Merry Christmas Everyone!

A seasons greeting to everyone!

I hope you all have a wonderful festive period, get to relax and spend time with those you love, and don't worry too much about training and keeping off the indulgent food and drink (that's what the New Year is about!)

If you want to spend the time planning what not to each, and how to kick start your training then check out the quick training guides below!

Hill Training

Endurance Training

Recovery Training

Threshold Training

Interval Training

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

One Life - Live It, Love It

Recovery Training

So as we count down the days until Christmas, it's also time to count the number of days left in the current year - and therefore look forward to the new year and planning what events to take part in and how to tackle them.

In this short five-part piece we'll look at the five key training areas to concentrate on to get through any event!

Recovery Training

Why?

Recovery is as important, if not more so in some circumstances, for getting fit as exercise itself - only when you've completed your training session or race can the body repair damaged muscle tissue, refuel muscle glycogen and prepare for the next level of physical exertion.

Recovery rides are a key component of this. They need to be flat and ridden at a comfortable pace - you should be able to have a conversation with your cycling companions without struggling for breath. Just don't forget to keep hydrated though, just because you're not training hard doesn't mean you don't need to take on liquids.

What?

Beginners

60 minutes once a week.

Advanced

120 minutes once a week.



Missed out on the other parts of this New Year training? Check them out from the links below:

Hill Training

Endurance Training

Threshold Training
Interval Training

One Life - Liv 4 It, Love It

Endurance Training

So as we count down the days until Christmas, it's also time to count the number of days left in the current year - and therefore look forward to the new year and planning what events to take part in and how to tackle them.

In this short five-part piece we'll look at the five key training areas to concentrate on to get through any event!

Endurance Training

Why?

Road cycling, for the most part, is an endurance sport so it goes without saying that you need to spend more of your training time at endurance intensity than anything else. Ideally an endurance ride should be between 60 and 120 minutes and undertaken at 35-45% below your maximum heart rate.

This will increase your aerobic capacity and help you burn fat more effectively. We all know that hot summer days are more attractive for long rides, but if you want to improve sportive time during the year the best time to build up your endurance is in the winter months - before the season starts.

What?

Beginners

Two 60 minute rides a week at 55-65% maximum heart rate. Include one intense interval session too.

Advanced

Three rides of 120-plus minutes a week at 55-65% maximum heart rate. Incorporate one intense interval session per week as well.



Missed out on the other parts of this New Year training? Check them out from the links below:

Hill Training
Recovery Training
Threshold Training
Interval Training

One Life - Liv 4 It, Love It

Hill Training

So as we count down the days until Christmas, it's also time to count the number of days left in the current year - and therefore look forward to the new year and planning what events to take part in and how to tackle them.

In this short five-part piece we'll look at the five key training areas to concentrate on to get through any event!

Hill Training

Why?

It's all about power - you need more of it in your legs to fly up those inclines comfortably without leaving all your energy behind. Gym sessions that strengthen your leg and back muscles do help, but you don't want to put on too much bulk as this will end up slowing you down on the bike.

The best way to get stronger on your climbs is to target your training. One key is to avoid the temptation of standing up in the saddle as it uses more than 10% extra energy according to research. To much of that and you'll have nothing left for the remainder of the ride.

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What?

Beginners

Choose a hill that takes 2 minutes to climb in a comfortable gear while seated. Climb twice with a 2 minute recovery between.

Advanced

Choose a hill that takes 4 minutes to climb in a comfortable gear while seated. Climb three to five times with a 4 minute recovery between each effort.



Missed out on the other parts of this New Year training? Check them out from the links below:

Endurance Training
Recovery Training
Threshold Training
Interval Training

One Life - Liv 4 It, Love It