🛠️ Fine-Tuning Performance through Periodisation & Block Training
📘 What Is Training Periodisation? Periodisation divides your training year into three nested cycles: * Macrocycle: The entire season (6–12 months) * Mesocycle: A focused block (3–6 weeks) * Microcycle: A single week According to modern coaching practice, mesocycles—each with a distinct goal like endurance, threshold, or strength—are essential for sustained progress. Coaches now routinely test performance between blocks to adjust training precisely . 🔄 Block Periodisation: Focused & Fa
On this day (July 14th 2003) - The Fall and Rise
Lance Armstrong spotted Joseba Beloki's bike sliding on melted tar ahead. Tour de France 2003, stage to Gap, scorching heat had turned the road treacherous. As Beloki crashed, Armstrong faced a split-second decision. In an incredible display of bike handling, he veered right, straight down a steep field, across a ditch, and back onto the road below. A moment that showcased cycling's unpredictability and the incredible skills of its athletes.
July 13, 2016: Froome Runs Up Ventoux
Chaos erupted on cycling's giant when Chris Froome abandoned his broken bike and started running up Mont Ventoux. The unprecedented scene unfolded after a motorcycle crash caused a pile-up involving the race leader. With no team car in sight, Froome took matters into his own feet, jogging uphill in his cycling cleats. The surreal spectacle lasted only minutes but became an instant classic. Race jury later awarded Froome the same time as his rivals, preserving his yellow jersey in what became his
🥦 Fueling for Pedals: What the Science Says
⏱️ Pre‑Ride Fuel & Carb Rinsing Don’t skip those carbs before a ride—or at least swish them around. Skipping food leaves you flat, while chewing on a 6–8% carb solution and spitting it out has been shown to boost high-intensity cycling performance by ~2–3% . It triggers brain receptors, making hard efforts feel easier. Not a free lunch, but a brain trick worth trying. 🍝 Carb Timing = Garage Door of Gains Studies confirm what teams have known: timed carbs around workouts open the “garage do
🚴 Maximise Cycling Performance with Polarised Training & VO₂ Priming
🔍 What is Polarised Training? Polarised Training (POL) involves allocating approximately 80 % of training in low intensity zones (1–2) and 20 % in high intensity zones (4–5), steering clear of the moderate ‘grey’ zone. The latest scoping review of 14 studies confirms that matching around 75–85 % easy riding with 15–26 % high intensity significantly improves VO₂max, VO₂peak, and work economy in endurance riders . A meta-analysis comprising 17 studies and 437 athletes further found POL especia
The Week in Two Wheels: Tour de France Drama, Tech Wonders, and a Sticky Situation!
Well, cycling fans, if the past week has taught us anything, it's that the world of two wheels never truly stops spinning, even when it feels like it's been doused in a generous helping of pure, unadulterated chaos. From the highly anticipated kick-off of the Tour de France, delivering a cocktail of crosswind calamities and Classics-esque thrills, to whispers of revolutionary tech and even a rather unfortunate incident involving sticky fingers, there's been no shortage of headlines to keep us al
Legendary Cycling Locations -Mont Ventoux
The Giant of Provence stands alone, a lunar landscape piercing the Mediterranean sky. Its bare limestone summit, visible for miles, has witnessed cycling's greatest triumphs and darkest moments. Here, in 1967, Tom Simpson made his final acceleration before collapsing just 1.5km from the summit. Today, three routes snake up this mythical mountain, each testing riders' limits. When the mistral wind howls across the moonscape summit, even the strongest cyclists bow to nature's power. A monument to
Legendary Cycling Locations - Alpe d'Huez
The 21 hairpins of cycling legend. Each bend numbered in descent, each telling tales of champions who danced on pedals to cycling immortality. Since 1952, this Alpine giant has been the stage where Tour dreams soar or shatter. Rising 1,860 meters through 13.8 kilometers, its 8.1% average gradient has broken the strongest riders. But it's in the Dutch Corner, turn 7, where cycling transcends sport. Here, a sea of orange turns the mountain into cycling's greatest stadium, where every July, new leg
On this day (July 3rd 2024) -The Sprint King's Coronation
Mark Cavendish sat quietly at the back of the peloton, knowing history beckoned. Thirty-three Tour stage wins, one short of Eddy Merckx's record. Through the final kilometers, his team assembled the perfect lead-out train. As the finish line approached in Carcassonne, Cavendish burst from his teammates' wheels, arms thrust skyward. Win number 34 – the Manx Missile had matched the greatest of all time.
Fuelling Your Ride: The Art of Carbohydrate Periodization (and why "more is always better" isn't the full story)
So, you've got your training plan dialled, your neuromuscular system is humming, and your legs are itching to go. But what about the fuel that powers all this pedalling prowess? For years, the mantra has been "carbs, carbs, carbs!" and while carbohydrates are undeniably the king of high-intensity fuel, the latest research suggests a more nuanced approach is needed: Carbohydrate Periodization. Forget the idea of constantly stuffing your face with pasta. This isn't about ditching carbs entirely –
🚴 Weekly Cycling News Roundup — Monday, 30 June 2025
Fresh, non‑repeated highlights from the past week across racing dramas, tech debates, and intriguing career pivots—700+ words of friendly, slightly witty journalism without falling into AI clichés. 1. MotoGP Star Aleix Espargaró Swaps Tyres for Tarmac at 35 Former MotoGP standout Aleix Espargaró has announced a surprising switch to professional cycling, joining Lidl–Trek’s development team for the Tour of Austria from 9–13 July—just weeks after filling in at the Dutch GP on his Ducati‑loaned
🚴♂️ Weekly Cycling News Roundup — Monday, 23 June 2025
1. Madiot vs. the Machines: A Push to Uproot Race Radios and Power Meters What’s new: Groupama-FDJ’s sportive patriarch, Marc Madiot, has launched a bold critique of modern race tech. He wants to see race radios, power meters, and GPS stripped from pro kits, hoping to dial racing back to gut feel and old-school millimetres of decision-making . Why it matters: With crashes still haunting the peloton, the debate isn’t just nostalgic. Madiot claims teams have become “remote-controlled”—leading t