Coachinginterview

HOW TO COMBINE ZONE 2 WITH HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING | RIDER SUPPORT

with Rider Support

36:06·8 November 2024

LISTEN NOW

Listen on

Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube

RIDER SUPPORT

PROFILE →

TOPICS

With limited training time, most cyclists are torn between building endurance and squeezing in high-intensity work. This week we break down how to actually structure your eight hours a week using the 80/20 rule, how to spot the signs of burnout before it derails your season, and whether chasing advanced nutrition strategies like train low really stacks up against just nailing the basics.

Key Takeaways

With limited training time, prioritize duration over frequency—do fewer, longer sessions (like a 3-hour ride) rather than spreading thin across five short days. One long ride unlocks adaptations that multiple short rides can't match.
If you're exhausted, dragging through work, and losing motivation, communicate openly with your coach. Use subjective feedback (how you feel) alongside objective data (heart rate, sleep, performance) to paint a complete picture of your recovery.
Train low strategies trade off one adaptation (metabolic flexibility) for another (full training quality). Unless you're a WorldTour rider with a professional nutrition coach, consistent fueling and proper recovery matter far more than chasing these marginal gains.
Tire pressure accuracy matters more than most realize—small variations affect rolling resistance, comfort, and traction, especially in racing or hard group rides. Consider an electric gauge if you're serious about consistency across temperature changes.
Don't gatekeep cycling with style rules. Welcome new riders and teach them the skills that matter—cornering, descending, eating on the bike—then let them naturally pick up fashion sense. The currency in cycling is fitness and skill, not how you dress.

Expert Quotes

"Duration is a powerful signal. The difference between a one-hour ride and a two-hour ride and a three-hour ride—a lot happens in that third hour."

"The idea of train low race high is quite challenging because it's going to really affect your energy levels and your training quality. You're not performing as you could during the session so the adaptations you could get from that session aren't as great."

"I don't like the idea of a barrier that you have to spend to be in the group. The currency that matters is talent, it's skill, it's fitness level—not can you dress."

KEY QUOTES

“the difference between a 1hour ride and a 2hour ride and a three-hour ride a lot happens in that third hour”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

“rest days have never been backed up in the data to be beneficial if you need a rest day you take the day off and that's really good news for someone whose time crunched”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

“carbs aren't just about fueling your workout they're also about recovering from your workout so you can lay a foundation for the next day so carbs post training that helps replenish muscle glycogen stores it facilitates faster recovery and preparation for that subsequent session”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

WANT THIS APPLIED TO YOUR TRAINING?

Not Done Yet coaching builds your plan around these principles.

5 pillars. Personalised TrainingPeaks plan. Weekly calls. $195/month, 7-day free trial.

Apply for Coaching →

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT4 SECTIONS

Applying 80/20 With Eight Hours

Welcome to this week's Rider support this week we're going to talk about the best wheel choice for your bike we're going to talk about proper periodization but first let's talk about how you structure your training week correctly Sarah Anthony okay let's get straight into the questions this week Anthony I only have about eight hours a week to train so I'm trying to balance building my endurance with getting in some high intensity work I've heard about the 80/20 rule spending 80% of training in zone 2 and 20% at higher intensities but I'm not sure how to apply it with my Limited hours should I split my time between Zone how should I split split my time between zone two and harder efforts to maximize performance without burning out the idea of 8020 it came from Professor Steven Syler and we had Professor Steven Syler on the podcast last week and we actually talked specifically about this so I think rather than me like trying to regurgitate exactly what he told me to this answer let's have a look at this answer and then we can talk about how we can prop properly Implement that into his training yeah I'm going to probably I'm going to try to use duration and intensity as best I can still so what I'm going to do is I'm going to say look I want you to frontload I want you to get at least one really long session or at least relatively given your eight hour uh package you know that's your total volume then I'm going to say I'd like you to still be able to do a three-hour ride so three of your eight I want you to invest in a long ride so that we use duration for what it's worth because duration is a powerful signal duration you know we we often focus on intensity but the difference between a 1hour ride and a 2hour ride and a three-hour ride a lot happens in that third hour does that make sense yeah so I'm going to tell this person okay all right with eight hours how many times a week are you training you know we're going to figure that out let's say it's 4 then I'm going to say I want you to do one of those is going to be a three-hour session and then another is a two and then you're going to have a couple of 1 hour sessions that are high intensity and now we're at 7 hour you know so we're kind of we're going to think about how do we use that 8 Hour budget and it may end up being that we have fewer training days but we stretch one of them make sense yeah no that makes a lot of sense I think athletes are scared to do that and what they end up doing is training every day for an hour or an hour and a half pretty hard and that's the way they think is the best way to use that eight hour budget and I don't think that's correct that was that was an amazing interview I he it's just knowledge bomb after knowledge bom with him but can I just do a shout out for his voice and his amazing accent it's just gorgeous to listen to so okay let's unpack that a little bit so he talks about this clip goes on to or part one of that interview actually sets this up nicely he talks about we have three levers that we can pull we have frequency we have intensity and we have duration so it's how often we train how long we train how hard we train but what I took from this clip is each of those levers aren't perfectly equal we shouldn't put as much weight on some as others especially if we're stuck in a constraint like this like a limited amount of time which most of us find ourselves in whether it's 8 10 12 it's normally fixed in some sort of temporal container so he's saying maybe we need to sacrifice one of these levers frequency and not train as often and that's quite scary for a lot of people because a lot of us are conditioned to taking Monday off Friday easy and trying to ride Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Saturday Sunday because we confuse I'd give the analogy of my like my dad does this he'd be in traffic and Google Maps will say it's 25 minutes to your destination but instead of trusting Google Maps to 25 minutes and that's the fastest way home he'll take all these back Lanes cuz he just wants movement he wants momentum and he get there later that's what a lot of us want to do with our training we want momentum we want to feel like we're taking it Forward every day of the week but as sailor says there's a better way to distribute your training time across the week that is a point that is a good point isn't it you come home and you train or you get into a routine and you train as you said five days a week and if you don't do that if you're not training five days a week if you're not seeing on your training Peaks or your you know whatever you track your training in even if you just write it down you're not seeing all that green or you're not seeing all that those entries going in which is quite satisfying and kind of makes you feel that you are moving forward there's a total mindset change that has to happen there yeah but it makes sense in the context of that as he he calls it I think the magic happens there's a it's not a linear relationship between R1 R2 tree it's compounding it's exponential so you start to experience different sort of growth in eror two in error three in error four so the more we can tap in and allow that magic to happen the better it's going to be huge take away from that as well is no rest days that was later on in the interview rest days have never been backed up in the data to be beneficial if you need a rest day you take the day off and that's really good news for someone whose time crunched so now we can set up the week exactly like he he's advocating if you have eight hours where you have one longer three-hour ride on a Saturday you have a two-hour ride some other day and then you have a bunch of one hour rides rather than having you know 100 100 minutes or spread all across the week so take a total day off rather than take multiple days off take multiple days off yeah like if you're going to go for that like a treay two you're up to five and then you're another one and a half and another one and a half you're only trying four days a week yeah yeah it is a really efficient way to to train isn't it it makes a lot of sense and then you can guess your intense session done on the shorter sessions so it's it's win-win all around so that's what you advocated this listener I think it's worth trying especially if people are stuck at platea where they've been for a lot of years doing the same stuff and not really getting ahead it's worth trying it especially when it's coming from someone as a steed as Steven soer yeah he's so knowledgeable I'm going to link the full interview in the show notes as well that has been such a success across YouTube and our podcast platforms people really are quite confused as to yeah this is good information and if you've got a coach who's dealing with RIT pagat the guys who literally have 25 35 hours to train per week but how can I apply this as somebody who has all those other Demands a career a family they want to have a social life and Stephen actually does give pointers do that really actionable thing so as I said I'll link that in the in the show notes okay question number two I've been working with my coach for a while and I get that training is supposed to be tough but lately it feels like I'm always exhausted I'm dragging through work skipping social stuff and if I'm honest my love life is taking a his because I'm just too wiped out read between the lines there if you like I hope it's not you WR this question is it is my love life on the is it on the Rocks Anthony I don't know I didn't think so my coach keeps piling on more intensity but I'm starting to wonder if I'm headed for Burnout how do I bring this up without sign sounding like I'm slacking and how do you even know if it's time to back off it sounds like he's pass the point of thinking BAU K be on the horizon I think he's the guy at a storm like some of the symptoms of burnout their persistent fatigue even after resting lack of liido yeah you can add that one in I didn't have that on my go for it decrease performance in workouts I'm not talking about bedroom workouts H lack of motivation and enthusiasm for training mood changes like irritability depression and physical symptoms like increased incidence of injury Disturbed sleep changes an appetite and maybe even throw sadur into the mix on that one he's well and truly there what I want to know though sorry for Bing in Adam why why are you writing into a podcast you are paying your coach and they should be answering these questions for you are I'm just kind of thinking maybe Adam's Maybe overtraining has affected his confidence as well cuz he doesn't feel like he has the guts no but he also has it there like that he doesn't want to feel like he's Wasing out so he does answer that question he doesn't want to lose face with the coach and I can get that as well because I've been the soldier who your 10 intervals are prescribed and you're seven deep and you know it's the wrong thing to do because you're absolutely digging into a hole but you also don't want to lose face because you've built this image of you're someone who compys someone who digs deep so yeah it's a tough balance to get so I can definitely get that but I think I would start by being open and honest with your coach about how you're feeling explain that you're experiencing these symptoms like persistence exhaustion poor love life and that your daily well-being is taking a little bit of a hit and that your daily wellbeing is taking a little bit of a hit and if he's not willing to listen to this stuff I think that's a problem with the relationship between you and your coach I would also lean on secondary data sources so I would look primarily for how you're feeling I think that's the most important one then secondarily you're looking at training Peaks to see what performances are like and you're trying to back that up and get corroboration of that if you can with data from your whoop like heart rate variability sleep are you in unusually stressful time and work that type stuff and having that kind of trifect a picture to paint a more complete textured image rather than just relying on one of those alone I actually kind of liked what you said there about you know owning your own you know you could be pushing yourself a little bit too hard during recessions or almost have this attitude of well man up I should be able to do this because a good coach will look at the numbers and will look at your training stress score but they're also expecting a kind of communication back as well an honest communication back about how you're feeling and how you're coping and all obviously all those because honestly the numbers don't tell you that much like as a coach looking at that stuff in a vacuum it's kind of hard to know like you know you hit this power last week at this heart rate and now you're hitting on the same session the same power but your heart rate's lower it's like you can make certain inferences on that but it's a very incomplete picture unless you're talking to the athlete and the athletes giving you this feedback also you've other stuff that sort of gives you noisier data like parameters are not notoriously accurate it's strain gauges are built into the parameters they're fluctu away based on temperature heart rate again not notoriously accurate it's affected by stress sleep caffeine so when you're making inferences from that sometimes you're making decisions based off bad data so you need to marry that with the client's subjective feedback on how they're feeling yeah know I totally agree Adam I think texture coach tonight tell them that you can no longer get it up and you need to change your training strategy okay next question I've heard a lot in the past about train low race High when it comes to carb take but I'm not sure how to actually implement it is there a right a right way to use low carb training without completely wrecking my energy levels how often should I do these sessions and what's the best way to make sure it doesn't mess with my performance on hard days and that's from Andy I don't think you should do them at all I think you're starting to play with something that's very very complicated and it's that saying of like don't start majoring in the minor things people start talking about using ketones on fasted rids and you're like do the stuff first the foundational stuff and then if you want to play around with really Advanced strategies to try and eek out an extra point1 performance do so but also know there's a cost and benefit analysis to that like the idea it typically involves training with lower glycogen stores it's like training before breakfast or something to enhance fat oxid I'll try that one again fat oxidation and metabolic efficiency then racing or doing your higher intensity workouts later in the week you hit full glycogen stores by Fuel and properly however that meod is quite challenging because it's going to really affect your energy levels and your training quality so if you think about going into a training session suboptimally fueled you're not you're not performing as you could during the session so then the adaptations you could get from that session aren't as great so you're looking to trade off one adaptation against another you're looking to improve your metabolic flexibility and using different substrates as a fuel source but the downside of that is you're not getting the full adaptation from the session I don't think that's an equal trade I think you're much better off having the full adaptation from the session rather than trying to work on metabolic flexibility unless you're a world to Rider doing this under the guidance of a world tour coach who really knows how to optimize this stuff because and sorry I won't the last point on this carbs and glycogen stores they also really affect our recovery like carbs are aren't just about fueling your workout they're also about recovering from your workout so you can lay a foundation for the next day so carbs post training that helps replenish muscle glycogen stores it facilitates faster recovery and preparation for that subsequent session like we said so I would say don't play with it yeah I totally agree I actually thought that the train low race High ethos was almost an old school way of thinking and now that we have better understanding about fueling and the fact that we do need to actually Fe exactly what you said feed our bodies in order to fuel sessions and fuel recovery that's kind of the new way even the world tour Riders are are doing at the moment yeah interesting and I'd love to guess you know Sam MP David Dawn the guys who are leading nutrition in the world tour space onto the podcast to talk about this but chat with Yuri Carlson who is again brilliant nutritionist in the last couple of weeks yeah you can use that what did you call it train High race low like I think that term is dead but what's not really dead is this idea of like macro loading different amounts on different days you're naturally going to be taking on a lot more carbohydrates because you have a higher fueling Demand on hard days on long days than you are on recovery days so if you want to call that train High race low or the inverse of that like you you could maybe because it is a a softer version of that I think naturally if you're fueling correctly you're going to be taking on less carbohydrates on your easier days well on my easier rides even I don't eat as many carbs per hour than I would on a high intensity exactly that was my point I don't completely skimp on carbs or not eat on my ride so it is very interesting and I think if you do want to play around with it is definitely worth looking into getting uh you know professional on your side because it as you said it's super super complicated Roan are you ready for the world's greatest cycling show roller live is back and it is bigger than ever it's taking place in the iconic Truman Brewery in London from November 14th to November 16th roller alive brings cycling culture to life like never before with over 80 of top cycling brands in the world and a star studded lineup it's the ultimate event for cycling fans cyclists and anyone who just lives and breeds life on two wheeles the guest lineup it's insane cycling royalty like Tom pitock casan Numa Luke row laa Morton and even the legend Mr Greg leemon they'll be live on stage sharing stories insights and giving you a little bit of inspiration this is Roller magazine brought to life it's an epic celebration of the people the products and the passions that Define the sport but folks tickets are going very fast opening day has already sold out there's limited tickets left for the Friday and Saturday and if you're looking for an extra special experience consider upgrading to a VIP pass to get exclusive access to the private Lounge which has Artisan food and drink guaranteed stage seating and meet and greet with the star studed speakers now here's an amazing deal for our roadman listeners you're going to get 10% off your ticket purchase price when you use the exclusive code roadman 10 when you're checking out that's r a m an10 head over to roller.

Why Tire Pressure Gauges Matter

CC /live for all the details and to book your ticket now don't miss out on the cycling event of the Year I'll be there so make sure you come and say hello okay next question one of the lads on the spin has an electric tire pressure gauge and swears by it now I know that track pumps and hand pumps aren't totally accurate they can be plus or minus 5 PSI but surely that won't make that much of a difference or am I missing a trick here I'm going to answer that question but I also want to tell you a story cuz this happened me today and I haven't even told you yet I was out training today with one of my training Partners Roan Lads yanes and we came across a guy on the hill who was punctured didn't know what he was doing L us hurt so we stopped and we're like are you okay and he's like I have this canister it was like a zal tubless sealant and CO2 all- in one canister he's like I'm trying to fix it with this but it's not working he wasn't on tubless tires he was on Clincher tires these only work with tubless and we're like did you put a new chw bin he's like no he didn't put a new chw bin so we kind of had a look at each other like hurry for time yeah I'm good I'm good we'll change it for him so we changed it for him actually like a Formula One Pit Stop both of us were at it like CO2 can two of pull entire Le off fast three four minutes but as we were getting ready to go off and we were putting this wheel back on he's like what I do with this tube and I said put it in your pocket and he looked around he's like Asher no one's looking and he threw it into the field didn't and then the Ze Alan he said what will I do with this Johanna said put it in your pocket and he threw it into the field he didn't I actually feel sick bring your tubes home with you did you say to him no he was like 70y old man like but don't care so something simen all the way up the hill after something similar kind of happened to me in the Phoenix Park our most beautiful Park in Dublin I was riding my bike through it out on kind of the little trails and there was a couple of people running and one of the girls took a Jal and just chucked it and I was like put that in your pocket and in furnace the rest of her group kind of turned on her and we like yeah no she's right you need to put that in your pocket but the absolute audacity of people to just choke their rubbish yeah I last year in Ross Moon that took a gel wrapper out and I said to him like put that he drew it and I was like put it back in your pocket he's like my hands are too cold I like how did you get it out of your pocket oh oh that just that really grinds my gears so much anyway let's answer this question electric we got we got sidetracked electric tire pressure gauge Anthony do you think that it's worth it those tiny gains or you know differences plus or minus by by four or five that you get from your track pump I don't know the the underlying PR uh like theory in this is that the electric pump is totally accurate I don't know if that's true but the tire pressure no he he bought it his friend has an electric tire pressure G sorry it was like one of those electric pumps so and his friend is obviously testing the gauge and making sure that it's like very spe gauges I I need one of them i' be down with them it does make a difference like correct tire pressure can affect rolling resistance it can affect Comfort it can affect traction that's going to improve the quality of your ride and potentially get you home without crashing I um as everyone have heard me on the podcast mentioned 25,000 times broke my ribs about eight weeks and four days ago BR your ribs but I largely put that down to tire pressure I punctured on the run on the mountain bike just before that four people looking at me changing the puncture treated them that I didn't know super well and I'm like oh I'm holding everything up I'm holding everything up changed the puncture went from tubless to putting a tube in blew it up with a CO2 can had way too much pressure in it next corner literally slid out but I totally get it for gravel I totally get it for mountain biking but is that tiny little inaccuracies what you're your your foot pump you know your track pump or your hand pump are they really going to make a huge difference on the road like for casual riding I think a few PSI over a few PSI under mightn't be noticeable mightn't be the end of the world if you're going railing a load of Corners in mior I think it is important for competitive cycling like if you're going racing or if you're even doing a super hard group ride I think small variations can make a difference also on that you need to be pumping your tires at the ambient pressure if you're pumping your tires in the house and then you're going riding in a temperature that's like 20° cooler that's going to have an effect on your tire pressure as well a lot of people don't know that yeah which could be as much if not more than the variation he's talking about here yeah so tire pressure gauge you think it's a good idea even for RO for I was going to say a stocking filler for Anthony we doing Christmas gift guide soon yeah absolutely Ro man I'm going to date myself here but I've been riding the bike for almost 20 years and in that time I've cycled through every cycling apparel brand out there and I kept swapping out different apparel Brands each season until I found lall there's something really different about lall and as soon as you slip into the gear you notice it feels different it feels better I've had the pleasure of chatting with yanto Barker on the podcast he's the laal founder and his dedication to crafting the fastest most refined cycling apparel out there it's nothing short of inspir ing yanto isn't just trying to create gear I get the feeling he's actively and obsessively trying to perfect cycling gear trust me as soon as you slip on the lall kit as soon as you zip up that Jersey you can feel that commitment the proof for lall it's in the pudding this is the same kit Jay hindley wore when he clinched overall victory in the jir Natalia there's a confidence that comes with wearing apparel that's been battle tested and Podium proven in races like this year to tellal you trust me feeling good on the bike means you're going to perform better if you have a second I highly advise you to jump on over to lol.

Cycling Fashion Faux Pas

CCC and check out their amazing range of K and experience this feeling for yourself okay next question Sarah I know you love EA questions so here's one I've been wondering about I love seeing New Riders get into the sport but I've noticed some interesting fashion choices out there like the guy who showed up in Jim shorts over his bib shorts Anthony you have done that in the past or the one where his sunglasses are under his helmet stri straps oh my God I'm clutching my pearls here here at these cycling faux paw that shouldn't really be important am I just being old scho or is there a point where someone should step in and offer a friendly style tip what's the eate and giving newbies a little fashion guidance I kind of feel this is like the guy talking about trying to play around with metabolic efficiency gains versus just focusing on like what actually matters and training hard and sleeping well like some stuff should really matter and the traditions of cycling are important and should be respected and some traditions are really worth preserving but others are just kind of a bit Goofy and sometimes maybe act as an exclusionary barrier into the sport I think if someone wants to show up and wear jean shorts amazing let him go and show up and wear jean shorts you probably won't do it the second time R Badlands and a pair of jean shorts and sandals he he's got a pretty hardcore undercarriage that would say after many years on the bike like the stuff that matters isn't how someone dresses it's very very far down the list like can't someone be we ched last week at lent about the group ride can you slot in and Be an Effective part of the group ride can you go around a corner out losing your line can you stand without pushing your bike back can you eat on the bike can you put your rain cape on on the move without Riders around you can you descend confidently these are the main skills and yeah there's definitely value in dressing well it's functional like you said you get less abration or you're going to be able to ride longer because you're riding comfortable well don't get stuck thinking that's the most important thing all that other stuff is much much more important and then the dress and right will come like make people in the group feel welcome teach them the important stuff first and then that stuff can come they figure that out yeah so I have to say I totally disagree with you Anthony as somebody who came to the sport late and went in rocked up as and didn't know anything never looked cool was doing everything wrong and stuck out like a sore thumb and I had you guiding me and you know saying to me quite openly because you know we're in a relationship telling me the dos and don'ts of what to do and how to kind of look a little bit cooler what to wear What Not to Wear and I appreciated that and I think that newbies don't want to be going to a group and doing things wrong even if it is those really stupid things like the glasses on the inside or the outside of the helmet strap you know that's just stupid you know I get it but it's just it's it's just one of those tiny little things that will make you stand out as a newbie or somebody who's not really in the group and personally it's kind of like if you take up running you go to a running group you don't want to be the one that looks like a newbie you don't want to be the one that's jogging at the at the you know when the light is red for you you want to fit in so and I think that that's important with this podcast is well that we don't kind of say oh don't worry about that you'll be fine you'll pick it all up eventually I think as somebody who's new or to cycling I like to hear those little tips and tricks will will age the problem is that cycling is expensive yes and we're not trying to erect more barriers to participating in it so it becomes this white middle-aged dude sport anyone can write a bike any size any race anyone can jump in on their local group ride because the currency it's not how you dress you can go to school wearing the goofiest uniform if you're the best in the class at math you're the best in the class at math that's the currency that matters it's the same in cycling the currency that matters is Talent it's skill it's Fitness level there are the currencies that matter not can you dress a lot of people aren't coming into cycling in a group or into cycling to go and win races to be at the front of a big long sportif they're coming in to find Community likeminded people and to fit in where they may have never had a group to fit in with before so I think these like really tiny little details I think uh the person who wrote into this I think there are ways of saying these things to people you don't have to be totally abrupt and mean just kind of teach them and say oh look at Anthony Anthony wears his bibs or his spending then we'll say like if you are spending like there's cooler stuff to spend on like you cannot look like an idiot but I don't I don't know I don't like the idea of a wreck and the barrier that you have to spend to be is grp yeah I don't think it's about spending it's just like as I said the under the the glasses under the helmet strap is a good good example he already has the glasses but he's wearing them kind of wrong so point it out just say it to him it's fine if he's dropping it like you need to be shutting up no one wants to get advice from someone's getting dropped we are so excited to announce that we are partnering with whoop whoop are changing the game when it comes to wearable technology and health monitoring whoop is a wearable health and fitness coach that provides you with feedback and actionable insights into your sleep your recovery your training your stress and your overall health Sarah and I have been using [ __ ] for years and we love the insights it provides into our body's inner workings it really gives us a look under the hood and you're going to see Matthew vanderp Paul Richard carass and other Elite level cyclist wearing whoop but it isn't just for those Superstars all the data is personalized to your unique physiology and fitness levels if you're interested in taking control of your health and your Fitness so that you can excel in all aspects of your life you have to go and check out whoop go to the URL now which is join.

Scary Van Attack On Rider

Woop.com for/ roadman I'm going to pop that in the description below and you're going to get a fre month's access to whoop membership on me I promise you won't regret just before we move on to the next question I wanted to mention something really frightening that happened to one of the I'm going to call her a road man she comes out on the ride very frequently and really kind of sticks in with the L she's very much girl be and uh she's one of the strongest girls I've ever ever rid with she's very uh you know proficient she was out riding with a friend and a white van rode up beside her at speed and smacked her across the ass and she said that it was so hard the smack was so hard that she felt like she had been hit by a car or something and she turned around looked into the car and this these two guys were just laughing at her and she was so close to the van that hit her the got you know that drove by her that as she turned around her glasses actually that were in her helmet hit against the van she took a massive wobble and because she's an experienced rider she managed to lean onto the van managed stayed like that for a couple of seconds man got another wobble turned into her friend who was riding on her left and they both managed to keep the bike up thank God because if they didn't one or both of them would have gone under the van and potentially could have had life-threatening lifechanging or maybe have died in that accident and that's just part that's just one instance that we're hearing I've actually heard of women being smacked on the ass before as they're out riding by cars that are going by and only fair I believe that the two um these two Riders were really proficient Riders that they managed to keep their bikes up this could have been so so much worse it's frightening the [ __ ] that that happens to but it just shows you how exposed you yeah it really is I just wanted to highlight that and just as a very very scary thing too so yeah let's all just kind ofoo say thank you to the cycling guards for keeping those two women safe okay next question I'm pretty new to cycling but totally hooked and thinking about upgrading my wheels I have a really nice track but just have the bog standard wheels that came with it I keep hearing about de deep section rims carbon versus alloy and all these different options what should a beginner look for in Wheels do the fancy ones actually make a difference or are they just for the pros no definitely not just for the pros I even caution to say that he has BG standard wheels at the moment it might be worth doing a bit of research to see what Wheels he does have because a lot of bikes are coming with pretty good wheels these days Carbon wheels are lighter they're stiffer they're going to provide better performance in terms of speed in a straight line or acceleration it's going to be easier to get them going they're brilliant for racing they climb a little bit better because they're light remember getting my first set of carbon wheels sh out to Reynolds they were Reynolds DV ultra light wheels I absolutely bust all my savings I'm probably a bank loan to get them they're at ,200 Euro crazy expensive but I noticed a huge difference on them 15 years ago yeah yeah that's crazy money they I noticed a huge difference going from Alloy rims to them and I still do I don't ride Alloy rims tring told at all really anymore you can literally feel it in the rolling resistance and how quickly goes or the handling or cornering or what is it if you think about the because the rim is typically a bit deeper so without getting too Nery then at different yaw angles which is the direction the wind's coming in at that extra depth of the rim is going to act similar to a sale those and it's going to propel you forward so it gives you a little bit more free speed Allo rims are generally more durable they're generally more affordable and they're a good like Workhorse wheel like you could use them up not too long ago a lot of World Tour teams were using like an open Pro rim on a really cool H for the classics and because it wasn't thought that you could ride rub on something that was made of carbon thought it just break the pieces like I'm really eager I said of Chris King hubs that are really nice and I'm really eager to get them built up fore you in cuz they're Rim break my bike's not Rim bre anymore to get them built up with an open Pro Rim cuz that would have been a wheel that someone would have used for rub Bay only you know 10 years ago it's so there're still I wouldn't totally discount alloy wheels I think they still have a place on that point um this listener maybe should would you recommend that he uses his standard wheels that he has at the moment which potentially are Alloy for winter and wait until summer that's not as big a thing as it used to be I I still like that idea I don't do it personally but you would have never trained on your race wheels a few years ago what kind of changed that is disc brakes because you don't have the wear from the rims anymore so that's kind of changed and we're not seeing the same it was kind of a more mental it'd be more of a mental kind of you know boost putting new wheels on for race race day I think yeah I think typically Carbon wheels are a little bit lighter as well which if someone is trying to climb that matters I don't don't know how you'd have to get a little bit geeky on I'm not sure like if a static I always thought a rotating weight was more of a penalty than a static weight like if you had a wheel that was 1.5 kg you'd be better off having a 500 gram save and there than having a 500 gram saving on your weight of your saddle SE combo because it's moving every single time around the same theory for pedals and wheels but I think the best thing to do is actually just get a lend of a set of carbon rims off one of your friend and ride them because there's a few drawbacks if you're a really light rider having the deeper Rim is going to catch Crosswinds and a feels pretty unstable one of the girls who doesn't come out so often because she lives abroad had carbon rims and had to get rid of them just couldn't handle them now she's super light so 50 kgs so that is something to keep keep in mind isn't it because they are can be a little bit tough to handle we're we obviously live Coastal so we're we're subject to Wi a lot of wind but it is something like this this person's new to cycling as well so it can be if if you know can be a handling issue on those high wind days we definitely see it in our group right a couple of people have those very deep dish carbon especially if you're on time TR bik like you're around the disc and the Deep section front wheel uh it can be problematic and ends up like a sale but I think that's uh we've come to the end of another week sah ran thank you for tuning in to another episode of rer support if you want to check out another episode I'm going to leave one up here which I know you'll love and please don't forget to subscribe to the channel the bigger the channel gets the bigger the guests can get see you soon

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I combine Zone 2 and high intensity training in the same week?+

Structure your week around four training days rather than spreading thin sessions across every day. A practical split is one three-hour Zone 2 endurance ride, one two-hour endurance ride, and two shorter high-intensity sessions, following the 80/20 framework popularised by Professor Stephen Seiler.

How many hours a week should a cyclist train for best results?+

Around eight hours per week is enough to produce meaningful adaptation if those hours are structured correctly. Consolidating your training into fewer, longer sessions produces better results than spreading the same total hours across daily short rides.

Is frequency or duration more important in a cycling training programme?+

Duration is more important than frequency. Frequency is the least significant of the three training levers alongside intensity and duration, so it is better to take full rest days and protect your longer sessions than to ride briefly every day at low quality.

How do I avoid burnout when training for cycling with a busy schedule?+

Take proper rest days rather than filling every available slot with low-quality riding. Consolidating your training hours into fewer, higher-quality sessions reduces accumulated fatigue and makes each ride more productive, which is especially important for cyclists balancing training with work and family commitments.

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

Weekly insights from the podcast. The stuff that actually makes you faster.

READ THE GUIDE

The written companion to this episode.

Cycling Training Plans for the Comeback Rider

Six months off. A year off. Longer. Here's the 12-week structure that rebuilds cycling fitness from a realistic starting point — without the…

Altitude Training for Cyclists: Does Live High Train Low Actually Work?

Pro teams spend thousands on altitude camps. But does altitude training actually work for amateur cyclists? The answer is nuanced — and depe…

Cycling Training with a Full-Time Job: How to Get Faster on Limited Time

You have a job, a family, and maybe 8 hours a week to train. Here's how to make every single one of those hours count.

FREE TRAINING PLANS

BADLANDS →

RELATED EPISODES

More episodes you might enjoy

Episode#2392

Coaching28:17

HOW PRO CYCLISTS BOOST THEIR PERFORMANCE WITH THIS MAGIC DRINK | RIDER SUPPORT

Are you over trained? What are the signs? What are the most comfortable cycling shoes and THAT performance enhancing drink the pros swear by ... and it's backed up in science!

with Rider Support

Episode#2360

Coaching35:18

HOW TO MAKE CYCLING FEEL EASIER? | RIDER SUPPORT

In this episode, we dive into the strategies and tips that can help you make cycling feel easier, whether you’re tackling long rides, hard climbs, or just aiming for more enjoyable daily training. We cover everything from optimizing your bike setup to improving your fitness, efficiency, and mindset...

with Rider Support

Episode#2362

Community22:05

IS COLNAGO DEAD? |RIDER SUPPORT

Is the new Colnago cool or has it lost its way? We’re diving into the brand’s shift from its artisanal roots and legendary racing heritage. Then, we tackle efficiency on group rides—sprint back to the pack or pace yourself?

with Rider Support

WANT THIS APPLIED TO YOUR TRAINING?

The Not Done Yet coaching community is 1:1 personalised coaching — training, nutrition, strength, recovery, and accountability. $195/month. 7-day free trial.

Apply Now — 7-Day Free Trial See Coaching Options

Key Takeaways

With limited training time, prioritize duration over frequency—do fewer, longer sessions (like a 3-hour ride) rather than spreading thin across five short days. One long ride unlocks adaptations that multiple short rides can't match.

If you're exhausted, dragging through work, and losing motivation, communicate openly with your coach. Use subjective feedback (how you feel) alongside objective data (heart rate, sleep, performance) to paint a complete picture of your recovery.

Train low strategies trade off one adaptation (metabolic flexibility) for another (full training quality). Unless you're a WorldTour rider with a professional nutrition coach, consistent fueling and proper recovery matter far more than chasing these marginal gains.

Tire pressure accuracy matters more than most realize—small variations affect rolling resistance, comfort, and traction, especially in racing or hard group rides. Consider an electric gauge if you're serious about consistency across temperature changes.

Don't gatekeep cycling with style rules. Welcome new riders and teach them the skills that matter—cornering, descending, eating on the bike—then let them naturally pick up fashion sense. The currency in cycling is fitness and skill, not how you dress.

Expert Quotes

"Duration is a powerful signal. The difference between a one-hour ride and a two-hour ride and a three-hour ride—a lot happens in that third hour."

"The idea of train low race high is quite challenging because it's going to really affect your energy levels and your training quality. You're not performing as you could during the session so the adaptations you could get from that session aren't as great."

"I don't like the idea of a barrier that you have to spend to be in the group. The currency that matters is talent, it's skill, it's fitness level—not can you dress."

KEY QUOTES

“the difference between a 1hour ride and a 2hour ride and a three-hour ride a lot happens in that third hour”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

“rest days have never been backed up in the data to be beneficial if you need a rest day you take the day off and that's really good news for someone whose time crunched”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

“carbs aren't just about fueling your workout they're also about recovering from your workout so you can lay a foundation for the next day so carbs post training that helps replenish muscle glycogen stores it facilitates faster recovery and preparation for that subsequent session”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I combine Zone 2 and high intensity training in the same week?+

How many hours a week should a cyclist train for best results?+

Is frequency or duration more important in a cycling training programme?+

How do I avoid burnout when training for cycling with a busy schedule?+

HOW TO COMBINE ZONE 2 WITH HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING | RIDER SUPPORT

Key Takeaways

Expert Quotes

KEY QUOTES

Applying 80/20 With Eight Hours

Why Tire Pressure Gauges Matter

Cycling Fashion Faux Pas

Scary Van Attack On Rider

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

HOW PRO CYCLISTS BOOST THEIR PERFORMANCE WITH THIS MAGIC DRINK | RIDER SUPPORT

HOW TO MAKE CYCLING FEEL EASIER? | RIDER SUPPORT

IS COLNAGO DEAD? |RIDER SUPPORT

RELATED CONTENT

TEAM VISMA’S NEW SECRET TRAINING TECH THE UCI MIGHT BAN

13 YEARS OF COACHING PROS: WHAT AMATEURS DON'T KNOW

ALEX WILD OPENS UP ON POWER & RIVALS AT SEA OTTER 2025

WANT THIS APPLIED TO YOUR TRAINING?

HOW TO COMBINE ZONE 2 WITH HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING | RIDER SUPPORT

Key Takeaways

Expert Quotes

KEY QUOTES

Applying 80/20 With Eight Hours

Why Tire Pressure Gauges Matter

Cycling Fashion Faux Pas

Scary Van Attack On Rider

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

HOW PRO CYCLISTS BOOST THEIR PERFORMANCE WITH THIS MAGIC DRINK | RIDER SUPPORT

HOW TO MAKE CYCLING FEEL EASIER? | RIDER SUPPORT

IS COLNAGO DEAD? |RIDER SUPPORT

RELATED CONTENT

TEAM VISMA’S NEW SECRET TRAINING TECH THE UCI MIGHT BAN

13 YEARS OF COACHING PROS: WHAT AMATEURS DON'T KNOW

ALEX WILD OPENS UP ON POWER & RIVALS AT SEA OTTER 2025

WANT THIS APPLIED TO YOUR TRAINING?