Cyclist
Start strong: 14 New Year’s resolutions for cyclists in 2024
1. Think small
First, the bad news. ‘New Year’s resolutions don’t work,’ says bike fit guru and former British Cycling physio Phil Burt. ‘Research strongly shows that trying to make big changes inevitably ends in failure.’
But there is something you can do. ‘Aim instead for small, incremental changes within a sensible plan. So identify the goal, work a plan out of how to get there with sensible changes, and implement it. I’d apply this to my world of bike fit but also almost any aspect of weight loss or performance improvement in cycling.’
2. Work on your cadence
‘What you do this winter can really make or break your year,’ says Hunter Allen, founder and CEO of Peaks Coaching Group (peakscoachinggroup.com). ‘There are some vital components to creating a good winter training programme, and one of them is using a power meter for focussed workouts using wattage and cadence.’
‘Higher-cadence workouts help to maintain your ability to quickly contract and relax your muscles, and enhance that critical ability to quickly change your cadence. One of my favourites is simply one-minute fast-pedalling intervals, where you pedal over 110rpm for one minute, then return to your normal cadence for a minute, and repeat.
‘Then, lower-cadence workouts enhance your muscular strength, which can help you to sprint and climb. Muscular strength workouts are based around short, hard intervals in the biggest gear you can manage at a low rpm.’
- Read our feature on road and gravel bike bike pedalling technique
3. Be consistent
‘Consistency is key because the amount of training you do is the most important aspect of training,’ says coach Ric Stern (cyclecoach.com). If you’ve got four days a week to train, set a goal to hit three of those days each week.
‘It can be really hard to maintain high levels of training consistency, so taking a more relaxed approach will ensure you see better gains – rather than being upset because you missed a session and then overcompensating to make up lost ground.’
4. Be gentle
‘Just doing endurance training will only get you so far. If you really want to improve you’ll need to include some intensity in your training – once a week is enough,’ adds Stern.
‘But this can be mentally and physically draining, so accept that sometimes it can be better to miss that über-hard training session and just ride easy. Everyone needs an easy day and there’s no point hurting yourself.’
5. Book a cycling holiday
‘Making plans for spring can keep you on the bike in winter,’ says sports psychologist Andy Lane. ‘Booking a holiday gives you motivation to train so you get more out of it, and by extension you can use the holiday as part of your training for a race or event.
‘We know having something to look forward to is a good enhancing strategy, and in this case it serves to change your internal narrative so the voice in your head will say, “Get on the bike so you’re fit for the holiday.”’
- Find your next riding destination at our rides hub
6. Try sweet spot training
‘The second type of training that I prescribe to my athletes in the winter is called “sweet spot” training,’ says Allen. ‘When you ride just below your functional threshold power (FTP) – at approximately 88-93% of your FTP – you are said to be riding in your sweet spot.
‘The level of physiological strain – read: pain – is relatively low, while the time you can stay in this area is quite high. Your increase in FTP is greatest when training in this area, so it gives you the most bang for your buck without causing you to peak in January.
7. Book a bike fit
‘This will help to refine your position on the bike, and also analyse any weaknesses or imbalances in your riding style and pedal stroke,’ says Stern.
‘A lot of people ride with their knees stuck out, their bodies upright and their necks sore. Working on these issues in winter will make you a far better cyclist by the summer.
‘When it comes to pedalling, what was once thought correct – trying to apply an even force around the whole pedal stroke – we now know is wrong.
‘Evidence shows us that better cyclists tend to stomp down more and pull up less, when you actually measure the forces using force-sensing pedals. Less efficient cyclists tend to pull up more.’
8. Take up yoga
‘Cycling is horrible for posture and yoga or pilates can stretch out the muscles, cure aches and pains, and teach you how to move properly again,’ says coach Will Newton.
‘I’d actually say develop a movement practice, which could include yoga and/or pilates. It’s worth seeing a specialist who can assess what you need, teach you relevant moves and devise a programme that suits you, rather than going to a class where everyone does the same thing.
‘The key is to develop and maintain mobility, motor control and stability – all of which are great for the nervous system as well as posture.’
9. Get the right kit
‘If you didn’t get a load of new cycling kit for Christmas, treat yourself,’ says Lane. ‘Buy stuff that will keep you warm and dry so you don’t mothball the bike when the weather turns iffy.
‘Get things that will address your worst cycling fears – mine is to puncture in the rain and cold, so I use robust winter tyres with sealant in the inner tubes. I have mudguards, warm clothes and overshoes.
‘Get kit that you want to ride in – what you’re trying to do is load in your favour so that you want to go out. Then it’s more likely you will act on your good intentions.’
10. Lock in priority events
‘Take time to look at this year’s race calendar and think about all the races or events you did, which ones you want to do next year and which races are your top priorities,’ says Allen. ‘I would suggest you also make sure there are plenty of races around that “A” race, so you’ll be able to take advantage of your peak fitness.’
11. Schedule six-week tests
‘Every six weeks, you should do the “Power Profile” test, which tests your best efforts at five seconds, one minute, five minutes and 20 minutes,’ says Allen.
‘Each of these relate to different energy systems in the body – neuromuscular power, anaerobic capacity, V02 max and Functional Threshold Power (FTP) – and will change at different times and also in relation to each other. This makes it critical that you test them on a regular basis.
‘Understanding your strengths and weaknesses determines the type of training that you will be doing within each two to three-week period, and also will help you determine if your weakness is a barrier to success.’
‘If you’ve never had an objective assessment of your riding position, maybe it’s time to invest in one,’ says Burt. ‘Most people invest at the point of injury, pain, discomfort or underperformance, so get proactive for the year ahead and understand what’s sub-optimal about your setup.
‘Even if it’s nothing or relatively little, at least you will know. More often than not you’re working around something in your setup that can be a handbrake in terms of performance.’
12. Don’t diet!
‘Even if you’ve put on weight, eat what’s normal for you and lose weight gradually,’ says Newton. ‘Fuel your rides and don’t starve yourself or you’ll end up shattered and avoiding time on the bike.
‘Do sort out your nutrition and take control of what you eat. Most people have no clue and are shocked when they actually record what they eat.
‘Ten years ago counting calories was hard work, but now it’s a lot easier. A lot of people suffer with creeping weight gain, but middle-aged spread is not normal. Being skinny-fat is not normal.
‘People accept it – even cyclists and other active people – but there’s no reason why we should get bigger as we get older.
‘You need to embed habits that will support you for the next 25 years. So “dieting” should be planning what your nutrition should look like, and not putting on weight in the first place.’
13. Buy a diary
‘Use a diary to keep a training log,’ says Lane. ‘It’s old-school, but combined with modern tech it can help you track improvements, which is great for motivation. The process of recording means you start to reflect on training and evaluate what went well or what didn’t.
Riding hard into the wind might mean you rode slowly, but it might mean you rode at a high heart rate in a lactic swamp with icy wind in your face and you maintained a determined effort. You can tick this off as a mental toughness-building session. Developing self-awareness will help you set realistic and challenging goals.’
14. Enjoy it
‘Make sure you have fun and build in regular easy weeks or multiple easy days,’ says Stern. ‘Fun differs for everyone – it could be descending at speed, going off-road or doing a big ride – but make sure that you do whatever it is you enjoy most about cycling.’
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