FasCat Cycling Training Tips Podcast

We're now well in to October, which is traditionally the offseason period for most of the cycling community (except you 'crossers!) and so it's time to start thinking about at home strength training. This is something that can make a huge impact on your cycling performance, but with the current COVID pandemic, going to gyms is a tricky situation. So we've adapted and created a special, effective at-home weight lifting plan that uses affordable and minimal equipment to make sure you can still get it done this winter and be back and ready for when racing returns. 47564Weight Lifting (at Home) for Cycling Training Plan In the pod today, Coach Frank breaks it all down, the equipment you'll need, and what to expect with this unique strength plan. For more on strength training, go back and check out our old episodes on the subject to learn more about why it's important in the annual periodization. Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Optimize Your At Home Weight Lifting This Offseason! appeared first on FasCat.

Weight Lifting this winter will make you faster! More strength = more power = higher FTP = riding our bikes faster. However this is not your high school weight lifting plan; its designed for cyclists! "Speeds specific to cycling" is the secret sauce of this program: the velocity of the lifts plus the neuromuscular sprint workouts that are coupled to the Strength and Power Phases make this 10 week plan effective for endurance cyclists." On this week's podcast, we break down all you need to know about incorporating a cycling-specific resistance training program into your offseason. 9139Take the guesswork out of your off-season with one of our best-selling off-season plans. For more info, check out our training tip: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/weight-lifting-for-cycling/ And the Weight Lifting for Cycling training plan: https://fascat.wpengine.com/training-plans/weight-lifting-for-cycling/ Follow us on social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fascatcoaching/ Instagram: @fascatfh Twitter: @FasCat and YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/FasCatCoaching Intro music: David Cutter Music // https://davidcuttermusic.com/ Copyright © 2020 FasCat Coaching – all rights reserved. Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! The post Weight Lifting for Cycling appeared first on FasCat.

This week, Jackson and Lacey take over the pod to talk about their favorite subject: performance nutrition. A major theme of this show, we get lots of questions in the forum and through our new meal plans, so we thought we'd touch on a few of the commonly asked questions, such as weight loss, carbohydrate periodization, white vs. brown rice, and more. The offseason is approaching and it's the ideal time to start dialing in your nutrition strategy so you don't fall behind! Be sure to check out our Winning In The Kitchen meal plans to get the ball rolling. If you have questions on nutrition and performance, ask away in our dedicated athlete forum at forum.fascat.wpengine.com. 47142Complete Fall and Winter Training Plan! Big thanks to WattBike for sponsoring the show. WattBike is the ultimate indoor cycling experience to take your winter training to the next level. With super accurate power readings, integration with Zwift and TrainingPeaks, WattBike makes your pain cave riding much more enjoyable. Check 'em out at wattbike.com/us. Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Winning In The Kitchen FAQ w/ Jackson and Lacey appeared first on FasCat.

As the age-old adage goes, timing is everything. As we're winding down the 2020 "season" and beginning to look towards 2021, it's a critical thing to consider when planning our calendar. Choosing A vs. B races, when to start the weight lifting and base phases, and how to approach a peak and taper all come down to timing. With a little bit of preparation and planning, and a tip from Goldilocks, we can come into the 2021 season not too hot, not too cold, but just right. 24742Begin your 2021 campaign with our Sweet Spot Part 3 Training Plan In this episode, we cover: ½ life of aerobic endurance adaptations Goldilocks Principle – porridge too hot, too cold, just right 42 day time constant in TrainingPeaks CTL TSTWKT chart Half Life of Weight Lifting Coaches anecdote – find that most athletes peak better in the first ½ of the season (first peak attempt) than the second because the half life from weight lifting, and build a true base are further than the 1st peak The Group Ride HERO Examples of TIMING – what to do and WHEN and how much of. Be sure to listen to our previous and relevant podcasts: Planning your upcoming race season Post-Season Break Weight Lifting for Cyclists Remember to use code 25podcast at checkout to save 25% off your next plan…and don't procrastinate! The post Timing is Everything: The What, When, and How of 2021 Training appeared first on FasCat.

Welcome to another periodized Q&A session of the FasCat Podcast, where we field listener questions from our forum, website, and social media to help you get even faster on the bike. This go around we touch on a range of topics, including thoughts on at-home gym setups, carbohydrates, how to train when smoke is in the air, and more. Here are the links we mentioned in the Podcast: Build Your Own at-home strength setup Pogacar's Strava file Phil's Tour of California file analysis 47019Complete Fall and Winter Training Plan! If you want to get a question answered in the next one, be sure to sign up for our forum over at forum.fascat.wpengine.com to hop in the conversation. Thanks to everyone who contributed! Big thanks to WattBike for sponsoring the show. WattBike is the ultimate indoor cycling experience to take your winter training to the next level. With super accurate power readings, integration with Zwift and TrainingPeaks, WattBike makes your pain cave riding much more enjoyable. Check 'em out at wattbike.com/us. Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Ask FasCat #12 — at-home strength setups, carbohydrates, and training in the smoke appeared first on FasCat.

It's about that time! With all the craziness and uncertainty of 2020, we still believe in the importance of taking an actual "off season" to bring some certainty to the cycling season periodization. So how should that look? What should you do? Today on the podcast is a continuation of our 2018 episode about the post-season break where we talked about the 3 core tenets of a good offseason break: Taking 2 weeks off from following a training plan Re-establishing Life Balance Soul Rides 46786Complete Fall / Winter Training Plan: Weights + Sweet Spot Base In this podcast we give seven more performance enhancing, non biking activities to consider as you take some time away from structured, dedicated training. They are: Nutrition/ Winning in the Kitchen Yoga Foundations MTB'ing (riding a different bike) Relationships Back to School/Family Goal Setting Announcements: Our Phils' Fondo Training plan Starts Sept. 14th – you can sign up for the FREE Phil's Bake your Own Cookie Fondo at philsfondo.com We are working on two new training plans: #1 the at home resistance training plan #2 Lacey's Winning in the Kitchen Weight Loss Plan Next week is our regular Ask a FasCat Q&A podcast :: please submit your training questions to [email protected] or on our forum forum.FasCatCoaching.com by next Wednesday Sept 16th. The most thoughtful question will win a pair of GravelKING SK's and a GUEnergy prize pack! This podcast is brought to you by WattBike, the solid dedicated at home training bike to get some offseason training at home this winter! Check them out at wattbike.com. Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! The post What to do during your 2 week post-season break appeared first on FasCat.

The three musketeers of FasCat training plan and coaching design, Frank Overton, Jake Rytlewski, and Isaiah Newkirk stop by the studio to discuss an ever-important topic: When to Hire a Coach or Follow a Training Plan? This question is extremely individualized and complex, so the three coaches break it down and talk about the reasoning behind both so you can be better equipped to decide what's best for you. As 2020 looms, it's time to start really planning out the details of the season and how you're going to approach those goals. We hope this helps you FtFP even better next season! For more on our training plans and coaching, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com and ask away in our exclusive forum at http://forum.fascat.wpengine.com. 31972Complete Fall / Winter Training Plan: Weights + Sweet Spot Base Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! The post When to Hire a Coach or Follow a Training Plan w/ Coaches Frank, Jake, and Isaiah appeared first on FasCat.

This week we dive into the background of "FTFP", or Follow the F@#%&^* Plan! Following the well designed training plan is paramount to success as a cyclist, and there's many layers that go into it. Coach Frank and Jackson discuss the key components to making training efficient and effective, and the 8 habits of successful cyclists. 19803Start building fitness and increasing FTP with our best-selling Sweet Spot plan. Remember to use code 25podcast at checkout to save 25% off your next plan…and don't procrastinate! If you'd like more help #FtFP'ing consider our Coaching Subscription or hire a FasCat Coach! Find the FasCat podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher. Follow us on social: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Intro music: David Cutter Music. The post FTFP and Developing Good Training Habits appeared first on FasCat.

As the offseason for most cyclists (sorry, 'crossers) and fall approaches, it's time to look back and reflect on your season to see what worked and what didn't, take stock of your nutrition and training strategies, and use that data to make 2020 even better. This week on the podcast we discuss 4 key areas of this review: Your Training: Volume, CTL, Intervals & Power Output Your Nutrition / Winning in the Kitchen – Weight Loss Skills – makes a huge difference! 4 Training Ideas to Get Faster for 2020 Other podcasts mentioned that are relevant to this episode: Winning in the Kitchen: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/winning-in-the-kitchen/ Strength Training: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/weight-lifting-for-cycling/ Weight Loss for Cyclists: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/weight-loss-for-cyclists/ We are also hosting a podcast appreciation ride this Sunday, September 8th at 9am, leaving from 3107 Bluff St in Boulder. We'll have pastries and coffee, and will do a chill spin up to Jamestown. Hope to see you there! 23721Are you interested in adding structure and FOCUS to your off-season? Our best-selling 32-week off-season plan is your ticket to ride. For more conversation, don't forget to check out our forum at forum.fascat.wpengine.com and fascat.wpengine.com for more training tips. Enjoy the offseason! The post Reviewing Your Season to Be Faster Next Year appeared first on FasCat.

This Fall, for those of you with big goals and aspirations, NOW is the time to get on a plan and start training. Right now cyclists have a huge opportunity to begin their off season training to take their performance to the next level in 2021. Here is our description of ON (off) season training for cyclists because there is no off season for better results next year. As coaches, we look forward to the offseason because it is a time when we can work on athletes' weaknesses without having to worry about their performance in upcoming races. As a result, we can start with the basics and methodically take athletes thru a 4-6 month offseason training program that elevates their performance. There's a saying "the off season is where you can make the greatest gains" and we couldn't agree more. 2190Purchase this best-selling 32-week off-season training plan today! The goal of our offseason training program is to increase the athlete's power at threshold and race-specific power outputs. Our offseason training program is divided into 5 phases that as a whole are much greater than the sum of the parts. To measure improvement we test at the end of the resistance training phase, end of the sweet spot build and right before the first race with expectations of a 3-20% increase in power at threshold. Thereafter we monitor race data to track improvements in FTP and power. The 5 Annual Training Plan Phases are: Annual Training Program (ATP) (planning) Fall Foundation, Aerobic Endurance & Muscle Tension Intervals. Resistance Training: 10 Week, 4 Phase, Cycling Specific. Sweet Spot Part 1, 2, and 3: building a "Hemi-Powered Aerobic Engine". Race Specific Intervals. For more information about the COMPLETE FasCat Off-Season Program, please read the descriptions below. 1. Annual Training Program (ATP) The image below is an example of an Annual Training Plan in TrainingPeaks that we develop for our athletes. This is the 10,000-foot view that outlines goals and when the 4 training phases will occur. We use this overview to identify timeframes for performance testing, and to work backwards from "A" races. A common coach question is 'when do you want to be your fastest?" When is your "A race". These answers help determine when to begin the on season training, when to build base, and when to switch from base to race. We call this a worksheet because it is a work in progress, its fluid and may be changed. Goal setting is a process, often times an athlete's race program is ironed out by late February here in Colorado. 2021 may be much different. Earlier for warmer weather states such as California, Texas, & Arizona. We use the ATP to stay focused as the coach & athlete designing training programs in 4-week blocks. 2. Fall Foundation, Aerobic Endurance The Fall time frame is an opportunity to work on one's weaknesses and carry a level of fitness into the winter months. It may be a time to start losing weight, ride a fixed gear or get in some big rides before the winter forces many of us indoors. For some athletes cyclocross racing may be used for training. We also use this time for muscle endurance work in the form of Muscle Tension Intervals aka MTi's. It is VERY IMPORTANT to note that this is a time where our coaches are creative with training and flexibility is key. Compared to the Spring, training is relaxed and low key. Our coaches tend to stay away from intervals and instead encourage fun group rides, riding from the bottom to top of various climbs, "Strava Hunting", and so forth. If the athlete is a 'roadie' he or she may be encouraged to mountain bike or to dabble in cyclocross racing. If an athlete's climate dictates short rides over the winter, we will use the Fall as a time to 'get fit' so as to carry a significant amount of adaptations into the winter months. For those familiar with TSTWKT we will raise the athlete's Chronic Training Load (CTL), prescribe a regeneration block and test at the end of the block to set an off season power at threshold (FTP) benchmark. (Purchase the 3 week $29 Training Plan HERE) For our athletes that are severely affected by daylight savings (Sunday November 1st, 2015) we will often schedule the Fall Foundation to end just prior to daylight savings so that the next block of training (Resistance Training) occurs in the gym where daylight is not a factor. 3. Resistance Training, 10 weeks & 4 Phases: Cycling Specific Adaptation > Hypertrophy > Strength > Power with the last two phases coupled to on the bike neuromuscular work. Anyone can lift weights but remember that our 10-week cycling specific resistance program is speed specific and therefore effective for improving power output on the bike. We also use this time to work on muscle imbalances, core strength and flexibility. (Buy our 6 week Training Plan HERE) We work with our athletes to time the resistance training program to overlap with the worst weather riding months. It's important to remember that resistance training is not for everyone and

Perhaps #crossiscoming. Perhaps #crossisnotcoming. Regardless, we are going to have some fun with this one. We've created a 6 week Strava CX challenge to keep you motivated, inspired and ready to race just in case it's necessary. Here's the deal: each week builds off the previous with the goal of making you smoother, more efficient and ultimately faster. Follow the directions below and add this to your training plan or talk with your coach on how to incorporate this into your current plan. Feel free to ask us any questions and let us know how it's going in the FasCat Forum! Good luck and have fun! Week 1: Set Up Your Practice Cyclocross Course Warm up in zone 2 by riding over to your local cyclocross practice area (course, park, school, etc.) and lay out a ~ 5 minute cyclocross practice lap. Features to include, if possible, are: A bazillion corners Mixed terrain: grass, dirt, pavement, sand pit, singletrack, ditches, gullys, stairs, logs, retaining walls, etc. The course you design needs to be one that is easily replicable for the next 4 weeks because you are going to repeat this course each week to gauge your improvement. Use this day to re-familiarize yourself with getting 'crossy: bike handling, getting on and off the bike, accelerating, tire pressure, etc. Week 2: 5 Lap Strava Segment CX Set Up Head back over to the CX course you designed last week to set up your Strava segment. Make sure you have an adequate warm up. Ride 5 laps for time at about 90-95% CX race pace. Make it fast, yet fun. Afterwards upload to Strava. Create the 5 lap (not 1) strava segment per this training tip, podcast & video. This ride will establish the ~ 25 minute segment so that you have a time to race against using live segments next week Star this segment and sync your Strava account to your bike computer to use the live segment next week. 45609 Cyclocross Strava Race and Skills Plan Week 3: Strava CX Race 3rd week progression: Warm up in zone 2 by riding over to your cx course and this week you are going to race your 5 lap strava segment for your best time. This should be a cyclocross time trial. Use Strava's live segment feature to verify you are ahead of your 90-95% pace from last week – but this week let it all hang out: GO FULL GAS, as fast as you can at your CX race pace for roughly 25 minutes! Afterwards upload to Strava and this should be your PR/KOM ! Week 4: Heart Rate Ceiling of 150bpm By now you've got your "Svenness" and have every nook and cranny of your course dialed Today you are going to work on riding faster by being smoother. To force you to slow down and ride smoother we are putting a governor on your engine! That's right: You may not exceed a heart rate of 150 bpm for these 5 laps. It will feel slower and probably be slower on Strava, but the point is to carry more of your momentum and speed out of the corners. This prevents you from riding like a bull in a china shop and bashing your way around the course by brute force. Carve those turns and carry your speed and we'll go back next Wednesday with the very same 150 bpm criteria to measure your 5 lap Strava segment improvement not in watts, but in smoooooothness 10 second penalty for each time your heart rate exceeds 150 bpm! Week 5: Ride at 150bpm MAX – try to beat last week's time Try to beat last week's Strava segment time, but you must ride at a heart rate of no greater than 150 bpm. Remember: smoother is faster ! The key to riding your segment faster is by cornering smoothly, dismounting and remounting smoothly and handling your bike smoothly. Week 6: Strava CX Race! Week 6: Finale – put all your cornering skills and watts together and absolutely annihilate your Strava PR/KOM from week 3. Use Strava's live segment features to check if you are ahead or behind your segment PR as motivation and as a carrot to dig that much deeper. Upload your ride data to the strava segment leaderboard and voila – there's your race result! Bonus: If at any point along these six weeks you want to share your cyclocross course with your friends, teammates, community: simply share the link to the strava segment and let the leaderboard take care of the heckling, podiums and results Copyright © 2020 FasCat Coaching – all rights reserved. Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! The post #secrettraining: How to have a Cyclocross Race Season appeared first on FasCat.

Ever struggle to get yourself out the door and on the bike? Ever feel burnt out? Want to find even more motivation and ensure you #FtFP on a regular basis? Well you have come to the right place! Here are our top five tips that will help you do just that: (Tips 1-2 come from our Dietitian and Community Manager, Lacey. Tips 2-6 are from Coach Jake) 1. Train in the Mornings! Do we sound like a broken record yet? We preach this all the time because it is our #1 tip for nailing your workouts. You might even remember it from our Seven Habits of Highly Successful Masters Athletes training tip! Why do we recommend this? Becasue training in the morning means you #FtFP before anything can get in your way. Whether that be a family emergency, work obligations or the fun afternoon showers we get here in Colorado. Training in the mornings is also a great way to increase your energy and mood so that the rest of your day is productive and pleasant. Many athletes get grumpy when they can't ride their bikes or have to wait to ride… and who wants to be a grumpy pants all day?! 46075Champions are made in the Off Season: Lift Weights and Build a Big Base 2. Plan For Success The night before: Lay out all of your clothes, plan your route, upload it to your wahoo/garmin if you need, mount your computer on your bike, make sure your bike lights, powermeter and computer are charged, air up your tires, fill up your bottles, grab your GU gels, prep your post ride meal, and any other little things that will save you time in the morning. That way when you wake up, you know all you have to do is put on your clothes and head out. You know you are already 3. Change things up Do a different route! Some riders get stuck in a funk and ride the same routes day in and day out. Use the Strava route builder to plan out a new route. If you don't have time to do that, ride your usual route backwards or look at a map and find new roads to ride on. Really you are only limited by your own imagination! 4. Do Stravals or Bottom to Top Intervals You can still #FtFP by trying to accommodate these type of efforts, plus they add some fun and friendly competition to your ride! Be sure to find segments that match the time of your intervals, then just focus on finishing the segment as opposed to a time. Same goes with a climb. Just go from bottom to top. 5. Go off the beaten path Do some off-road riding! You can do mountain biking, gravel riding or etc. Don't just do all the same type of riding if you can help it. When you are on the MTB, you go off of heart rate and/or perceived exertion as opposed to staring at your power data the entire time, which can help change things up. 6. Ride with Friends While we aren't advocating for group rides right now, they can be a great way to get you excited to go ride. MTB rides are typically easy to socially distance on… But if you don't feel that you can practice social distancing or are wanting to stay as safe as you can, plan a group ride on zwift or even set up a Strava route for all of your friends to go out and complete. Heck, make it a time trial if you like! Again, you are only limited by your imagination. Here is a podcast for how to fit group rides in when you are following one of our training plans! We hope these tips help you find that little bit of extra motivation that you need. If there are some other tips you have, feel free to drop them in the comments below! Copyright © 2020 FasCat Coaching – all rights reserved. Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! Lacey provides education and guidance to athletes about how to make healthy food choices that supports their performance goals, aids in sustainable weight loss, and improves their recovery. We are currently in the process of developing custom nutrition plans and one-on-one counseling with her, so keep your eyes out for those to be released in the near future! The post Motivational Tips to Help You to Follow the Plan appeared first on FasCat.

Welcome to another periodized Q&A session of the FasCat Podcast, where we field listener questions from our forum, website, and social media to help you get even faster on the bike. This go around we touch on a range of topics, including how best to prepare for a race, interval specificity, gas station bonking, 'cross training, and more. Here are the links we mentioned in the Podcast: 20 Minute Power Based Field Test Phil Gaimon's Advice to New & Experienced Cyclists FasCat's Coaching Philosophy Seven Habits of Highly Successful Master Cyclists Supplemental Oxygen Reference where the BigCat was a research subject: Randall L Wilber, Paige L Holm, David M Morris, George M Dallam, Andrew W Subudhi, Dennis M Murray, Samuel D Callan, "Effect of FIO2 on oxidative stress during interval training at moderate altitude" Med Sci Sports Exerc . 2004 Nov; 36(11):1888-94. Conclusion: Supplemental oxygen used in conjunction with high-intensity interval training at altitude ("live high + train low via supplemental O2" (LH + TLO2)) results in a significant improvement in exercise performance without inducing additional free radical oxidative stress as reflected in hematological and urinary biomarkers. If you want to get a question answered in the next one, be sure to sign up for our forum over at forum.fascat.wpengine.com to hop in the conversation. Thanks to everyone who contributed! As we mentioned at the beginning of the episode, we are deeply saddened and shocked at the passing of our friend and two time podcast guest, SBTGRVL founder and great human, Mark Satkiewicz. The cycling community lost a truly generous and passionate member and our thoughts are with his family. If you want to support, the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club has set up a Mark Satkiewicz Memorial Fund to support young athletes. Learn more: https://www.sswsc.org/support/donate-now 45926More Bang for your Training Buck Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Ask FasCat #11 — Race Prep, New to Cycling, Gas Station Bonking appeared first on FasCat.

Ever since we began talking about Winning in the Kitchen two years ago you all have been asking for us to create a cookbook and we thought that was a great idea. But since adding Lacey Rivette, a Registered Dietitian, to the FasCat team we began to brainstorm and realized we could come up with something even better. Enter FasCat Meal Plans! These plans are uniquely designed by Lacey to give guidance to even the most unexperienced of cooks so that they can start eating better and riding faster! How is FasCat's Intro Winning in the Kitchen meal plan different than others? Unlike most meal plans, FasCats meal plans are delivered directly into your TrainingPeaks Account so that you get email notifications each monday about what you need to eat or meal prep. You also get PDF's of your meal prep guide, recipes and grocery list to print out to keep with you when you don't have access to your phone or computer. Whats even better is that the meal plans match your training plans, providing more food on days when the training load is heavier (Tuesdays, Wednesday's & the weekends). Plus are even tips included for how to eat while on the bike to ensure you feel your best and are able to #FtFP. You won't find anything like it anywhere else! What if I am plant-based or have special dietary restrictions? No worries! All of the meals in our plan are dairy free, gluten-free (when you purchase indicated GF items) and include directions to make all of the meals plant-based. If you have other dietary restrictions, shoot Lacey a question in our nutrition forum or consider signing up for one-on-one nutrition coaching with her. 45301Win in the Kitchen to Ride Faster Meal Plan How are the meal plans structured? During weeks 1-3 of the plan you will be introduced to 3-4 new recipes. You will make these for all your meals that week so that you can gain confidence in cooking from scratch, learning your portion sizes and decreasing the amount of time it takes you to prepare the meals. Lacey is a big advocate for making nutrition simple and sustainable, which is why you will find 1-2 "flex meals" (not cheat days) on the weekend to allow you to enjoy food with your family and friends or to satisfy that craving you built up from #FtFP'ing your training all week! In week 4, we begin to encourage you to adjust the recipes based on your preferences and really start testing your own meal planning and cooking skills based upon what you have learned. Don't worry though, we still provide you with a suggested meal plan in case you still need a little guidance. What is Meal Prep Monday? Throughout the plan, you will have specific days (mainly Monday/Sunday) that you meal prep your staple foods like rice, chicken and tofu, which allow you to prepare the majority of your meals in less than 10 minutes. This is KEY to winning in the kitchen, because let's be honest… If the food is in the fridge almost ready for you to eat, you are much less likely to grab something on your lunch break or on your way home. Plus, you don't want to let all that healthy food you worked hard on to go to waste! What do I do once I perfect these meals? After you complete this meal plan you can move onto our advanced winning in the kitchen meal plans and our weight loss meal plans that will be released in the upcoming weeks! You might even consider signing up for one-on-one nutrition counseling with Lacey if you have specific goals, want to lose weight, need more guidance for how to fuel during training or if you have any specific dietary restrictions. Copyright © 2020 FasCat Coaching – all rights reserved. Join our *FREE* Athlete Forum to nerd out with FasCat coaches and athletes about your FTP, race data, power based training, or anything related to going fast on the bike! Lacey provides education and guidance to athletes about how to make healthy food choices that supports their performance goals, aids in sustainable weight loss, and improves their recovery. We are currently in the process of developing custom nutrition plans and one-on-one counseling with her, so keep your eyes out for those to be released in the near future! The post Winning in The Kitchen Meal Plans are HERE! appeared first on FasCat.

As we continue to navigate the weirdest cycling season in history, one of the greatest training tools out there, the group ride, has also been affected. With social distancing rules, group rides are generally a no-go in today's climate. So how can we mimic the huge benefits of smashing it with your friends on your weekly group ride? Frank and the team of FasCat coaches have 3 quality workout ideas to satisfy the group ride itch while giving you a very similar training stimulus to your favorite weekly throwdown. So, in this episode, Coach Frank and Jackson break down simulating the group ride and how to perform these workouts: Jake's Diabolical "Kitchen Sink" workout Isaiah's 4 hour, 4 intervals pain cave sesh Frank's Freestyle Fartlek / AmEx ride Remember that just because races and group rides as we know them are cancelled doesn't mean that training hard and smart is cancelled. Keep pushing the pedals and finding ways to keep working hard and building fitness. FtFP! 45238From the Home of Sweet Spot, Sweet Spot #4 Polarized will take your game to the next level. Quickly! Thanks for listening, and subscribe to the podcast to hear more! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fascat-cycling-training-tips-podcast/id1381614039 Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post How to Simulate Group Rides | 3 Diabolical Workouts appeared first on FasCat.

What do you do when the whole season is cancelled because of a global pandemic? Keep calm and FtFP on, duh, because bike riding ain't cancelled! Coach Frank revisits the topic after we discussed back when COVID-19 first exploded in the U.S. in March and put many things in question, and my how times have changed… Frank shares his expert covid summertime coaching advice to help you keep the motivation rolling, what training should look like right now, some ideas for challenges and ways to use your fitness, and more. Remember to stay positive and embrace this current moment; it's still such a gift to be able to ride at all! 44449More Bang for your Training Buck SBTVRTL: https://sbtgrvl.com/sbt-vrtl/ How to Taper https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/tapering-in-cycling-for-peak-performance/ Using the Performance Manager Chart to Peak https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/realtstwkt/ Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post COVID Summertime Coaching appeared first on FasCat.

Join Jackson for a short, 10 minute guided meditation to use while on a ride to cultivate more awareness, mindfulness, and concentration. For more of Jackson's thoughts on meditation, check out his podcast In The Flow. The post Jackson's Guided Meditation for Cyclists appeared first on FasCat.

Meditation has become a buzzword in the mainstream, and you've probably heard about elite athletes like LeBron James, Kate Courtney, and others espousing its benefits. But what actually is meditation? Why should we consider starting a meditation practice? What are the benefits? Today on the show, we discuss this topic at length and get into why you should consider leaning in to this ancient practice for your mental health, athletic performance, and managing stress in these crazy times. We'll talk: how meditation works some common misconceptions why athletes could benefit from incorporating meditation practices into their routines and more! Jackson also shares a short, 10 minute guided moving meditation to listen to while on the bike at the end, so stick around! We'll also release that as a standalone episode. Let us know how you've used meditation in your life in the forum at forum.fascat.wpengine.com. 43692More Bang for your Training Buck More info on meditation: Harvard Medical School: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/04/harvard-researchers-study-how-mindfulness-may-change-the-brain-in-depressed-patients/ Mindfulness Mechanisms in Sports: Mediating Effects of Rumination and Emotion Regulation on Sport-Specific Coping: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5605575/ Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Meditation for Cyclists appeared first on FasCat.

They say that the true gains made in sport performance come not from the hard training, but from the rest and recovery from the training – the adaptation. This becomes more and more important as we get older, and in order to continue training hard and enjoying the sport of cycling, we absolutely must prioritize recovery. This week on the show, Coach Frank breaks down the three main principles of master's recovery: Sleep Nutrition a Well-Designed Masters-Based Training Plan Frank dives into thoughts on meditation, winning in the kitchen, and training less (crazy right?) to maximize recovery and thus get faster on the bike, basically for free! Our Father's Day sale is in full force this weekend, so pick up those #DadWatts by using code FASTERDAD at checkout to save 50% off your next training plan. Put that recovery to good use! 42594More Bang for your Training Buck We say 'master's recovery' as opposed to most recovery recommendations you hear in the popular media that pertain to younger athletes (who recover faster and better). Or 'elite athletes' in the scientific literature. This podcast is a continuation of the June 12th, 2018 podcast Jackson and I recorded for our 4th ever episode way back when. Go back and give that podcast a listen but know that here today I will mainly be speaking about recovery as it pertains to adults, 'weekend warriors' as recovery relates to their lifestyles. These days, successful upwardly mobile people lead stressful busy lives. So much so, that I think back to my life in my 20's and 30's that was so simple and I sleep like a champ, ate well and recovered great. In fact recovery wasn't even an issue. I just thought that's how it was. Add in a few kids, a stressful job, a relationship with your spouse, a pandemic, your career, and age related decline and whammo – that's what we are talking about today. So much so that for the athletes I coach who are over 40 and the questions we field about training there are 3 VERY important aspects of training that pertain to masters athletes. They pertain to all ages athletes but I'm specifically going to talk from my experience as an athlete and a coach who is over 40 dealing with and working on these three (Sleep, Nutrition & Training Plan) Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Master's Recovery appeared first on FasCat.

Welcome to another periodized Q&A session of the FasCat Podcast, where we field listener questions from our forum, website, and social media to help you get even faster on the bike. This go around we touch on a range of topics, including the most "coachable" traits in athletes, following the plan in the heat or sacrificing sleep, recovery, weight loss and treats, and even a question from Phil Gaimon. If you want to get a question answered in the next one, be sure to sign up for our forum over at forum.fascat.wpengine.com to hop in the conversation. Thanks to everyone who contributed! 41957More Bang for your Training Buck Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Ask FasCat #10 — Coachable Traits, TSS, and Recovery appeared first on FasCat.

Now that you've been building a big base, summer is here, and you're wanting to "sharpen the sword", we've designed a brand new addition to the Sweet Spot training plan fleet: Sweet Spot Polarized. This style of training is developed to perfectly balance sweet spot and VO2 work to make you go even faster using a "fresher is faster" dependent training plan design. So on the pod today Coach Frank breaks down the philosophy and plan in detail, what to expect and how to get it done. For more info on it, check out https://fascat.wpengine.com/training-plans/sweet-spot-part-4-polarized/ 41798More Bang for your Training Buck Show Notes: Next week we're doing another episode of Ask FasCat! Submit your questions through the forum @ forum.fascat.wpengine.com or [email protected]. TSS Training for Cyclists How to Perform VO2max Intervals Tabatas Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Sweet Spot Polarized Training appeared first on FasCat.

Strava Racing: Using the technology of Strava routes and segments + their live segments feature you can create and simulate race courses. And best of all, use the segment's leaderboard for the 'race results'. Coach Frank and Jackson share the scoop with the FasCat Nation so you can make the most out of the summer! Be sure to check out FasCat's very own Strava Racing Challenge here: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/strava-segment-challenge/ And of course continue the conversation in our active forum @ http://forum.fascat.wpengine.com Thanks to everyone for reviewing the show on Apple Podcasts and subscribing wherever you get your pods! Consider sharing the show with a friend or teammate to help them get faster. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Strava Racing Using Routes and Created Segments appeared first on FasCat.

It's our 2 year anniversary! Hard to believe, but we've officially been podcasting for over 2 years. Almost 100 episodes, equaling around 100 hours of audio content to make you a faster cyclist! So today we celebrate by looking back on some of our favorite episodes, the themes that have emerged, and what to look forward to in the next phase of the FasCat Podcast! We also discuss the exciting new FasCat Strava Segment Challenge, Phil Gaimon's insane Everesting world record, and much more. We want to give a huge shoutout to the entire FasCat community, from the podcast listeners to the forum users, for joining us in this journey and for giving us the inspiration for many of our episodes and content, and for supporting our work! We're honored to serve your cycling goals, and will stay committed to that goal. 40668More Bang for your Training Buck Episodes mentioned: Winning in the Kitchen, ep. 2 The Origins of FTFP Sweet Spot Invention Gravel Training Timing is Everything Ask FasCat #1 Strava Segments/Strava-Vals Also be sure to check out the brand new FasCat Strava Segment Challenge! We're hiring a Community Manager! Want to contribute to the mission of FasCat Coaching and work from home? Check out our job posting here: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/careers-community-manager/ Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post The 2 Year Anniversary Episode! appeared first on FasCat.

One key question we ask ourselves as coaches at FasCat, is if the athlete is responding to the training we have prescribed. Aka, are they getting faster? Our favorite "experiment" to answer this question is a good old fashioned 20 minute power based field test, which is free and can be conducted anywhere and anytime appropriate. Reality Cycling In a former life and career, I conducted hundreds of experiments as a research scientist in biotechnology and academic medical research laboratories designed to answer specific questions about the research projects I was working on. Spinal cord research, cancer, and novel cancer cures to name a few. At FasCat, we still perform "experiments" designed to evaluate our athletes' current physiology as it relates to their cycling performance. Still to this day the most practical, most relevant test of all is a 20 minute power based field test. With the exception of the gold standard, 40k time trial. 1463Increase your FTP with our Hill Climb Intervals Training Plan. In the past we have conducted MLSS tests in an exercise physiology lab, but the reality is that cyclists need to test two to three times per year which is cost prohibitive and not practical for many athletes. Plus indoor power tends to be slightly less that outdoor power. A properly conducted field test cuts to the core of cycling performance and gives a great physiological assessment of the athlete (1), making it an indispensable tool for our coaches or the self coached athlete. How Do I Conduct a Field Test? In essence, a 20 minute power based field test is riding as fast as hard as you can for exactly 20 minutes. Just like a 20 minute time trial. Record your average power output and use that number as a benchmark and to determine your wattage based zones*. When available we'll recommend a steady grade hill free of stop signs, descents and any section of road that requires the athlete to stop pedalling. Ideally a 2-3% steady grade hill like this Strava segment. Steeper climbs tend to bog athletes' cadence down which skews the test results. Conversely, some athletes make greater power uphill than they can on the flats. Whichever you choose, it is absolutely imperative that you ensure your test is repeatable, accurate and reliable. Apples – apples. Here's how: For the road cyclist and mountain biker an all out effort similar to your time trial pace of 20 minutes elicits a physiological response that has been found to be "the single greatest determinant of cycling performance in mass start cycling events" (1). We have experimented with 60 minute Field Tests and honestly not that many athletes can sustain that sort of mental effort for the full 60 minutes. If they can its a mental match we don't want to burn. On the other hand if we know the athlete can do a 60 minute field test once a year, it is the coaches discretion to prescribe one. It is especially beneficial to compare 60 minute field test data to ~ 60 minute 40k time trial data. When choosing the roads for your field test let the terrain you have available dictate the specifics of your test (working within the 20 min range). After all, going for it from the bottom of a climb all the way to the top is more stimulating than working off your stopwatch. It may even be specific to your target event(s). For instance, a climber targeting a race with a decisive climb will want to specifically perform their test on a climb similar to the one found in the race. Heck, if you live nearby the race course, test on the race course! Conversely you may not even see a climb longer than one or two minutes where you live. That's cool; then find a stretch of road to measure how far you can ride in 20 minutes. If this is the case, pay special attention to the wind and humidity which will affect your aerodynamics and thus time. As long as you come back to the very same piece of road and start from the very same spot, under the same test conditions, your test will be repeatable. *We take the average 20 minute power and subtract 5 – 10% to arrive at an athlete's 60 minute "Functional Threshold Power" or FTP. As a generally rule of thumb we use 5% for slow twitch aerobic athletes and 10% for athletes that have a well developed anaerobic system. We'll subtract 7.5% if we don't know about the athlete's anaerobic capacity. Repeatability Whatever you have nearby, find a stretch of road free of stops signs, intersections and corners — anything that would slow you down. In essence: go as hard as you can! Don't hold back one bit, go for it! Now here's the catch: remember everything about this test and duplicate it for your next test. Items to keep the same (& ensure repeatability) include: Your powermeter! Calibrated of course. Different powermeters unfortunately produce different results Your bike: weight (including water bottles), body position, tires, tire pressure. Your kit: jersey, shorts, helmet – – essentially you want to have the same aerodynamic characteristics from test to test.

We don't always have to perform an FTP field test in order to measure our performance. We you may use normalized power during hard effort 20-60 minutes in length, or similar durations during group rides or races to track your performance and FTP over time using real world examples. This is a hot topic so we'd love to field your questions at forum.FasCatCoaching.com 14440Interested in a FasCat training plan? Use code 25podcast at checkout to save 25% on your first plan! – Join the discussion on the FasCat Forum – Thanks for listening! Find the FasCat podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher. Follow us on social: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Intro music: David Cutter Music. The post How to Measure FTP Improvement with Normalized Power appeared first on FasCat.

One of the most popular topics we talk about on the podcast is nutrition, and specifically our philosophy of "Winning in the Kitchen". We've podcasted about breakfast, dinner, on the bike nutrition, winning in the grocery store, weight loss, and now we bring you a conversation about SNACKS! 40045More Training For Your Limited Time Snacks are a challenging aspect of nutrition for many people, athletes included. So we try and simplify it and help you make better choices and build better habits by crafting snacks in a healthy and sustainable way to keep your nutrition game strong! Previous Winning in the Kitchen podcasts/videos worth checking out: Winning in the Kitchen Weight Loss for Cyclists Breakfast Winning in the Kitchen 30 Day Challenge Go Fast Food Choices Winning in the Grocery Store | Nutrition for Cyclists Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Winning in the Kitchen: Snacks appeared first on FasCat.

This week, we discuss how Strava live segments can "hack" your interval performance by increasing motivation, positive reinforcement, and therefore your power output. A Strava-Val is going as hard as you can like an interval but using the live Strava segment for motivation. Knowing in real time if you are ahead or behind your PR is good for 10-20 more watts of motivation. Kind of like a group ride of one. You can do VO2 Max intervals, anaerobic intervals, climbing intervals, breakaway intervals, time trial intervals and of course sweet spot intervals with this style of training. The choices are endless and at this time of the year, mid-summer, variety is the spice of life and being motivated to go hard is more than half the battle to staying sharp. 21766Follow the plan that Phil uses to get KOMs across the globe. Here's how to perform a Strava-Val: #1: Create a Strava account The basic is free and the premium ("Summit' for $8/month) gets you live segments. The live segment feature is highly effective for turning yourself inside out during your effort to get your PR. Therefore as a coach, since I like when athletes turn themselves inside out, I like the strava live segment feature a lot The key feature that I'm talking about is knowing how many seconds you are ahead or behind of getting your PR or that KOM of the segment you are using for an interval. #2 Choose and Star your Segment in Strava Remember the duration of the segment you choose forces specific physiological adaptations: 20 – 60 second segment(s) train your anaerobic 'glycolytic' pathway 3 – 6 minute segment(s) train your VO2 Max 8 – 60 minute segment trains your threshold power (TT & Climbing) Choose 20 – 60 second segments if you are a criterium, flat road racer or cyclocross racer Choose 3 – 6 minute segments if you want to raise your FTP and compete in hill road races with 3 – 6 minute climbs Choose 8 – 60 minute segments if you want to climb faster, time trial better or work on your threshold power. Choose 1 – 3 hour segments for gravel or marathon mtb racing Or choose any segment that motivates you! #3 design your workout We recommend Strava-Vals at the point in the season when we think you do not need to do 2 sets of 3 x 3 minutes on 3 minutes off with a 6 minute set break between 265 – 305 watts. All you need to do is sharpen the sword with 2 or 3 really REALLY hard similar length efforts. Thus – find your segment and plan to go as hard as you can on it two or three times. Really hard – harder than normal intervals hard because a) you are only doing 2 – 3 and b) because Strava , haha. Warm up well in Zone 2 while riding over to your segment and go for it. After 2 or three of these your 'interval' workout is down and you can cruise back home. You can also mix multiple types of energy system efforts based on different segments within each workout to mix it up and replicate race specific efforts…the options are unlimited! Group Ride Strava-Vals for extra credit: I don't recommend the live segment feature during the effort because you are riding in a group and want to be as safe as possible. Plus if its cyclocross or mountain bike training there may be some technical riding where you want to keep your eyes on the trail! Still, going for that PR and 'winning your group ride' is the extra motivation that makes the group ride all the more better. Try it out the next time you want to get that extra 1-2% out of your next interval session! For more podcasts and training tips, visit fascat.wpengine.com/tips! The post Using Strava Live Segments to Perform "Strava-Vals" appeared first on FasCat.

This week we sit down with Jim Miller, USA Cycling's Chief of Sports Performance and coach to many of USA's greats such as Tejay van Garderen, Kate Courtney, Kristin Armstrong, and Lawson Craddock to name a few. Jim is the ultimate "coaches coach" and has been coaching elite level cycling for nearly 2 decades, and his work has developed amazing athletes and superstar performances, including world championships and Olympic medals. 39934More Training For Your Limited Time Frank and Jim discuss everything from his coaching philosophy, athletes' least favorite workout, float tanks, embracing failure, and the approach going into Tokyo 2021. Past Training Tips referenced in the podcast: Whoop Recovery Float Tanks VO2 Intervals: 5 on 5 off (Hickson Holloszy paper) MotorPacing Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Coaching USA's Elite and Embracing Failure with Jim Miller appeared first on FasCat.

This week Frank talks about the 3 ways he advises athletes to use Zwift as a Training Tool. They include: #1 Using Alpe Du Zwift #2 ERG Mode # 3 Group Rides and Races Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast 39836More Training For Your Limited Time What if you had a one hour climb out your backyard to train on? Well now you do with Zwift's Alpe D Zwift. We'll talk about using the Alpe du Zwift as a training tool – not necessarily playing the game and racing… but as a training tool to help you follow your training plan and workout better. Bringing some enhancements to FTFP'ing. The Alpe is a great way to use terrain to help you make better watts. Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. The post Zwift as a Training Tool appeared first on FasCat.

We are honored to talk about sweet spot training with Dr. Andy Coggan, Ph.D on this podcast. Dr. Coggan is an Associate Professor of Kinesiology at Indiana University's School of Health and Human Sciences. IU has a doctoral program in Kinesiology so if there's a young cyclist out there that wants to study how to get faster, IU's Department of Kinesiology could be the place for you. 39701More Training For Your Limited Time Andy and Frank go way back to the early days of USA Cycling Coaches Education Program primarily from the power based training seminars and clinics. In 2004 Andy presented at the Coaches Summit at USA Cycling's headquarter's in Colorado Springs, CO and introduced a power based impulse – response performance model. The term sweet spot training was born a few months later from a group of coaches working to validate the model which would later become the Performance Manager Chart in TrainingPeaks and WKO. Andy is also the co-author of "Training and Racing with a Powermeter" along with Hunter Allen. Of course we reference the sweet spot graph, address the arbitrary units from the y-axis and the expected physiological adaptations from training in Zones 1 – 7. We also reference two important OG exercise physiology studies here: Effect of training on enzyme activity and fiber composition of human skeletal muscle Gollnick PD, Armstrong RB, Saltin B, Saubert CW 4th, Sembrowich WL, Shepherd RE. J Appl Physiol. 1973 Jan;34(1):107-11. Linear increase in aerobic power induced by a strenuous program of endurance exercise. Hickson RC, Bomze HA, Holloszy JO. J Appl Physiol Respir Environ Exerc Physiol. 1977 Mar;42(3):372-6. You can read about and listen to the story behind the performance manager chart, TSTWKT, here. Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast The post Sweet Spot Training with Dr. Andy Coggan, Ph.D appeared first on FasCat.

The podcast this week is another installment of our Ask FasCat series, where we answer listener questions! Thank you to everyone who submitted questions via our forum, and congratulations to the 3 question-askers we selected to win a FasCat T-shirt! Listen in to see if you won… This go around we answered questions ranging from FTP adjustments for indoor vs. outdoor riding, making the jump from a new cyclist into a cat. 2 or 3, nutrition during the Coronavirus outbreak, moving to elevation from sea level, going after KOMs in training, and plenty more! Thanks to everyone for tuning in, subscribing and reviewing on Apple Podcasts, and for engaging in our forum! For more things cycling training, visit http://fascat.wpengine.com. 39556Gravel Team T-Shirt Show Notes, Training Tips & Previous Podcasts Referenced: Timing is Everything FTP is Alive and Well The Effect of Altitude on Cycling Bassett, D.R. Jr., C.R. Kyle, L. Passfield, J.P. Broker, and E.R. Burke. Comparing cycling world hour records, 1967-1996: modeling with empirical data. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 31:1665-76, 1999. Using the Performance Manager Chart The 20 minute Field Test Indoor 20 minute Field Test Amity Rockwell and Peter Stetina Podcasts on Dirty Kanza pacing Strava-Vals Interval Intensity: going as hard as you can Gravel Then and Now, Pearl iZUMi blog post Save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast. Our Gravel Team's Jersey, Bibs, Hats and T Shirts are in stock and shipping out daily! The post Ask FasCat #9 — FTP Indoors vs. Outdoors, Corona Nutrition, and Timing is Everything appeared first on FasCat.

The whole gravel team is here to check in with the FasCat community about setting intermediate goals using virtual communities to keep the motivation high and training moving forward for the next few months. You still have your A race goals and long term goals, we just don't know (yet ) how the timing of those goals relates to your training. So in the meantime we present ways to have fun, ride alone, stay fit and improve while we get thru this pause and quarantine! We share what is going in our own communities, our coaching goals with our athletes, the benefits of Strava and Zwift in current times, how our recent Cervelo Gravel Rush Zwift event went, and plenty more. It was a fun conversation – we hope this brings you some entertainment and wisdom to your day. You still have your A race goals and long term goals, we just don't how the timing of those goals. 39182Gravel Team T-Shirt Show Notes Use: FasCat2020 to buy your Panaracer GravelKings Join the FasCat Strava Club Whoop Recovery Group: Use Team code = 'COMM-7F3229 Join Us next Thursday April 2nd @ 1:10 MDT for the 'Zwift // Cervelo Gravel Rush Series: "Beat Coach Jake Challenge" Watopia "Sand and Sequoias" Route :: 12.6 miles – Beat Jake's time of 31:32 309watts Watopia Alpe Du Zwift :: 7.5 miles – Jake's time of 39:48 330 watts Reminder we're doing a Q&A episode next week – submit your questions! Via Instagram, the forum, or [email protected]. And as always, help us out by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts and save 25% on your next training plan with code 25podcast. Our Gravel Team's Jersey, Bibs, Hats and T Shirts are in stock and shipping out daily! The post Setting Intermediate Training Goals using Virtual Communities appeared first on FasCat.

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade as the saying goes. With the cycling season put on hold until May () there's now plenty of time to get faster. Two life situations dictate your training approach: do you have less time to train + more stress / more 'life stuff' do you have more time now that you're working from home Depending on your life situation, we recommend adopting a training style and strategy to match what you have going on plus what you have once this is all over: a low volume/ high intensity interval style of training or a sweet spot part 3 style more base/ more CTL training strategy We've even created a Corona Training Plan, (which is free with discount code #FtFP at checkout) to help you follow the plan. But this conversation extends beyond a global pandemic affecting our training and racing, lots of things can impact our consistency, such as weather, races being cancelled for a variety of reasons, or even just "life stuff". We discuss the differences between indoor and outdoor training plans, the specifics of the Corona and Sweet Spot plans, and even throw in some tips on keeping up the Winning in the Kitchen habit during quarantine 36616Weather the Coronavirus with our Indoor Corona VO2 Plan. The Corona Style of Training uses a 'fresher is faster' training plan design model – the traditional low volume. high intensity approach. Other key features are: the 3 > 4 > 5 VO2 Progression (see below) AmEX Rides Using your power data from a 2 x 10 workout to pace yourself properly for a 20 minute field test why we use heart rate during the prescribed Zone 2 rides The FasCat Gravel Team's Hat T Shirts and Cycling Jerseys we mentioned in the pod may be purchased thru the links – order up , we are shipping daily! For more, check out all of our training plans, training tips, gravel team merch, and more over at http://fascat.wpengine.com The post COVID-19 Training appeared first on FasCat.

In light of the recent COVID-19 outbreak, the timing of your training for the 2020 cycling season has changed. Races are in question, stress is high, and a lot of us are wondering how to proceed with our seasons with so much being up in the air. So we decided to sit down and chat about the age old question: what should we do when our races get cancelled? How do we proceed when plans change? A lot of us are in this position, so we hope that this clears some of the worry and unknown when it comes to the next few weeks of the season. #KeepCalmAndFtFPOn . Here are 3 training scenarios if your plans have changed per our "Timing is Everything" Podcast: 35684Start building fitness and increasing FTP with our best-selling Sweet Spot plan. #1 your next race is in 6-10 weeks (and/or you have MORE time to train): Keep raising your CTL (Chronic Training Load) – everybody benefits from a 'bigger base' so keep building. In other words go from 'race' back to 'base' [reverse!] . In this case we advocate a Sweet Spot Part 3 training plan approach. With a ramp rate of 3-4 TSS per week you now have the opportunity to take your CTL 12 – 16 TSS/day higher from 75 – 90 (for example) which will make a big difference in not only your endurance but also your power output. #2 your next race is in 6-10 weeks (and you have LESS time to train): For example, your kids are home from school and you can't ride outdoors like normal. In this case you may adopt a 'go harder to compensate for less time to train' approach to your goals from an interval training plan like the ones here. #3 you are a cyclocross'er in the off season and don't want to go to the gym anymore [#flattenthecurve] We advocate making your own home gym with the strength and conditioning movements we prescribe in our 10 week resistance training plan. You'll have to let go of the squat, leg press and leg curl from the plan and double down on these strength and conditioning movements and routines Nino's Coach Brandon's #secretTraining 5 minute Plank Your REVO Physiotherapy Hydrate & Skate band exercises EC Fit Strength and Conditioning App YogaGlo I feel great and FAST Right Now: Good (!) & congratulations! Sounds like your training is working (you've been #FtFP'ing). Here are a few things you can do to flex your muscle: #1 measure how much faster you are with a 20 minute Field Test – not the 'funnest' so perhaps # 2 is your jam #2 go for your favorite Strava segment for a PR – take a page out of FasCat Athlete Phil Gaimon's playbook and test yourself agains your previous best. We hope these suggestions and podcast help – that's what we're here for: to help you go faster on the bike. Should you have anymore questions, concerns, dilemmas, obstacles, etc… reach out to your FasCat Coach, hire one or goto our athlete forum and post your question – we'd be glad to try and help! The post What to Do When Your Race is Cancelled appeared first on FasCat.

We're starting a gravel team! That's right, the FasCat Coaching Gravel Team will be a thing this year, and we're here to tell you all about it! Coaches Frank, Jake, Isaiah, and Jackson will be traveling to six gravel events this year, including Mid-South, Belgian Waffle Ride, Dirty Kanza, Crusher in the Tushar, Steamboat Gravel, and Rebecca's Private Idaho. With the help of some awesome brand partners, a sweet FasCat sprinter van, and an Apple Genius Bar-esque expo set up, we'll be out at the races walking the walk to help you get faster. We'll be providing expert level guidance on training, nutrition, and equipment, providing Normatec recovery, and more. 35426Make 2020 your best gravel season ever with FasCat's Gravel Racing Plan. The goal is to engage with YOU, the race participants to share war stories from the races, connect with the awesome gravel community, represent our brand partners, and support your training and racing goals. For all things gravel team related, including the team, more on our brand partners, and training, check out our page at https://fascat.wpengine.com/gravel-team/ The FasCat Gravel Team is made possible by our fantastic podcast listeners, training plan customers, forum users, and our amazing brand partners: Excel Sports Cervelo Bicycles Panaracer GU Energy PEARL iZUMi Normatec HED Wheels We'll see you on the groads! The post Announcing the FasCat Coaching Gravel Team appeared first on FasCat.

This week Frank and Jackson sit down to help each other out and answer some questions. Jackson is training for his first Dirty Kanza, and asked Frank to coach him through the overview of the next 3 months of preparation. Things like: Macro-scale training plan design, weekly and monthly hours on the bike Training camp ideas What DK simulation rides should look like How to incorporate intensity and tapering for an event like Dirty Kanza 35024Make 2020 your best gravel season ever with FasCat's Gravel Racing Plan. And then to repay Frank's wisdom, Jackson helped Frank with some questions about plant-based nutrition, such as: How much protein should I have per meal? What are some potential things I may be missing? What about the Impossible Burger? Is it healthy? We have a great back and forth conversation about these topics, and hopefully you can glean some valuable information for your own training, racing, and nutrition goals! Notable resources and mentions: DK talk with Amity Rockwell and Pete Stetina Vitamin B12: https://plantbaseddietitian.com/vitamin-b12-recommendations/ and Jackson's preferred supplement: https://lovecomplement.com/ Jackson's podcast: http://bit.ly/intheflowpod Idiot's Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition Plant Based Sports Nutrition NutritionFacts.org The post Frank and Jackson Talk Dirty Kanza and How to Go Plant-Based appeared first on FasCat.

Coach Frank "BigCat" Overton drops some knowledge and watt bombs about his top 3 go-to interval workouts this week on the pod. Threshold, VO2 and Anaerobic Capacity/Zone 6 intervals. It's that time of year to start thinking about switching from base to race with early season races looming on the horizon, so intervals are the prescription. In this podcast, Frank shares some wisdom on his top 3 interval workouts that are versatile to a variety of races and cycling disciplines, so that you can feel more confident in your training this year: Zone 4: 3 x 8 minutes ON 4-8 minutes off. Zone 5: 2 sets of 2 x 3 min On 3 min OFF Zone 6: 2 sets of 3 x 1 min On 1 min Off , 115 % of your FTP and higher like 150% For more on interval training go back and listen to our 5th episode ever: How to Perform Intervals Podcast [Episode 5], June 21, 2018 Intervals 101 Podcast March 7, 2019 The Right Way To Perform VO2 Max Intervals with Your PowerMeter Snoop Dogg's Hollywood Star Speech https://youtu.be/NfF3bThOW0Q Thank you for listening and as always we'd love for you to give us a review on iTunes AND to ask us follow up questions and start a discussion in our athlete forum: forum.FasCatCoaching.com 34684Prep for road season with our Road Racing Intervals Plan. As a reminder, use code 25podcast for 25% off any training plan on fascat.wpengine.com that implement the very same training methodologies we talk about here in our podcast. We'll be back next week to help you get faster on the bike! The post The Big Cat's 3 Go-To Interval Workouts appeared first on FasCat.

This week we're excited to bring you a conversation with Amity Rockwell, the 2019 winner of Dirty Kanza and overall gravel hitter. Amity has a unique and interesting path into the sport of cycling after growing up in the Bay Area to ultrarunner parents, and her philosophy around the sport and mindset towards training and racing are powerful. Frank and Amity talk about her upbringing and how it developed her love and physiological talent for riding long distances. They also get into what her training and mental preparation looked like for her 2019 Dirty Kanza victory, and what she's looking forward to in 2020. For more on Amity, check her out on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amityvil Subscribe and leave us a review to support the show! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fascat-cycling-training-tips-podcast/id1381614039 34437Make 2020 your best gravel season ever with FasCat's Gravel Racing Plan. The post Amity Rockwell appeared first on FasCat.

Perhaps the two most important pillars of the FasCat Coaching ethos, following the plan and Winning in the Kitchen go very hand in hand. We've podcasted about them separately but realized that they fit together nicely, so we have a bit of a combo episode for you today to revisit these topics to keep you inspired as winter rages on. Winning in the Kitchen is about choosing go fast foods and setting the conscious intention to prioritize nutrition as part of you training – and sticking to that plan, just like #FtFP when it comes to training. The origin of FtFP comes from our coaching experience and noticing bad training habits. #FtFP is having a training plan and following it. This is also where we got the expression "If you can follow a plan, you can get faster" – this is based on being able to FtFP: Planning Commitment Sacrifice Dedication Vacations Time Management Life Balance Having your ducks in a row Having the mindset you are going to follow the plan come hell or high water Not #FtFP'ing: Very rarely does anyone miss a workout intentionally. It's the details of what they do/don't during that workout – Missing 15 minutes of a workout here, or not having your ducks in a row there. Great example is of a new training tip from Coach Isaiah "Know your zones" https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/know-your-zones/ Show Notes: – What Plans Should I Do if I got into the Dirty Kanza – good forum thread: https://forum.fascat.wpengine.com/t/get-into-dk-what-plans-to-do-from-feb-may-30th/4619 – What Plans Should I do if I got into Leadville – also on the forum – What Plans Should I do for Steamboat Gravel? – foooooRUM: https://forum.fascat.wpengine.com/t/guidance-on-training-plans-for-sbt-grvl/4441 "How to Pair and Sequence the FasCat Training Plans" podcast from January 2019 Winning in the Kitchen Recipes: General Tso's Tofu – amazing and doesn't take that long! This recipe comes from a google search arriving at https://veganhuggs.com/general-tsos-tofu/ Vegan Mac n Cheese inspired by: https://minimalistbaker.com/vegan-green-chili-mac-n-cheese/ 34255Shop our Road Racing Intervals Plan and take the guesswork out of your interval training in 2020. The post #FtFP Meets Winning In The Kitchen: Recipes! appeared first on FasCat.

WorldTour veteran and recent convert to the gravel scene, Pete Stetina, drops by the FasCat pod to share his wisdom and power data into some of the biggest races on the calendar like Belgian Waffle Ride, Dirty Kanza, and others. A longtime road cyclist and previous member of the Trek-Segafredo squad, Pete has made the switch to #ProGroad and has quickly established his dominance. Frank and Pete chat about all things cycling, including his Dirty Kanza power data with reference to his Intensity Factor in the first 50 miles and the final 14 miles during the infamous "Twizzler Incident". Frank also asks Pete if he #FtFP's as well as Wins in the Kitchen. Overall you hear what he loves about gravel racing and if you listen carefully you'll even hear what Pete's spirit animal is. For Pete's Paydirt Gravel Race on September 19th in Carson City, NV: Registration opens March 23, with a cap of 400 registrants Follow along on the 'grams [Insta] @StetinasPaydirt For more on Pete's adventures, check him out on Instagram @pstetina and Strava: https://www.strava.com/pros/pstetina 33891Looking for a Gravel Racing Plan to focus your gravel training in 2020? The post Peter Stetina on Dirty Kanza Power Data, Nutrition Philosophies, and Spirit Animals appeared first on FasCat.

We're back with our 8th edition of Ask FasCat, where we field listener questions to help you become a faster cyclist. This time, Coach Isaiah is in the house to help break down questions ranging from Dirty Kanza training, the utility of plyometrics, training camp thoughts, polarized training vs. sweet spot talk, and plenty more. Thanks to everyone who submitted questions! Should You Strength Train During the Season https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/video-should-you-strength-train-during-the-season/ Volume versus Intensity Debate: https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1113/JP277633 As always, you can submit questions through our engaging forum over at forum.fascat.wpengine.com and please consider subscribing to the show and leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts. The post Ask FasCat #8 — Dirty Kanza Training, Polarized vs. Sweet Spot, and More! appeared first on FasCat.

This week on the pod, Coach Isaiah returns to share his takeaways and lessons learned from his recent USA Cycling Coaches Level 1 Education Course, and how it applies to YOUR cycling training. Isaiah shares a lot of powerful insights on training and racing philosophy, coaching science, and more, and really brings you into the mind of a high-level cycling coach. For more on Isaiah, check out his coaching bio at https://fascat.wpengine.com/coaches/isaiah-newkirk/ And as always, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and share the show with your training buddies! Thanks for listening. 33420Get started with our best-selling Sweet Spot 1 Training Plan. The post Inside Coach Isaiah's Mind: Takeaways from USAC Level 1 Coaches Education appeared first on FasCat.

It's late December, early January and time to get serious and make the most of the remaining months of the offseason to come into the gravel calendar swinging. Coach Frank and Jackson sit down to discuss their top tips and considerations for offseason gravel training, including: 32352Looking for the perfect off-season Gravel Plan for January? Here it is. 10 Weeks Resistance Training Sweet Spot Base Gravel simulation rides strength + conditioning periodization gravel training camp and of course, #WinningInTheKitchen It's a great conversation that will hopefully get you psyched for the upcoming season and add some extra motivation for those winter trainer rides coming up. The post Off Season Gravel Training appeared first on FasCat.

We're back at our favorite local bike shop, Excel Sports for a LIVE podcast sharing FasCat's picks for the holidays if you or someone you know is a cyclist! Coach Frank breaks down everything from bikes to tires to nutrition products, and we even gave away a Wahoo ROAM for the livestream! If you're looking for some really solid gifts for the cyclist in your life this season, look no further. To find all of the products mentioned in this podcast, visit our friends over at Excel Sports: http://excelsports.com. Products mentioned: Cervelo Aspero gravel bike 1 GU nutrition products – gels, chews, stroopwafels, Roctane NormaTec recovery boots 1 Panaracer GravelKing SK/SK + tires Wahoo ROAM / BOLT GPS cycling computers Castelli baselayer 1 Assos chamois cream Wahoo KICKR smart trainer Thanks for listening/watching and congrats to the winner of the ROAM! To win a pair of Panaracer Gravel KINGS SK, 35mm head over to forum.FasCatCoaching and answer the trivia question in the podcast! (Where are carbohydrates absorbed in your body?) To take advantage of an extra 15% off Normatecs email [email protected] and reference "NormaTecsForFasCat" The post FasCat Holiday Buyer's Guide LIVE from Excel Sports appeared first on FasCat.

It's the week of Thanksgiving and Boulder is being covered in snow, so Coach Frank checks in with the podcast to share what he's grateful for, share the details of our Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal, and how to stay sane and train this holiday season. Remember to use code Fast50 at checkout to save 50% off any plan, today through end of day Monday, Dec. 2nd. And have a fantastic Thanksgiving! Check out our sweet selection of training plans for every kind of cyclist: https://fascat.wpengine.com/training-plans/ The post Thanksgiving Gratitude & Black Friday Show appeared first on FasCat.

Coach Isaiah is back to chat about his new transition from professional road cyclist into the gravel scene, and how his training and outlook on the sport has shifted. We talk about: cross training planning out a gravel race calendar how CTL is affected by gravel-specific training why strength training is particularly important for gravel racers and more! It's a good conversation, and we're super excited to see Isaiah throw down in some of the gravel races this year coming off a road career. For more on Isaiah, check out our previous episodes with him: TT training and racing: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/time-trial-training-racing-w-coach-isaiah/ Tour of Utah review + Offseason tips: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/isaiah/ Plant-based nutrition for cyclists: https://fascat.wpengine.com/tips/plant-based-nutrition-for-cyclists/ And don't forget to take advantage of our Black Friday/Cyber Monday training plan sale! Starting on Tuesday, November 26 and going through Tuesday, December 3rd, we're giving 50% off all training plans with code Fast50. Now's the time to start getting faster! The post Coach Isaiah Newkirk on the Transition from Pro Road to Pro Gravel and How to Train appeared first on FasCat.

In case you've been living underneath a rock, gravel racing is hot AF right now. It's registration season for the 2020 calendar, and races are filling up faster than a Walmart on Black Friday. One of our favorite races of 2019 and a first year event in our backyard, Steamboat Gravel, was a smashing success and it's back with more ambition and awesome for next year. Frank sat down with one of the brains behind the event, Mark Satkiewicz to chat about the state of gravel racing, how SBTGRVL went this year, and what new changes to expect in 2020. Plus how to register for next year's race. For all things SBTGRVL, check out https://sbtgrvl.com/ and we'll see in Steamboat! If you're enjoying the podcast, consider rating and reviewing the show on Apple Podcasts and subscribe wherever you listen so you don't miss the latest episode! Visit our thriving forum at forum.fascat.wpengine.com to continue the conversation, and save 25% on your next training plan by using code 25podcast at checkout @ fascat.wpengine.com. Thanks for listening! 28566Training for SBT Gravel? Click here to buy the plan for 2020! The post A Conversation with Steamboat Gravel Founder, Mark Satkiewicz appeared first on FasCat.

This week is a conversation with recently retired pro cyclist and FasCat Coach Allie Legg, who raced for the Twenty20 Sho-Air women's professional cycling team after getting started in cycling at a young age in the sport of BMX racing. Allie has recently joined the team at FasCat as a coach, and has a tremendous amount of experience to share thru her coaching. Coach Frank and Allie discuss BMX racing, life in the pro peloton, coaching, gravel racing, offseason training, yoga, and a ton more. Read more of Allie's coaching bio here. Thanks as always for listening and leaving us a review on the Apple Podcasts store, and subscribing to the show wherever you listen. You can also save 25% on your next training plan by using code 25podcast at checkout! 28158Looking for an off-season training plan to keep you focused on 2020? Check out this best-selling plan. The post Coach Allie Legg : Life in the Pro Peloton, Gravel Racing, and Offseason Training appeared first on FasCat.

This week we are talking about the new Netflix documentary The Gamechangers, plant-based Frank, Zwifting, the Excel Sports discount, Ray Dalio's book, Principles, and Jackson's morning routine. We hope you enjoy! If you are a training plan customer or FasCat Athlete, don't forget to check out Excel Sports (excelsports.com) and select FasCat Coaching under the how did you hear about us? dropdown menu for some wicked discounts! And continue the conversation in our exclusive forum at forum.fascat.wpengine.com. 27878Buy our most popular off-season training plan today. The post Grab Bag: Gamechangers, Zwifting, Principles, and Morning Routines appeared first on FasCat.

We're back with another discussion of one of FasCat's main training philosophies: Sweet Spot. A big question we receive by athletes is "how much sweet spotting should I actually be doing?" In fact, our training tip on the subject remains one of our most popular. So today we break it all down and explain how much is enough for the pre-season, during the base build, and in season race mode. We'll talk about how sweet spot applies to the different disciplines within cycling, and share our top tips. We highly recommend going and listening to our episode on the invention of Sweet Spot where Frank discusses the basis of the philosophy. As always, thanks to everyone for rating and reviewing the pod on Apple Podcasts, sharing with a friend or teammate, and continuing the conversation in the forum. As a FasCat Coached athlete and training plan customer, you can now take advantage of our new partner Excel Sports with a FasCat team discount. Instructions are on our forum and are provided at the time of purchase. The post How Much Sweet Spot Should You Do? appeared first on FasCat.