Every January, cycling forums fill up with the same declarations. "This is the year I get fast." "I'm going to lose 10 kg and smash the Etape." "Target: Cat 2 by October."
By March, most of those posts have gone quiet. Not because the riders lacked talent or willpower — because they lacked structure. A goal without a framework is a wish with a deadline.
Joe Friel has been coaching endurance athletes for over four decades. His approach to goal setting isn't complicated, but it's precise. He layers goals into categories that work together. I've adapted his framework for the riders I coach, and it holds up whether you're targeting your first century or your tenth Gran Fondo.
The Problem with "Get Faster"
"Get faster" is not a goal. It's a direction. It tells you nothing about how far you need to go, what path to take, or how you'll know when you've arrived.
Similarly, "win my age group at the Etape du Tour" is entirely outside your control. You don't know who's showing up. You don't know the weather. You don't know whether the guy who's been training at altitude in Livigno all spring is going to roll up in your category.
The fix is separating your ambitions into three layers.
Layer 1: Process Goals
These are the daily and weekly actions that you fully control. No talent required. No race result involved. Just showing up and doing the work.
Examples:
- Train 4 times per week for the next 12 weeks
- Complete every prescribed strength session this block
- Fuel every ride over 90 minutes with at least 60g carbs per hour
- Get 7+ hours of sleep five nights per week
- Do the core routine three times per week
Process goals are boring. Nobody posts them on Instagram. But they are the foundation everything else rests on. Prof Stephen Seiler's research has consistently shown that consistency of training — not any single magic session — drives long-term adaptation. The rider who trains four times a week, every week, for 40 weeks will outperform the one who trains six times a week for 20 weeks and then burns out.
If you achieve nothing else this season, nail your process goals. Everything flows from there.
Layer 2: Performance Goals
Performance goals are measurable outcomes that you control. They depend on your fitness, not on who lines up next to you at the start.
Examples:
- Raise FTP from 240W to 260W by August
- Complete the Ring of Beara sportive in under 7 hours
- Hold 280W for a 20-minute climb
- Reduce average heart rate at 200W by 5 bpm over the next training block
- Finish a 12-week base block with aerobic decoupling under 5%
Performance goals give you something concrete to train toward. They're specific enough to dictate what your training should look like. If you need to move FTP from 240 to 260, you know you'll need threshold and VO2max work. If you need to hold power for 7 hours, you know you need volume and fuelling practice.
The numbers matter. Dr Andy Galpin puts it well: what gets measured gets managed, but only if the measurement is relevant. FTP is relevant for a time triallist. Normalised power over 5 hours is relevant for an ultra-distance rider. Pick the metric that matches the demand.
Layer 3: Outcome Goals
This is the result you dream about. The one that depends on competition, conditions, and a dozen variables you can't control.
Examples:
- Finish top 10 in age group at the Etape du Tour
- Complete the Marmotte under 8 hours
- Beat your riding partner up Alpe d'Huez
- Qualify for the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships
Outcome goals aren't bad — they're motivating. They give you a reason to suffer through February intervals on the turbo. But they can't be your primary measure of success, because you can execute perfectly and still miss the target due to factors outside your influence.
Think of it as a hierarchy: process goals feed performance goals, which give you the best possible shot at outcome goals. Reverse that order and you're chasing results without a plan.
How the Layers Work Together
Here's a real example from a rider I coached last season.
Outcome goal: Complete the Etape du Tour in under 8 hours.
Performance goals:
- FTP of 260W (from 235W) by June
- Sustain 220W normalised power for 5 hours in training
- Fuel at 80g carbs per hour without GI distress
Process goals:
- 4 structured rides per week (2 intensity, 1 endurance, 1 recovery)
- 2 gym sessions per week following the S&C programme
- Practice race nutrition on every ride over 2 hours
- Sleep 7.5 hours minimum, tracked with a wearable
Every Sunday, we reviewed the process goals. Not the FTP, not the Etape time — just the process. Did you hit four sessions? Did you fuel properly? Did you get to the gym?
By April, the FTP had moved from 235 to 252. By June, it hit 258 — two watts short of the target, but close enough that the outcome goal was realistic. He finished the Etape in 7 hours 41 minutes.
The process got him there. Not a lucky day. Not a burst of motivation. Consistent execution against a clear plan.
Where Cyclists Go Wrong
Too many goals at once. One outcome goal. Two to three performance goals. Four to five process goals. More than that and you're spreading your attention too thin.
Only outcome goals. If every goal depends on race day, every training block feels uncertain. You need weekly wins to sustain motivation across a six-month plan.
Abandoning the plan when life interferes. You'll miss sessions. You'll get sick. You'll have a terrible week at work. The framework survives this because process goals are weekly averages, not daily absolutes. Miss Monday? Move the session to Wednesday. The block survives.
Measuring too often. Don't test FTP every two weeks. Dan Lorang, who coached Pogacar and Roglic, programmes testing every 4-6 weeks at most. Adaptations need time to consolidate. Constant testing creates noise, not signal.
Start Here
Write down one outcome goal for this season. Then ask: what performance benchmarks would make that outcome likely? Then ask: what do I need to do every single week to reach those benchmarks?
That's the framework. Three layers. One page. Tape it to your wall next to the turbo trainer.
And if you're stuck — if the performance isn't moving despite consistent training — then the goal isn't the problem. The programme is. The Plateau Diagnostic identifies the specific limiter holding you back. Four minutes, free, and it'll tell you whether the issue is structure, fuelling, recovery, or something else entirely.