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Fast Talk

Fast Talk Labswww.fasttalklabs.com
The Fast Talk podcast offers the best guides to cycling performance and endurance sports training from world-class experts. Cohosted by cycling coaches and sport scientists Trevor Connor and Rob Pickels, Fast Talk episodes feature fascinating conversations with world-class experts discussing the endurance sports topics they know best: the best ways to train, effective workouts, questions on polarized and interval training, sports nutrition, physiology and recovery, and sport psychology. Fast Talk guests and regular contributors include Dr. Stephen Seiler, Joe Friel, Dr. Asker Jeukendrup, Sebastian Weber, Jim Miller, Dr. Andy Pruitt, Dr. Timothy Noakes, and elite professional athletes like Kristin Armstrong, Sepp Kuss, Brent Bookwalter, Kate Courtney, and many more. Fast Talk is part of Fast Talk Laboratories, a new endurance sports knowledgebase for endurance racers and adventurers.
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Episodes

57: Trail, rake, and flop — bike design with Lennard Zinn

Today legend of the cycling industry, Lennard Zinn, shares a variety of factors in frame design including: - The concepts of fork rake, head-tube angle & trail - How these factors act together to make the bike more or less stable - The effects of wheel flop and how it impacts your ability to corner - How understanding rake, trail, and flop can have a significant impact on your performance - The evolution of bike design and how it has been influenced by both fashion & performance Learn mo...

Oct 12, 20181 hr 17 minEp. 57

56: The Hour with Colby Pearce

THE HOUR. Those two words represent many things to many people. Some believe it to be the ultimate test of man and machine: out there on the track, with nowhere to hide, an athlete must come to terms with what he or she is truly capable of. In this episode, we sat down with Colby Pearce to dive deep into the Hour. It’s something Case knows all too well, since he too made an attempt in 2015. It’s Hour Record week at Fast Talk. Let’s make you fast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone...

Oct 01, 20181 hr 31 minEp. 56

55: How to win with mind power

Mindset in cycling is an important and frequently neglected side of our training and racing. In reality, mindset is often all that separates the best from second best and can be the difference between reaching the podium or finishing a race. Our primary guest today is a professor of sports psychology and is a senior teaching professor at Colorado State University, Dr. Brian Butki. We also spoke with Dean Golich, a head coach at Carmichael Training Systems. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Sep 14, 20181 hr 17 minEp. 55

54: Applying the polarized training model, with Dr. Seiler

Our featured guest is, of course, Dr. Stephen Seiler, a professor of sports science in Norway, where he has lived for over 20 years. He sits on the executive board of the well-respected European University College for Sports Science. It was his groundbreaking research that helped define the polarized model. We also hear from Dr. John Hawley, another prominent name in the exercise science world from Australia. He talks with us about one of the important, but lesser-known, gains of long rides. Lea...

Aug 30, 20181 hr 30 minEp. 54

53: From collegiate racing to the WorldTour in three years, with Sepp Kuss

LAST FALL TREVOR AND I CONDUCTED a not-so-controlled study on climbing, and we had the help of a young, talented Colorado rider. His name? Sepp Kuss. At the time of our little experiment, Kuss was about to head to Europe for a training camp with his new WorldTour team, Lotto-NL Jumbo. We’ll also hear from Joe Dombrowski, a leader of the EF Education First-Drapac WorldTour team. Dombrowski was one of Kuss’s chief rivals at the Tour of Utah this year and won the race himself back in 2015. Learn mo...

Aug 17, 20181 hr 18 minEp. 53

52: Enhancing Your Recovery With Normatec

Today, we’re sitting down with two guests from our sponsor NormaTec to discuss recovery in depth. NormaTec is a medical devices company that also crafts inflatable compression wear for athletes. Are they Space legs? Moon boots? Our primary guests today are two members of the NormaTec team: John Aquadro, NormaTec’s VP of Technology and Operations and Matt Curbeau. Additionally, we’ll hear from Frank Overton, Dr. Andrew Peterson, and Toms Skujins of the Trek-Segafredo WorldTour team. Learn more ab...

Aug 10, 20181 hr 13 minEp. 52

51: Polarizing your training, with Dr. Stephen Seiler

Our featured guest is Dr. Stephen Seiler, a professor of sports science in Norway, where he has lived for 22 years. But no, that’s not a Norwegian accent. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas. Dr. Seiler is now on the executive board of the well-respected European University College for Sports Science. We're also joined by Grant Holicky, Andrew Randall, Steve Neal, and Larry Warbasse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jul 27, 20181 hr 14 minEp. 51

50: Unpacking the gospel of Joe Friel’s new ‘Training Bible’

This spring Joe Friel released his 5th edition of the "Cyclist's Training Bible." Trevor and I had a chance to talk with Joe about the newest edition. We came to the interview with a list of questions that we felt only touched on the key parts of the book and by the hour mark we were barely a quarter of the way through our list. In addition to Joe Friel, our guests include: Frank Overton, the owner of FastCat coaching here in Boulder, CO; as well as LottoNL-Jumbo rider Sepp Kuss. Learn more abou...

Jul 23, 20181 hr 13 minEp. 50

49: Training, fueling, and suffering at Dirty Kanza 200

In this episode, we’ll first touch upon the history of Dirty Kanza. Editor in chief Fred Dreier and Chris had a conversation in a recent VeloNews podcast about the phenomenon that is DK — why it’s become so popular, how it has grown so rapidly, and so forth, so check out that episode if you want more. Here, we’ll scratch the surface to give you a taste of the atmosphere at this race. Chris will also describe his history with the event. Hint: It ain’t pretty. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...

Jul 16, 20181 hrEp. 49

48: Race tactics and training with Rally’s Huffman and McCarty, part 2

IN EPISODE 48 WE DELVE into the second part of our series on strategy and training for particular races. This episode is all about hilly road races and winning the GC at a stage race. We caught up with two members of Rally Pro Cycling. Kiel Reijnen shares thoughts on how the region you come from helps determine what style of racing you may like and Toms Skujins discusses how grand tour GC riders and classics riders have to train differently. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/a...

Jun 28, 201856 minEp. 48

47: The art and science of peaking, with Colby Pearce

Our guest today knows all about peaking — both as a coach and as an athlete. He’s an hour record holder, an Olympian, a thinker, a tinkerer, and someone with massive amounts of experience as an athlete. Colby Pearce’s many many qualifications are too long to list here so we’ll let Colby detail them himself in a minute. Also sharing his thoughts we have Robert Pickels and the head physiologist at Pearl Izumi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jun 14, 20181 hr 38 minEp. 47

46: Inside ketogenic and high-fat diets

We’ll discuss the difference between a ketogenic diet and a high-fat/low-carbohydrate diet, and why the latter may be the more important one to discuss. Our primary guest is a researcher who has become one of the most well-known faces of the high-fat movement — Dr. Timothy Noakes. Dr. Noakes has been at the center of endurance science and sports nutrition research for decades. He wrote, among other books, the very popular “Lore of Running” in the 1980s. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me...

May 31, 20181 hr 14 minEp. 46

45: The art of recovery — how to balance training and rest with metrics

IT’S OFTEN OVERLOOKED. Sometimes forgotten. But it never should be. Recovery is just as important to strong performances as your daily workouts and weekly riding volume. Our guests today are Dr. Paul Gastin, Brent Bookwalter, Mac Cassin, and Frank Overton. We’ll also hear from Armando Mastracci, the founder of Xert training software, about the potential to use training software to give us clues about our recovery state. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 16, 20181 hr 8 minEp. 45

44: The data revolution — how A.I. and machine learning will make you faster

This episode is all about data. Our guest is the lead engineer for TrainingPeaks and their coach-focused software package WKO4, Tim Cusick. We’ll also hear from Armando Mastracci, developer of Xert Training software; Dean Golich, a head coach at Carmichael Training Systems; and finally, we’ll touch base with Joe Dombrowski, of the EF Education First-Drapac WorldTour team, to get his take on how pros are reacting to the data revolution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...

May 02, 20181 hr 9 minEp. 44

43: Race tactics and training with Rally’s Huffman and McCarty, part 1

In this episode we take a deep dive into race strategy and tactics, and the necessary skills and training you need to excel at bike racing. In this two-part series, we’ll first touch upon flat races where the sprinter tends to win. Today we’re joined by two veterans of both European and American racing from Rally Pro Cycling - team manager Pat McCarty and one of Team Rally’s leaders, Evan Huffman. We also speak with Kiel Reijnen, of Trek-Segafrado. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megapho...

Apr 13, 20181 hr 5 minEp. 43

42: The power training revolution, with Hunter Allen

This episode is all about power. We are lucky to have Hunter Allen, a veteran coach who, as our main guest; along with Dr. Andrew Coggan, wrote the original book on training with power in 2006: “Training and Racing with a Power Meter.” In this episode, we’ll also hear from Dean Golich, a head coach at Carmichael Training Systems who has worked for years with world champion and WorldTour-caliber cyclists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 23, 20181 hr 15 minEp. 42

41: We answer your questions about training

This is our first edition of “Ask Fast Talk.” Because we receive so many compelling questions from Fast Talk listeners, we will begin devoting frequent episodes to answering your questions. On today’s episode, we discuss the following: the importance of aerobic threshold training and the physiological adaptations that take place from doing so; should FTP be based on one’s very best race effort or on a test; dealing with muscle soreness after weight training; training in extreme cold; and much mo...

Mar 22, 201836 minEp. 41

40: Too much of a good thing? Heart arrhythmias in endurance athletes

In this episode we take a deep dive into a subject that Case knows well, and that our guest, Lennard Zinn, has lived for the last five years: Heart arrhythmias in endurance athletes. Chris and Lennard, along with Dr. John Mandrola, wrote a book entitled “The Haywire Heart” that details how and why long-term endurance exercise could cause a variety of heart arrhythmias. We’ll also hear from Jeremy Powers, who dealt with his own heart arrhythmia this past cyclocross season. Learn more about your a...

Mar 16, 20181 hr 22 minEp. 40

39: The Secrets to Staying Strong as You Age with Ned Overend

In this episode, we’ll look at the changes that have taken place in cycling legend Ned Overend, and how he’s been able to remain strong through the years, with an emphasis on recovery and staying healthy. In addition, we’ll hear from Dr. Jason Glowney, head of medicine at the University of Colorado Sports Medicine and Performance Center. We’ll also hear from Fast Talk regular Frank Overton, owner of FasCat coaching; and finally, we’ll hear from Glenn Swan, a three-time masters national champion....

Mar 01, 20181 hr 11 minEp. 39

38: Why fatigue may be all in your mind

In this episode of Fast Talk, we’ll attempt to unlock the mysteries of fatigue. Is it just lactic acid pooling in your legs, as your high school coach probably told you? The answer is actually a lot more complex than you’d think.Our guests include Dr. Stephen Cheung, an exercise physiologist and professor in the kinesiology department at Brock University in St. Catherine’s, Ontario. We’ll also hear from talented climber Sepp Kuss, a neo-pro with LottoNL-Jumbo, who will talk about his limits when...

Feb 19, 20181 hrEp. 38

37: Nutrition — sugar, wheat, paleo, and performance

We’re taking on the always-controversial subject of nutrition. Why is it so controversial? First, it’s very personal: Many people, trained or untrained, have strong opinions on the subject, and a lot of heated debate revolves around what is healthy and what is best for performance. We’ve had a few prominent guests on Fast Talk previously, and they’ve given their opinions on the subject. But thus far we have strayed away from revealing our thoughts — until now. In this podcast, we’ll discuss what...

Feb 01, 20181 hr 4 minEp. 37

36: Inside the new science of climbing

To start, we turned ourselves into mad scientists and convinced WorldTour pro Sepp Kuss (LottoNL-Jumbo) to join us. We rode several time trials up a few Boulder climbs in our quest for answers. Joining us for the podcast is Ryan Kohler of the University of Colorado Sports Medicine and Performance Center, who helped with the experiments on the road. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 19, 20181 hr 11 minEp. 36

35: How to Train In the Cold

This podcast covers the physiological effects of training in the cold, from muscle damage to the increased caloric demands. We also discuss tips and tricks to set up your bike, stay warm, and even keep your bottles from freezing. And if it’s just too darn cold, we explain the best way to balance time indoors on the trainer with outdoor rides. We speak with Dr. Stephen Cheung, Dr. Iñigo San Millan, Trek-Segafredo pro rider Kiel Reijnen, and former cyclocross champion Tim Johnson. Learn more about...

Jan 05, 20181 hr 10 minEp. 35

34: Become a climber (even if you live in a flat place)

In this episode of Fast Talk, we tackle the always-popular topic of climbing. A listener in Iowa asked if he could become a better climber. We’re joined by a collection of talented riders and coaches: Sepp Kuss, newly signed with the LottoNL-Jumbo WorldTour squad; Dr. Iñigo San Millan, director of the University of Colorado Sports Medicine and Performance Center; as well as fantastic climbers Joe Dombrowski and Ned Overend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dec 21, 20171 hr 3 minEp. 34

33: Is FTP dead?

Recently, a big debate kicked up on the Internet. Some cycling experts stated that Functional Threshold Power (FTP) was dead. Many of the big names in training got involved in the debate of the value of FTP, as well as what is and isn’t current when it comes to creating a rider’s power profile and determining their training zones. We didn’t get involved in the debate–we consider everyone in the debate to be friends at Fast Talk–but we also couldn’t resist a good scientific question. Learn more a...

Dec 20, 20171 hr 17 minEp. 33

32: A cyclist’s guide to the weight room

We cyclists can get a little lost in the weight room. We are joined by Jess Elliott, who is the sports performance coach and biomechanist at the University of Colorado Sports Medicine and Performance Center. She helps us understand the fundamentals of strength workouts in the weight room: what to do, how to do it, and how many times to lift those big hunks of iron. Plus, we speak with pro rider Brent Bookwalter (BMC) about how he fits weight lifting into his busy travel schedule. Learn more abou...

Oct 30, 20171 hr 10 minEp. 32

31: How to avoid illness (or just cope with it)

Illness can be a big setback for cyclists at all levels. What causes us to get sick, and how do we avoid it? If we train too hard, will it ruin our immune system, or can we power through it and ride with the sniffles? We are joined by Dr. Jason Glowney of CU Sports Medicine to answer these questions and better understand the science of illness and how it can make us better, healthier cyclists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 24, 201753 minEp. 31

30: Myth Busters: Why we can’t talk about lactic acid

Coach Trevor Connor and Caley Fretz examine the chemistry that occurs in our muscles while riding and racing. They talk to Dr. Iñigo San Millán, who is the director of Colorado University’s exercise physiology lab. Best of all, they give you practical advice for your own training to help make that burn go away — or at least make you faster even if it hurts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 17, 20171 hrEp. 30

29: The future of bikes with Dan Cavallari and Kristen Legan

The VeloNews Fast Talk podcast is your source for the best advice and most interesting insight on what it takes to become a better cyclist. Listen in as VeloNews columnist Trevor Connor and editor Caley Fretz discuss a range of topics, including training, physiology, technology, and more. What will bikes look like in five years? What will they ride like? We and joined by VN tech crew Dan Cavallari and Kristen Legan to dig into the future of bikes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...

Oct 10, 20171 hr 5 minEp. 29

28: Why we need an off-season with Dr. Andy Pruitt

The VeloNews Fast Talk podcast is your source for the best advice and most interesting insight on what it takes to become a better cyclist. Taking time off can feel strange, but it’s absolutely necessary. Why do you need an off-season? We sit down with Dr. Andy Pruitt to discuss the physiological and psychological needs of athletes, and how an off-season is crucial to meeting those needs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 27, 201756 minEp. 28
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