April 23, 2020
PDF version for Premium Members is here.
11 Trainer Workouts for Endurance
By Coach John Hughes
An endurance workout on a trainer doesn’t have to be a multi-hour grind. These workouts are designed to maintain endurance fitness in 30 to 60 minutes plus warm-up and cool-down. An endurance workout should be done in two training zones, which bring about specific adaptations. If you go harder or easier your body doesn’t adapt the same way. Read more.
Which Torque Wrenches Do You Need?
By Jim Langley
Recently, I’ve assembled several new road rockets and was happy (and impressed) to see that almost all of the components have the torque (proper tightening specifications) etched right into the parts and in conspicuous places so you can’t miss them. Such as, on the bottom bracket cups and the hydraulic brake hose connectors. Read more.
Smith Signal Helmet with MIPS Review
By Sheri Rosenbaum
Recently Smith release the Signal helmet with MIPS at a very affordable price of $75 MSRP. They’re able to offer it at this low price point because while still having MIPS, it does not include their zonal protection called Koroyd®. (See “What is MIPS?” covered in a previous review.) Read more.
A Comparison of Video Based Training Apps
By Coach Rick Schultz
For those of you who might be getting a little tired of Zwift (and the blatant cheating – riders at 10w/kg for 10 minutes!), there are several high quality training systems that use actual videos that run via your trainer and computer that pretty much simulate a real ride. Most videos are 1080p or 4K and are crystal clear. So sharp and immersive that it feels like you are really there. Read more.
Quick Tip: Beat Unpredictable Spring Weather
Remember the cardinal rule of riding in bad weather:
Conditions always seem worse from inside a warm house than they do from the saddle of your bike. If you get out there, properly equipped, cycling is not only possible, it’s fun. Some of your most memorable rides will be rainy ones. Read more.
Endurance Training and Riding — 3-Article Bundle
Coach Hughes has written three articles about endurance training and riding — Beyond the Century, Nutrition for 100K and Beyond, and Mastering the Long Ride — which we are pleased to offer as a cost-saving bundle: Endurance Training and Riding.
Want to improve your cycling? Ride more easy miles. Coach John Hughes emphasizes that low intensity endurance riding brings about specific physiological changes that don’t result from harder training. These include improving your:
- ability to utilize fat for energy;
- capacity to store glycogen in your muscles and liver;
- muscular endurance by increasing the number of mitochondria, the subcellular structures where aerobic energy is produced; and
- neuromuscular efficiency of pedaling.
Which Burns More Calories, Running or Cycling?
By Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
Have you wondered whether you burn more calories when you run or when you ride a bicycle? The standard comparison is that one mile of running equals a little more than three miles of cycling, but that’s lousy science. Read more.
Question of the Week
Are the current restrictions leading to weight gain, weight loss, or no change for you?
Other Cool Stuff to Read
VeloNews: A Tour de France start on August 29?
USA Cycling: USA Cycling launches a virtual race league on Zwift.
End Notes
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