2021 Best of Instagram AMA Questions

Empirical Cycling Podcast · 2021 Best of Instagram AMA Questions

Kolie spent yet another year on Instagram (@empiricalcycling) answering questions in the stories for 51 out of 52 weeks to add a bright interlude to doom scrolling. This podcast contains 32 questions under the topics training intensity, periodization, adaptation, and general. Timestamps for the headings are below.

Show Notes
Timestamps (approximate) for question groupings.

Intensity related: ~2min

• Straight from the first Q&A of 2021: Best way to gauge RPE?
• Can you describe the RPE you like to prescribe for endurance rides?
• Over/unders crush me. Sweet spot is easy. Normal?
• When they say 2-3 high intensity workouts per week, does SST count towards that?
• Thoughts on HR decoupling, and whether you should or shouldn’t push past it (in z2)?
• Is it still realistic to believe that FTP is within a certain percentage of vo2max watts?
• Does your FTP change day to day depending on internal/external factors OR during a big day?!
• Percentage FTP for effective endurance ride? Does it have to be 75%?

Periodization: ~37min

• Thoughts on mixing vo2max and threshold in the same block?
• Historically poor anaerobic capacity even with focused training. Should I work on it all year?
• When coming off a month break from training, what would you start with?
• Is there such thing as vo2max maintenance? Like 1 workout every other week type of thing?
• Do elite riders actually only stick to polarized approach? Or is there actually more variation?
• What kind of long term planning goes into an elite training plan vs an amateur? Like a multi-year view?
• Generalized version of many questions: How much aerobic training is needed for the track and/or shorter events like hill climbs? ALSO lots of training binaries questions, i.e. should i train anaerobic or aerobic?

Adaptation: ~60min 

• Do aerobic gains require protein?
• Does anaerobic work kill off mitochondria?
• Can you have a high vlamax and a high ftp?
• My vlamax is 0.31, how important is vlamax for crits? Do I need to increase?
• On FTP: push it up, pull it up, or both? And does strategy change during the season?
• Why training fasted of carbs when training aerobic base is touted to bring on adaptations?
• How to train repeatability? All out until you can’t go over threshold? Or incomplete rest?

​General: ~80min

• Any favorite training experiment from a year with no racing?
• Does sex decrease performance on the day?
• Cycling specific joint angles in lifts or full ROM?
• Out of saddle increases HR and RPE… what to do? Train it more?
• Thoughts on recent research re: use of ketones to prevent symptoms of overtraining?
• Can you be at vo2max if not at HR max?
• Why is resting so hard?
• Things that pros do but hasn’t been proven by science (yet)?
• Possible to get stronger and lose weight at the same time?