Empirical Cycling Podcast Ten Minute Tips #70: Fitness Beyond FTP
Jan 7, 2026
Discover how to elevate your cycling performance beyond just FTP. Coaches dive into the importance of role-specific workouts, durability techniques, and race-specific training. They emphasize the need for practice races and terrain-specific sessions. Unlocking mental readiness and pacing strategies is crucial. Learn about effective nutrition and strength training for ultra-endurance events. The discussion also covers improving sprinting techniques across different disciplines and using gap analysis to personalize training. Practical tips round out this insightful episode.
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Skipped End-Of-Ride Sprints
- Cole recalls training to a practice race then skipping sprints home because he was too tired.
- That illustrates how athletes often skip end-of-ride efforts without race-like fueling and pacing.
Practice Races Built Racing Sense
- Cole used Wells Ave practice races frequently and credits them for making him a better racer.
- Regular practice races helped him learn positioning, tactics, and to manage race nerves.
Extend Threshold Time To Exhaustion
- For ultra events, extend TTE (time-to-exhaustion at threshold) because muscular endurance predicts long-race performance.
- Prioritize longer threshold/tempo durations over last-minute VO2 work when time-crunched.