FasCat Cycling Training Tips Podcast

Check out www.fascatcoaching.com and use code 25PODCAST for 25% off. Feeling burnt out on the bike or feeling like you're training takes the fun out of riding?  But the question is, how do you ride faster and longer, and see better success, while still having fun? We know some of you believe doing structured intervals 5 days a week inside is the only way to see results. We know others of you think following structure, structure, structure is the only way. If you force yourself to do this, it’s not sustainable, because not having fun equals not seeing optimal results. In this episode of the FasCat podcast, Coach Frank gives you endless tips on how to have more fun while training without compromising results, and in fact, see BETTER results. Here's a sneak peek into a few of the tips shared... Join group rides. Don’t worry about pushing it hard. Socialize. Ride with people who are slower than you. Switch up the bikes you ride. Get outside. Find a training partner and enjoy a coffee stop afterward. Remember why you started riding in the first place and do that kind of ride once a week. Embrace unstructured training. Add variety to your intervals. Explore new routes Ready to have more fun while training? Work with one of our FasCat coaches! Check out www.fascatcoaching.com and use code 25PODCAST for 25% off.

Dr. Philip Skiba, a medical doctor and PhD in exercise physiology, shares insights from over 20 years coaching elite athletes. He discusses the innovative Optimized Training Stress metric, incorporating power data, sleep, and heart rate variability. Delving into training methodologies, he highlights the balance between fatigue and carbohydrate intake. Skiba also explains the concept of W' balance in endurance training, emphasizing the importance of personalized strategies for performance enhancement and energy management in athletes.

Today we are talking about Winning in the Kitchen! Performance nutrition and weight loss are all about your food choices and that’s what we call winning in the kitchen.  80% of weight loss and optimal race weight is achieved from proper nutrition while only 20% from riding more. Whether you believe it or not, it's true! That's why in this episode of the FasCat Coaching podcast, Dr. Lauren and Coach Frank dive into the ins and outs of winning in the kitchen. After listening, you may be surprised by the nutrition mistakes you're making! What's discussed: Your Go Faster Food Choices Winning in the Kitchen Grocery List The negative effect of alcohol How to properly nourish after a ride The negative effects of processed carbs Common and "healthy" foods to avoid Nutrition hacks for optimizing health and fitness Tips for preparing quick meals Best snacks for fueling optimally  9 Winning in the Kitchen recipes that take 10 minutes or less to prepare Win in the kitchen and start taking control of your nutrition with Coach Lauren: https://fascatcoaching.com/collections/meal-plans/products/nutrition-consult-with-dr-lauren Don't forget: You can save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast. https://fascatcoaching.com/collections/training-plans

Spring is here, and the weather is no longer an excuse to not ride longer and more. But, we get it, just because the weather is better, doesn’t mean riding more is necessarily easier. That’s why in the podcast episode, Coach Frank is here to make riding more each week a lot more simple with some simple training tactics. Coach Frank dives into why you need to ride more, FasCat’s top strategies and coaching tips for riding more, a 16-week training guide progression to help your ride more, and three long rides we love to subscribe at FasCat. With these tips, you will double your ride time this summer! Are you ready?! What Coach Frank discusses: 4:00 - Overview of increasing time in the saddle 11:00 - Strategy 13:00 - 3 Different long rides 19:00 - Riding longer tips Get your FasCat on-bike training and nutrition plan now! Head over to fascatcoaching.com.

Welcome to Part 3 of our three-part series on stage racing! This mini-series is brought to you by coach Isaiah from the Tuscon Bicycle Classic Stage Race where Coach Ricky and Coach Zach were both racing for Project Echelon.  The Tuscon Bicycle Classic is a large stage race and has always been a big staple for pro riders as an early-season race. Coach Isaiah interviews the two on their mental and physical preparation – giving you an inside look into how pro bike racers prepare for each stage in a stage race. They also chat through what the next stage is and what some of their race tactics are, how the previous stage went in general, and what goes on behind the scenes at a pro stage race. Be sure to check out Part 1 and 2 first!

Welcome to Part 2 of our three-part series on stage racing! This mini-series is brought to you by coach Isaiah from the Tuscon Bicycle Classic Stage Race where Coach Ricky and Coach Zach were both racing for Project Echelon.  The Tuscon Bicycle Classic is a large stage race and has always been a big staple for pro riders as an early-season race. Coach Isaiah interviews the two on their mental and physical preparation – giving you an inside look into how pro bike racers prepare for each stage in a stage race. They also chat through what the next stage is and what some of their race tactics are, how the previous stage went in general, and what goes on behind the scenes at a pro stage race. Stay tuned for Part 3!

Welcome to Part 1 of our three-part series on stage racing! This mini-series is brought to you by coach Isaiah from the Tuscon Bicycle Classic Stage Race where Coach Ricky and Coach Zach were both racing for Project Echelon.  The Tuscon Bicycle Classic is a large stage race and has always been a big staple for pro riders as an early-season race. Coach Isaiah interviews the two on their mental and physical preparation – giving you an inside look into how pro bike racers prepare for each stage in a stage race. They also chat through what the next stage is and what some of their race tactics are, how the previous stage went in general, and what goes on behind the scenes at a pro stage race. Stay tuned for Part 2 and Part 3!

Did you know we are data scientists for the Human Powered Health Professional Women's Team? We analyze the entire women's team's power, heart rate, sleep, and HRV data, literally everything in their training and racing. We're able to then use their data to help their team perform at their best. Coach Isaiah and I have been working for the Women's World Tour Team Human-Powered Health since the beginning of the year as their data scientists. In this episode, that's what we're going to talk about – our work with the women's team. We not only discuss the data we analyze, we also dive into the surveys we have the riders fill out in order to put their data into context, the reports we provide to the team, and then how the team uses those reports for improving their training and performance. Riding bikes fast isn't just about FtFP, it's also about analyzing all data possible to come up with the best plan possible.  Check the team out https://humanpoweredhealth.com/ and you may use 25podcast to receive 25% off your first FasCat Training Plan that uses the same smarts, science and methodology as the pro's. 

Should you be doing pyramidal training only, pyramidal training only, or a mix of both? Which format is most effective? This is a controversial topic and one we’re going to dive deep into today in this episode of the FasCat Coaching podcast. More specifically, there have been a few recent studies released, as well as debates happening, within the scientific community that we will dissect, followed by Coach Christian and myself sharing our thoughts and experience on the subject. What we discuss: - A recent study was done on the “Effects of 16 weeks of pyramidal and polarized training intensity distributions in well-trained endurance runners”. The study compares 4 different groups: 16 weeks of polarized, 16 weeks of pyramidal, 8 weeks of polarized then 8 weeks of pyramidal, and 8 weeks of pyramidal then 8 weeks of polarized. - Sports Science journal series of debate articles titled “Polarized Training is Not Optimal for Endurance Athletes” and “Polarized Training is Optimal for Endurance Athletes.” The author and columnist for Outside Magazine, Alex Hutchinson, wrote an excellent summation (and to an extent, take-down) of these arguments in his column Sweat Science.  - Olympic Speedskater Nils van der Poel’s 60 page PDF directing his training plan for the Olympics. Van der Poel is a speedskater from Sweden who recently won Olympic gold in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, setting world records in the process. You can check out his pdf here: e11bfe_b783631375f543248e271f440bcd45c5.pdf (howtoskate.se) Sources: 1.  Polarized Training is Not Optimal for Endurance Athletes Burnley, Mark; Bearden, Shawn; Jones, Andrew Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise AN: 00005768-900000000-95869 February 2022 2.  Polarized Training is Optimal for Endurance Athletes Foster, Carl; Casado, Arturo; Esteve-Lanao, Jonathan; Haugen, Thomas; Seiler, Stephen Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise AN: 00005768-900000000-95872 February 2022 Get started with FasCat: www.fascatcoaching.com

Want to increase your power output? VO2 max intervals are the answer. Although, the issue is that many riders are new to power meters or don't know how to use them correctly in order to perform their VO2 max intervals for maximum returns. That's why in this episode of the FasCat podcast, Coach Frank gives us a step-by-step guide on how to perform these intervals with a power meter correctly. He also outlines the most common mistakes riders make and how you can avoid them. Plus, Coach Frank dives into how to do the power analysis post-ride so you learn what watts you should target for your next vo2 max interval workout. (This is the best way to evaluate your  'technique' tp see maximum gains!) Important notes: - In this podcast we are covering zone 5 only. - You will also need to know your power base zones for this episode. If you don't know you what it is, check out this article: HOW TO PERFORM VO2 MAX INTERVALS WITH YOUR POWERMETER https://fascatcoaching.com/blogs/training-tips/vo2-max-intervals?_pos=5&_sid=c99cea4ac&_ss=r Ready to take your riding to the next level? Check out our training plans here:  https://fascatcoaching.com/collections/training-plans Ben's Celebration of Life: Ben Brown’s Celebration of Life is Sunday, March 13, 2022 11:00am - 1:00pm The Venue at Wilmington Brewing Company 800 S. Kerr Ave, Wilmington, NC 28403. Please come and join us for an informal gathering of friends and family to celebrate the incredible life of Ben. https://www.fightforben.com/blog/celebration-of-life