I have been competing in endurance sports since I was 9 years old, and as my life progressed so have my goals and motivations. This is perfectly normal, of course, but it’s relevant to your journey in sport because some athletes get stuck in a rut, pursuing the same goals at the same events …
By Mara Abbott, Olympian and CTS Contributing Editor Two weeks ago my farmers market co-worker, Max, made a terrible mistake. He made some off-hand comment about not eating breakfast. Max works in the fields on the farm all day, yet somehow, “I am not really hungry for lunch, either.” I noted, in no uncertain terms, …
By Chris Carmichael CEO/Head Coach of CTS Increasing your activity level and weekly training hours leads to a lot of positive changes in your fitness and health, but many athletes notice some effects that are not as pleasant. When you exercise more, you need to consume enough energy to support your workouts and activities of …
By Syd Schulz CTS Athlete and MTB Pro I’ve learned a lot about being an athlete through meditation. Or rather, I’ve learned a lot about being an athlete through the process of failing and succeeding and failing and succeeding to cultivate a daily meditation practice over the past two years. I’ve learned to let go …
At some point during the process of coaching an ultramarathon runner, the subject of weight vests invariably comes up. More generally, the question is whether adding external resistance is beneficial for improving ultramarathon performance. Natural Resistance Running up and down hills is the most common and sport-specific way runners add resistance and build leg …
By Chris Carmichael CEO/Head Coach of CTS One of the most persistent questions throughout the 2018 Tour de France was: ‘Who is the leader of Team Sky?’ It is not that uncommon for a team to bring more than one rider capable of challenging for the yellow jersey, but it is uncommon for both general …
By Chris Carmichael CEO and Head Coach of CTS The Tour de France tried something new this year, in the form of two very short, very hard mountain stages, both ending with summit finishes. The first was Stage 11 in the Alps, a 108-kilometer race with four categorized climbs and virtually no flat valley roads. …
By Jason Koop Author “Training Essentials for Ultrarunning” Columnist for “Ultrarunning Magazine” Ultrarunners inherently understand there’s a difference between the mechanics of running uphill and running downhill. When you look deeper into the biomechanics of ultrarunning, it is apparent there are really four distinct disciplines within the sport: uphill running, downhill running, flat running, …
In the real world, whether you are riding uphill on paved or gravel roads, mountain bike trails, or in a triathlon, you have to have more than one speed. As much as I love power meters and training with power, an unfortunate side effect is that many athletes focus so intently on improving sustainable …
By Mara Abbott 2010, 2013 Giro Rosa Champion Olympian CTS Contributing Editor In July, the world’s cycling fans multiply. The phrase “yellow jersey” is bandied around in public. Here in the United States, you might even hear someone say “kilometers”. July is why I love cycling too, but my Tour de France watching habits are …