The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast by CTS

OVERVIEW
Endurance athletes are accustomed to building Annual Training Plans for the phases of their sport-specific training, but are less familiar with building annual training plans for strength training.  If this is you, Episode 289 of "The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast" features Coach Adam Pulford taking you through the steps of creating and managing your annual strength training plan. He breaks it down for novices/beginners, cyclists who are familiar/experienced in the gym, and athletes who do not have access to gym facilities. He also reveals what not to do in various parts of the season. 
TOPICS COVERED
Three types of strength training for cyclists:Novice/Beginner
Advanced, for Endurance Performance with Gym
Advanced, Endurance Performance, Limited Gym Equipment

Strength training phases with recommended set and rep ranges
Recommended strength exercise categories
Why cyclists shouldn't get stuck in a hypertrophy phase
What not to do when planning strength training as a cyclist

RESOURCES
Podcast Copy - TCC ATP Periodization with Strength Training
Concurrent exercise training: do opposites distract? - PMC 
Community Resource Center | NASM 
Heavy strength training effects on physiological determinants of endurance cyclist performance: a systematic review with meta-analysis
Strength training strategies to improve endurance performance | miun.se
 TCC Episodes on Strength Training: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000587336891
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-time-crunched-cyclist-podcast-by-cts/id1494799053?i=1000509610032
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000728212907

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HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform

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Website: trainright.com
Instagram: @cts_trainright
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OVERVIEW
Annual Training Plans are big-picture, long term plans that map out training phases to bring the athlete into key races, events, or time periods with peak form and freshness, which helps optimize performance. For some, these can be fun to map out, especially if you like spreadsheets and planning. Others find it boring, confusing, time-consuming. Either way, in Episode 288 of "The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast", Coach Adam Pulford takes you through the steps of creating and managing your annual training plan, and also reveals tricks of the trade to speed up the process and avoid common pitfalls.
TOPICS COVERED
Mapping out your annual training plan
Understanding periodization in training
Utilizing TrainingPeaks for planning
Common pitfalls in annual training plans
RESOURCES
Podcast Copy - TCC ATP Periodization Plan
The Comprehensive Guide to Creating an Annual Training Plan | TrainingPeaks
Annual Training Plan Methodologies – TrainingPeaks Help Center
Past Episode Explanations:Episode #46 = Periodization, Training Modalties & Planning https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-time-crunched-cyclist-podcast-by-cts/id1494799053?i=1000514294530  
Episode #212 - SweetSpot vs Polarized Training (and other Modalities) Explained: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000668322894

ASK A QUESTION FOR A FUTURE PODCAST
HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform

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Join our weekly newsletter

CONNECT WITH CTS

Website: trainright.com
Instagram: @cts_trainright
Twitter: @trainright
Facebook: @CTSAthlete

OVERVIEW
The Holidays are just about over and the New Year is about to begin. If you had a ton of fun over the Holidays and you're feeling a bit soft around the middle and bit slower than you'd like, Coach Adam Pulford has some good news! You're fitness didn't disappear and those couple of extra pounds will likely melt away pretty quickly once you get back to normal training. If you've been piling on the miles over the past few weeks, he has some advice for how to start your year, too! All that, and a preview of what to expect in 2026 from CTS!
TOPICS COVERED
Highlights of the 2025 Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcasts
The truth about detraining and weight gain over the holidays
What to do in the New Year if you just completed a big year-end training block
What's changing with The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast for 2026!
RESOURCES
Trainright Membership:https://trainright.com/membership/

Coaching Consults:https://trainright.com/coaching-consultation/#

Detraining Episode:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000632564156

Detraining Articles:https://www.cyclingweekly.com/fitness/the-science-of-detraining-and-retraining

Mental Health Episode(s):https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000555032338
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trainright-podcast/id1494799053?i=1000555032338

About CTS:https://trainright.com/about/

ASK A QUESTION FOR A FUTURE PODCAST
HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform

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Join our weekly newsletter

CONNECT WITH CTS

Website: trainright.com
Instagram: @cts_trainright
Twitter: @trainright
Facebook: @CTSAthlete

OVERVIEW
Anaerobic capacity is the work you can do above your lactate threshold. Another term for it is Functional Reserve Capacity (FRC), and it acts like a battery that contains a finite amount of energy that runs out quickly and must be recharged before a subsequent use. FRC is your high-intensity, explosive power for winning sprints, creating breakaways, closing gaps, and riding competitors off your wheel. In the final episode in this series with WKO Data Leader and Coach Tim Cusick, Tim and CTS Coach Adam Pulford discuss what FRC is, how to train it, the consequences of focusing on FRC (you may have to sacrifice some FTP for it), and therefore when and how much FRC work to incorporate into your training plan.
Topics Covered In This Episode:
Definitions of anaerobic capacity and functional reserve capacity (FRC)
Anaerobic Capacity adaptation from 1-2 weeks of training
Anaerobic Capacity adaptation from 2-5 weeks of training
Why FRC training intensities must be SUPER HARD!
Recommended interval workouts for FRC training
When to incorporate FRC workouts into your training
Resources
Tim at Basecamp: https://www.joinbasecamp.com/tim-cusick 
Tim on IG https://www.instagram.com/tim.cusick_coach/
Stress vs Strain: Difference Between Stress and Strain - GeeksforGeeks https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/physics/difference-between-stress-and-strain/
Guest Bio:
Tim Cusick is a world-class cycling coach, a leader in data analytics for endurance sports, an educator, and an innovative business leader. Tim works with Olympians, world champions, and more, including Amber Neben and Rebecca Rusch. As a data analytics leader, Tim is an acknowledged expert in the field for endurance athletes. He is the TrainingPeaks WKO product leader, 
codeveloper of WKO5, and Instructor: Advanced Training with Data. As an educator, Tim has presented at USA Cycling summits, TrainingPeaks Endurance Summits, TrainingPeaks University, and more. Tim is also the founder of BaseCamp, which is driven by Tim’s philosophy of bringing together the science of data and the art of coaching. His values-based approach focusing on shared vision and team building allows for the construction of dynamic and purposeful organization development.
HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform

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Join our weekly newsletter

CONNECT WITH CTS

Website: trainright.com
Instagram: @cts_trainright
Twitter: @trainright
Facebook: @CTSAthlete

OVERVIEW
VO2 max or maximum aerobic capacity is your performance ceiling, but it is trainable and you can not only increase your VO2 max, but also the power you can produce at VO2 max, how long you can sustain that power, and the amount of work you can accomplish between lactate threshold and VO2 max. In Episode #285 of "The Time-Crunched Cyclist Podcast", coaches Adam Pulford and Basecamp's Tim Cusick discuss how VO2 max training works, the workout specifics necessary to increase VO2 max, and how to turn training into speed for real-world performance. 
Topics Covered In This Episode:
How VO2 max responds to training
The relationship between lactate threshold, FTP, and VO2 max
What to expect after 1-2 weeks of VO2 max training
What to expect after 2-4 weeks and 4-8 weeks of VO2 max training
How to know when you've done enough VO2 max training
VO2 max workout structure: interval duration, total time-in-zone, frequency
Resources
Tim at Basecamp: https://www.joinbasecamp.com/tim-cusick 
Tim on IG https://www.instagram.com/tim.cusick_coach/
Stress vs Strain: Difference Between Stress and Strain - GeeksforGeeks https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/physics/difference-between-stress-and-strain/
Guest Bio:
Tim Cusick is a world-class cycling coach, a leader in data analytics for endurance sports, an educator, and an innovative business leader. Tim works with Olympians, world champions, and more, including Amber Neben and Rebecca Rusch. As a data analytics leader, Tim is an acknowledged expert in the field for endurance athletes. He is the TrainingPeaks WKO product leader, 
codeveloper of WKO5, and Instructor: Advanced Training with Data. As an educator, Tim has presented at USA Cycling summits, TrainingPeaks Endurance Summits, TrainingPeaks University, and more. Tim is also the founder of BaseCamp, which is driven by Tim’s philosophy of bringing together the science of data and the art of coaching. His values-based approach focusing on shared vision and team building allows for the construction of dynamic and purposeful organization development.
HOST
Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform

GET FREE TRAINING CONTENT

Join our weekly newsletter

CONNECT WITH CTS

Website: trainright.com
Instagram: @cts_trainright
Twitter: @trainright
Facebook: @CTSAthlete