Friel - The cyclists training bible: the worlds most comprehensive training guide

PRAISE FOR JOE FRIEL AND
THE CYCLISTS TRAINING BIBLE

Joe Friel is arguably the most experienced personal cycling coach in the U.S., and his book The Cyclists Training Bible has become, well... the Bible of the sport.

BICYCLING

Joe Friel is one of the worlds foremost experts on endurance sports.

OUTSIDE

The Cyclists Training Bible will have you systematically training just as world-class cyclists do. If you scrupulously follow its guidelines, Im confident your racing performance will dramatically improve.

TUDOR BOMPA, PHD

To say that Joe Friel knows a thing or two about how to ride a bicycle and stay fast would be a severe understatement.

ROAD BIKE ACTION

I find Friels book a treasure of information for cyclists of all levels.

ANDY HAMPSTEN, 1988 GIRO DITALIA WINNER, 1992 TOUR DE FRANCE STAGE WINNER AT ALPE DHUEZ

Nothing else comes close to The Cyclists Training Bibles comprehensive approach to planning out a season, creating a training schedule, and incorporating diet and resistance training to an overall plan.

BIKERUMOR.COM

Packed with worksheets, charts, visuals, and a dense index and references for further reading, The Cyclists Training Bible is an arsenal of encyclopedic information for ambitious riders.

DAILYPELOTON.COM

The Cyclists Training Bible has become a cyclists best chance at achieving their goals. This is the ultimate manual for growth as a cyclist.

BICYCLESMILE.COM

Copyright 2018 by Joe Friel

All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America by VeloPress, a division of Pocket Outdoor Media, LLC

3002 Sterling Circle, Suite 100

Boulder, CO 803012338 USA

VeloPress is the leading publisher of books on endurance sports. Focused on cycling, triathlon, running, swimming, and nutrition/diet, VeloPress books help athletes achieve their goals of going faster and farther. Preview books and contact us at velopress.com.

Distributed in the United States and Canada by Ingram Publisher Services

The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Name: Friel, Joe, author.

Title: The cyclists training bible: the worlds most comprehensive training guide / Joe Friel.

Description: Fifth edition. | Boulder, CO: VeloPress Books, [2018] | Includes bibliographical references and index. |

Identifiers: LCCN 2018002047 (print) | LCCN 2018004222 (ebook) | ISBN 9781948006040 | ISBN 9781937715823 (pbk.: alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: CyclingTraining.

Classification: LCC GV1048 (ebook) | LCC GV1048 .F75 2018 (print) | DDC 796.6dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018002047

Art direction by Vicki Hopewell

Cover photograph by Benjamin H. Kristy / Dominion Cycling Photography

Illustrations by Charlie Layton

Composition by Erin Farrell / Factor E Creative

v. 3.1

A note to readers: Double-tap on figures and tables to enlarge them. After art is selected, you may expand or pinch your fingers to zoom in and out.

To Dirk: My friend, my training partner, my mentor, my pupil, my son

CONTENTS

Table of Contents

The Cyclists Training Bible was the first book I ever wrote. That was more than 20 years ago. My interest at the time didnt lie in selling books. In fact, I figured it would sell only a few copies and within a handful of years would be long gone. My motivation then was to see if I could describe the training philosophy and methodology I had developed over the previous 20 years as an athlete, student, and coach. I never dreamed this book would become the best-selling book on training for cycling, or that it would play a role in changing how so many riders prepare to race.

This latest edition of the all-new Cyclists Training Bible is, indeed, all new. When I decided it was time to rewrite it, I threw away the old manuscript and started with a blank page. The only thing that remains similar is the table of contents.

The project took me a year. Thats partly because the content had nearly doubled in 20 years, from 70,000 to 130,000 words. Whew! But it also took me a year because before writing each chapter, I went back to the research to see exactly what had changed in the past two decades. While that certainly added to the projects writing time, the research was crucial in helping me describe the advanced and updated training concepts youll find here.

Im pleased with how it turned out. But more important, I think youll find it beneficial to your training. Thats been my motivation with every edition.

Writing a book for a broad spectrum of riders is a challenge. I know that some who will read this book are novices who are in their first year in the sport. Everything here will be new for them. Other readers will be intermediates in their second and third years who are still developing their basic fitness and learning about training. Then there will be the advanced riders who have been in the sport for more than three years, who read a previous edition, and who have developed a sound understanding of training and many of its nuances. At the highest level will be elite athletes who have not only been in the sport for several years but also have the ability to perform at a winning level in their race categories. They generally have a deep knowledge of training and sports science.

Regardless of the group you belong to, Ive tried to address your needs. By following the training guidelines proposed here, you will advance to the next level of performance.

In fact, competitive performance is what this book is all about. My hope is that you will learn new ways of training to help you grow as an athlete and see better race results. Of course, I dont suggest that reading this book will magically transform you into a professional Grand Tour rider, but its certainly possible to take your riding to the next level of performance and achieve goals that you previously didnt think were attainable. Ive seen this happen many times with the athletes Ive coached over the years. Im certain you can also do it by applying the principles youll read about in the following chapters.

The purpose of this book is to help you become fitter, ride faster, and achieve high goals. Collectively, these outcomes make up what may be called high performance. Ill use that phrase a lot in the following chapters. I intend it to mean achieving those three outcomesfitness, speed, and goalsbut high performance goes well beyond your results. Its as much an attitude as an indicator of how well you race. In fact, attitude comes before race resultsway before. It is living in a way that makes the achievement of high goals possible: how consistently you train; how disciplined you are about training; what, when, and how much you eat; who you hang out with; how you think about yourself; and much more. A high-performance attitude is a life that is pointed directly at your goal, a goal you relentlessly pursue. will touch on many of these matters.

Attitude and lifestyle, however, play only supporting roles in this book. There are other works by sports psychologists that can help you achieve mental high performance. Our focus is primarily on developing your physical high performance, so after introducing the mental component in , we will get to work on your fitness, form, and plan for success.