John Hughes

By Coach John Hughes For many cyclists riding a 100K or 100 miles is the classic achievement, something you focus on, train for and worry about for months. Although you’ve trained hard and think you're ready, you may also feel like a pro racer about to start his first Tour de France—nervous and not entirely sure you can finish. Here are 8 tips on your final preparations and … [Read more...] about 20 Tips for Your First Century

By Coach John Hughes “I has been a great week for me. I feel much more comfortable on the bike and I think that is due, in part, to your advice to eat more on the bike. I really worked on that this week and especially on the 80-mile ride I did. It seems to have worked.” — from one of my client’s weekly reports. Summer is here and you’re probably planning a long ride. You … [Read more...] about 14 Nutrition Tips for Endurance Riders

By Coach John Hughes For many of us the big event of the season is a specific century or a gran fondo in which we want to do our best. You may want to finish your first century. Or have more fun and finish your local century without feeling trashed. Or set a PR in your club’s classic century. Or conquer a particularly hard 100. Or compete against others in a gran fondo. Or … [Read more...] about 15 Tips for Riding Your Best Century

By Coach John Hughes Despite being a big rider in the peloton, "Miguelón" or "Big Mig," won the Tour de France from 1991 through 1995, the fourth, and last, to win five times, and the only five-time winner to achieve those victories consecutively.  He won the Giro d’Italia twice, one of seven racers to achieve the Giro-Tour double in the same season. Miguel Induráin was … [Read more...] about 14 Ways for Big Riders to Improve

By Coach John Hughes Even in very hot conditions, most of the heat is generated by your body, which is only about 25% efficient. For every four calories you burn, only one calorie provides energy to move you forward—and the other three calories produce heat. That heat must be dissipated from your body through primarily by sweat. Your body is like a car’s radiator. Blood … [Read more...] about What Is the Best Electrolyte Supplement?

By Coach John Hughes My client Ted is going to the Alps later this month with a buddy to climb some of the classic climbs of the Tour de France including Alpe d’Huez, the Col de la Madeleine, and the Glandon.  Their rides will take from 3:00 – 4:30 hours and the daily rides range from 149 feet / mile to 189 feet / mile.  Ted is training for the long course of the … [Read more...] about 13 Ways to Improve Your Climbing

By Coach John Hughes “Bang! Bang! Maxwell’s silver hammer came down on her head. ”Bang! Bang! Maxwell’s silver hammer made sure that she was dead.”— Paul McCartney McCartney said, “Maxwell's Silver Hammer was my analogy for when something goes wrong out of the blue.” (beatlesbible.com) That’s bonking!  You’re riding along under a blue sky and all of a sudden … [Read more...] about Showstoppers I: How to Avoid Bonking while Cycling

By Coach John Hughes Your legs make about 5,000 revolutions each hour you ride! In one study of 518 recreational cyclists an astounding 85% reported at least one non-traumatic injury in a year. The affected joints were: 48% neck of which 31% required medical treatment41.7% knee of which 11.5% stopped cycling for an average of 42.8 days30.3% low back of which 2.7% quit … [Read more...] about Avoid Cycling Injuries with These Tips

By Coach John Hughes Training by intensity doesn’t mean hammering and painful intervals. Training by intensity simply means riding harder than you are used to riding in order to improve in a specific way, which range from increasing your endurance and cruising speed to having more power to achieving high performance. … [Read more...] about How Cyclists Should Approach Intensity Training for Maximum Benefit