful because a cyclist who can ride 100miles is likely aerobically fit enough to run a marathon, but unlikely to be structurally strong enough to deal with the impact and eccentric muscle loads. If adding running to your cross training, build up very gradually. It is great for bone, tendon, ligament, and muscle health and strength, but needs to be built up gradually, the same as introducing strength training to your fitness routines
Thank you for the information... I am 65 and cycling for 8 years I race in grandfondo s and I ride 50 60. 100 miles . I ride 4 days a week . I have been on chemo for 3 years . And Cycling during chemo . On the days I get chemo. I ride 80 miles . Lost some speed but keepe my Endurance... I ride with south west bikes on Sunday with guys that are fast ... Working on getting my speed back .. My question is I want to do the race across America..... And I need to train for this .... What would be a good way to train for thus event ..??? I do know lots of time on the bike . Mu average speed 14 to 15 mph . Climbing 8 to 10 mph ... Thanks for your time .
Wow David this is super informative.....I could listen to these sorts of interviews for hours. Obviously, this professional cycling coach Andy Turner, really knows his stuff. I really like his style, he explains various cycling aspects so well. I'll definately be listening to this interview again as Andy is a wealth of information. Thanks again David and I hope you can possibly get another interview with Andy again.
One of the big points there was ‘fun’. Got to keep it fun if you want to keep at it in the long term. Especially when it’s something we do to enjoy/improve ourselves in our spare time. Nice to hear the realism of balancing training with life stresses and recovery, rather than more is better.
It might be that training volume or intensity needs to be reduced a bit to allow for better recovery. Other ways for boosting recovery are optimising sleep health and routine, fuelling before and after workouts well, and potentially antioxidant foods/supplements like turmeric can reduce inflammation and improve recovery. Hopefully those ideas might help better get the balance of stress/rest and allow for improved training adaptions and improvements for you
My athletic background is basketball, American football, and a little track running. There's so much to learn about cycling training. I've ridden single speed bikes for over a decade, but I grew tired of just riding solo for fitness. The road bike world has opened my eyes to goal setting and achieving results. Plus I miss the comradery of the basketball courts. Trying to get my fitness up so that I can join in some of these group rides.
I appreciate the advice that's targeted more toward the average "everyday" cyclist. Without an "A Race", is periodization recommended? Would a consistent sweet spot training rhythm be a better means of improving fitness (w/a long weekend group ride including above threshold effects)?
Sweetspot training can help, but part of what improves performance is varying training stimulus. Often people find that SS works for a while before there’s a plateau in progress. It’s then worth changing the efforts to perhaps a VO2/MAP block, cadence stimulus, or adding strength training to achieve a new training stimulus and see further progression in training. A kind of periodisation
I look forward to my 2+ hr rides. It's the short ones that feel like a chore. I used to play basketball 3 hours a day. Never felt like a chore. You might not like cycling as much as you think you do.
I'm 54 with a Vo2 max of 45, 15 second sprint of 1090 watts, FTP of 284, and ride 100k around 2:33. 6'4" and 195lbs - I do about 7 hours on the bike a week. But, I've been there (plateau) for the past year and not making improvements. It's frustrating.
Why would you want to train so much? Even the guy in this video doesn't seem to understand what the science shows. In studies even very short intervals is able to increase vo2 max and just saw recently some guy about 60 with a vo2 max of over 50 who trains something like 3 times a weak with each session having 4 times 4m intervals with about the same amount of rest in between.
I really enjoyed listening to you Andy. I trained in sports science and you clearly know your stuff and how to tailor it to individuals. I really liked your emphasis on strength training for on and off the bike benefits, especially for older people (like myself, age 49). I am a strength coach and recreational cyclist and my focus is on healthy ageing rather than athletic performance but one of the joys to be had for recreational 'athletes' like myself is that we can keep performing well as we get older, if we are strong enough. I was a recreational runner for most of my 20s & 30s before taking up strength training aged 39 and then came into road cycling at age 42. I log everything and 2017 was my first proper year as a cyclist. 2023 was a very similar year in terms of number of rides and distances cycled (the intervening years were lower due to work reasons) but my speed is way down and I have been trying to figure out why. My weight is about the same and my max and resting heart rate is pretty much exactly the same (so I assume my cardiovascular fitness is much the same) but one factor that I think might be important is that in 2017 I was routinely barbell squatting 100kg and deadlifting in excess of 130kg while in 2023 I was barely managing 70kg and 100kg respectively (thanks to a hamstring injury which fortunately didn't seem to affect me on the bike). I am currently working my strength back up to decent numbers again but I am also - for the first time - actually training to ride better using a turbo (and Wahoo SYSTM) rather than just going out for a ride and getting fitter during the year so hopefully 2024 will be a good year on the bike. I look forward to any future episodes!
Thank you for the kind feedback. In terms of speed, is the equipment you're using the same or similar? And what is performance on climbs like? Given the change in capacity to move weights in the gym, potentially strength could be down a bit. Weirdly my RHR and HRmax are not dissimilar to what they were when I raced, but my power is well down after a few years of illness and injury. Sounds like you're taking the right approach though and the SYSTM plans are a great way to get a fitness routine going on the bike with varying training stimulus. Good luck in your fitness journey!
@@Andy13231 Strength is definitely down. One of the bikes is the same but another has changed and I think that is a factor too. Performance on climbs is where I have really noticed the drop off. I suspect there is a possible illness factor lurking in the background too; not long-COVID but something akin to that... Many factors in other words! Being the kind of geek I am I transposed all my Strava results into a spreadsheet of my own design to see if I could better figure out what was going on. I am treating myself as a coaching client and seeing what I can do. All good clean fun!
So, Andy is explaining science. But the layman's take is that this man knows how the every man should ride to improve. At the end of the day, Isn't that we all want?
Hopefully that's what I am able to do yes. I think the science is important for understanding how and why certain training methods and sessions can help people. I then aim to apply that science along with my experience of racing, riding, coaching, and being coached to ideally get the best out of them. Equally I think there are lessons people can take to coach themselves, as I appreciate that financially not everyone is in a position to hire a coach
22:00 Don´t agree. I find VO2max workouts on the smart trainer in Zwift to be very good. Yes they hurt, and yes if you slow down your pedaling too much the smart trainer will punish you, but it is possible to pause or to decrease the ftp during the ride. If find doing these kind of workouts outdoors quite difficult.
I have my own fitness coach via Training Peaks (and it’s been a revolutionary exprerience for someone over 60 and new to cycling Sportives) since this time last year. Many of the things discussed here chin with what my own coach has said and the regime I’ve been following.
I'm 56 and my summer training is 1min interval session 30sec sprint session 1 high rep weight session 1 long MTB ride. Winter I do two weights sessions and in lieu of the 30sec session. So four sessions per week in both seasons. Is that suitable for MTB xco and marathon racing. As that's mentioned in the interview.
Great video,loads of information in there. Having done a few v40 cyclocross races with you in the winter. Does Andy have cyclocross specific tips so we can up our race game.
Nice and informative! Flexibility in the schedule as well as managing the buildup of total stress due to life and work happening in combination with the stressors of training is something i have not heard of a lot before.
Great video and excellent explanations from Andy. I've watched many cycling training videos and this one is hands down the most informative and relevant to the average cyclist.
Why would you need to train at least 4h a week, when actual studies show even a 15 minute interval training session something like 3 times a week increases vo2 max? People that compete might need to train for hours, most people don't if something like 50 vo2 max is enough for them.
Because, if you'd actually listened to the video properly.....it's not just about vo2 max (which is hugely important), but it's also about muscle capillarisation, mitochondrial improvements, resilience, and teaching the body to burn fat rather than carbs which happens with longer low intensity rides. Doing just vo2 max work is only half the picture.
@@Markhypnosis1 All those things like mitochondrial function come with higher vo2 max as a byproduct also. If the question is how to improve overall performace with least time, then low heart rate training isn't optimal but instaed short high intensity intervals achieve the same or better overall performance in less time. The body burns fat and does recovery after the exercise is done also, it's not just 5 minutes after the interval the effect is done. Bottom line is that if you had only say 2h per week to train, doing high intensity intervals only will lead to better improvement in all areas than any added low intensity training.
I'm not sure if you can make much improvement at anything with just 45 minutes per week as you suggest. Much less athletic pursuits. If you want to get better at physical activity, you won't make meaningful gains with anything less than about 4 hours per week.
@@Kevinschart well it depends on the starting level of course but that is what was the surprise in what the studies showed: for regular people, short HIIT sessions produced similar or better improvements in vo2 max than steady longer and slower exercises. Even the very short sprints like 20 seconds was enough to produce good results, if the person repeated that something like 4 times per the session and had 3 sessions per week. So you can run for hours at a slower pace or do the short sprints and have similar vo2 max gains. The slower longer workouts don't target vo2 max so efficiently as high intensity intervals.
If you had to choose between a 2021 canyon grizl 1by with sram force explr or a 2022 specialized diverge expert with 1by with a sram gx derailleur. What would be your choice
I don't understand the fascination in improving performance, when most people don't race. Just get out and ride your bike......enjoyment is way more important than w/kg, FTP, etc
Everyone races. You don’t need a license and number to race your group mates or the similarly fit guy you meet out on the road. Only the most placid individuals never race.
Improving performance does improve your ability and that does have a positive impact on enjoyment. The more capable you are, the more options you have. I'd have to be more capable to do the rides that many people take for granted.
I’ve personally found being fitter and stronger has allowed me to enjoy cycling more as it’s less of a struggle compared to when unfit. And like it or not lots of people enjoy going as fast as they can solo, against mates or in events, but lots don’t and that’s all cool 😎
Sorry but that's a ridiculous thing to say. Firstly, for many people part of the enjoyment of cycling is seeing their numbers improving over time. Most people have some kind of competitiveness in them, even if it IS just beating their own previous speed/1 hr power, or distance. I certainly do and I enjoy that aspect. And of course one of the benefits of that is being able to cycle further and faster, at a lower intensity. The fitter you are, the faster you can go at a low non fatiguing intensity. And when you only have a few hours a week, you have to be smart how you train. At 52 with an FTP of 290, My fitness levels which have come about from structured training, allows me to do 100 mile, 200 mile rides in a reasonable time and speed. I enjoy them more because they are easier, hills are easier, everything is just easier and more enjoyable.
