A client just wrapped up four days of racing at the Green Mountain Stage Race — and with it, the 2026 road season. This week's newsletter is about what comes next: the transition period between racing and rebuilding, why your fitness sticks around longer than you think, and why the unstructured weeks ahead might matter more than the structured ones behind you.
Read MoreYour diaphragm is a muscle too — and during hard efforts, it competes with your legs for the same blood supply. This week's newsletter breaks down the respiratory metaboreflex, the science behind the "steal," and why your breathing might be worth training like anything else.
Read MoreThe gluteus medius doesn't produce big power, and it won't win you a sprint — but it's the muscle keeping your hips level and your knees tracking straight with every pedal stroke. Coach Steve breaks down what it does, what it works with, and how to keep it from becoming the weak link.
Read MoreThis weekend's Deerfield Dirt-Road Randonee is a study in pacing: the early climbs feel easy, and that's exactly the problem. Coach Steve breaks down "burning a match" — the limited supply of hard efforts every rider carries — and why holding back when it feels good is often the hardest part of the day.
Read MoreTen minutes into every hard effort, a sharp pain in his side would shut him down — same bike or different, upright or in the drops. This week's newsletter digs into exercise-related transient abdominal pain, the stubborn mystery behind the classic side stitch, and a couple of things worth trying if it sounds familiar.
Read MoreEveryone trains for the peak day. But the riders who improve year over year are playing a different game — one built on the boring rides nobody remembers. A look at why raising your floor matters more than raising your ceiling.
Read MoreA cross-country athlete's numbness showed up in only two fingers — never the whole hand. That specificity became a lesson in how your hands actually work on the bike, and why the right fix is almost never guesswork once you know what your body's telling you.
Read MoreThere's a voice that shows up when the ride gets hard, narrating the fade before it happens. Turns out that voice isn't just noise. A two-week study on cyclists found the right kind of self-talk added 18% to how long they could hold a hard effort. This week's newsletter is about training that inner narrator like any other skill.
Read MoreThe Tour's third week always tells the truth — riders fade not in one blowup, but in fractions of a watt per kilo, stage after stage. This week's newsletter names the trait that decides who holds their numbers: durability. It's the thread connecting the last two issues on cramping and grit, and it turns out it's trainable.
Read MoreSecond place Saturday. Shelled out the back Sunday, with nothing left to race for. This week's newsletter looks at why one athlete finished anyway — and what Josh Waitzkin says separates elite performers from everyone else.
Read MoreAs the Tour de France rolls into a record-breaking heat dome, you can bet cramping is about to be all over the coverage. Here's what actually causes it and the surprising science behind the pickle-juice fix.
Read MoreMany cyclists blend the line between training rides and recovery rides – that "medium hard" or "grey zone" pace that feels like training….but isn't.
Read MoreRiders spend hundreds on gadgets and supplements chasing more watts. This week's newsletter is about the free, chronically underused recovery tool already sitting in your bedroom — and what the research says happens when you skip it.
Read MoreAt a late-season criterium in 2012, a competitor showed up with two Breathe Right strips super-glued together on his nose. He didn't win. But the idea wasn't entirely wrong — nasal breathing is one of the most underrated tools in endurance sport. Here's the science, and the one habit worth building.
Read MoreTwo former racers. Eight minutes on a chairlift. A conversation about depression, identity, and the thing that keeps bringing us back to the bike.
Read MoreOne of my athletes has a goal that demands serious preparation — and the self-awareness to know this isn't the year to pursue it. This week's newsletter is about what it really means to cooperate with reality, and why matching your goals to your season is one of the most underrated skills in endurance sport.
Read MoreThe data will always demand your attention. But those sprints, hill repeats, and FTP tests are just waypoints — dots on a much larger map. This week's newsletter is a reminder to zoom out, look at the road behind you, and appreciate the journey the bike has taken you on so far.
Read MoreChris Blevins has two Olympic appearances, a World Championship medal, and six World Cup podiums. He also meditates before every race. This week's newsletter explores the quieter side of performance — the one that doesn't show up in your TrainingPeaks data.
Read MoreMost racers do a post-mortem on a bad race — and skip the autopsy on a good one. Sports psychologist Justin Su'a draws a sharp line between losing and being beaten, and makes the case for applying the same honest review to your wins. Success leaves clues, but only if you look for them.
Read MoreIn a noisy world of workout data, Strava posts and pushing your limits, are you listening for the right thing?
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