Developing Bike Power

Welcome

Welcome to Episode #475 of the 303 Endurance Podcast. We're your hosts Coaches Rich Soares and April Spilde. Thanks for joining us for another week of endurance news, coaching tips and discussion.

We hope you enjoyed last week’s interview with Coach Erin Carson of ECFIT. This week we continue our programming on strength with a focus on bike strength and the many ways to develop the strength and power that goes into the pedals, but also the considerations for how the bike beneath you plays a role in your best bike performance. 

Plus, we have an all new segment called “Athlete Success Stories” that features an athlete, who through commitment, grit and courage, is finding breakthroughs and growth.

 

Show Sponsor: UCAN

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In Today's Show

• Announcements

• Feature Athlete Success Story: Laura Hammdorff

• Ask a Coach: What muscle groups to develop for the bike?

• Get Gritty Tip

• TriDot Workout of the Week - 3 Bike Power Building Workouts

• Fun Segment: “Transition Troubles: Winter Triathlete Edition”

 

 

Announcements:

 

FulGaz Virtual Group Ride Schedule - No change with the Rouvy announcement. If you hadn’t heard, Rouvy has purchased FulGaz and IRONMAN will continue to partner with Rouvy. FulGaz is going to continue offering the same services for the foreseeable future. 

 

Our next group ride will be February 1st and we are riding the Pikes Peak ride on our FulGaz Virtual Group Ride. 

 

303 Webinar Series Continues - February 4th 6-7 TriDot Pool School. Every 1st Tuesday of the Month

 

Announcing Talk Tuesdays (aka Office Hours) with Coaches April Spilde and Rich Soares. Every 3rd Tuesday of the month.

 

Upcoming Programming - Our February focus will be on swimming.

Feb. 1 - FASST and essential pool equipment

Feb. 8 - Webinar with TriDot Pool School Director, Coach Brandy Ramirez

Feb. 15 - How to Read Swim Workout

Feb. 22 - Open Water Skills

 

Grit2Greatness Coaching Facebook Page Live - Come check out our new coaching Facebook page @grit2greatnesscoaching

Ask A Coach Sponsor: G2G Endurance

Triathletes, ready to train smarter? At Grit2Greatness Coaching, we’ve teamed up with TriDot to bring you precision and progress. Sign up through either Coach April’s or Coach Rich’s TriDot links and enjoy seamless onboarding, personalized workouts, and cutting-edge analytics tailored to your goals.  

Start with a 2-week free trial, then choose plans starting at $14.99 a month. With the right tools and support, you can achieve the extraordinary. Ready to see what’s possible? Click the one of the sign-up links in our show notes to get started today!  

Athlete Success Story: Laura Hammdorff

Lead In (Rich): January continues our focus on strength. Last week we had Erin Carson of  ECFIT Performance Strength talk with us about strength training programs for endurance athletes seeking to perform at their very best in triathlons, marathons, and cycling events. 

 

This week we are steering the conversation to bike strength and mobility programming. If you think we have the magic bullet for developing strength and power on the bike, think again. It takes work, from lots of angles and there is not a straight line to success, ever. How do strength programs, workouts, fueling, physical therapy, bike fit, components, riding apps, threshold assessments and so on factor into your power to weight ratio? 

 

Here to help us unpack developing cycling strength and improving power on the bike is an athlete who I believe embodies “grit2greatness” and is an example of the resilience and tenacity it takes to achieve a goal. Yes we all have goals that we are working toward and the journey toward that goal seems long and winding. Part of the reason we close each episode with the call to “enjoy the endurance journey” is because the journey, not necessarily the finish line, is where we realize the most growth. 

 

Introduce Laura Hammdorff:

Laura Hammdorff is a competitive triathlete with an NCAA swimming and cross fit background. When we started working together last year we discussed her triathlon background and goals. Because we are focusing on developing bike power this week, this will be our theme to tell her story. Without giving too much away, it’s my hope that by listening to Laura’s journey you will find examples of how her grit and tenacity can give you a template for your journey

 

Discussion Questions to Laura (Rich and April take turns asking questions):

1. Icebreaker - Two Truths and a Lie

2. How would you describe your background in cycling compared to swimming, running and strength training?

3. What was the steepest learning curve with cycling early on?

4. What role did the Triple Bypass play in your development of power and resilience on the bike?

5. How has working with a PT contributed to your development?

6. How have injuries created challenges in your training and racing? Not just overuse, but also previous injuries and limitations?

7. How has bike fit played a role in your performance?

8. How has fueling played a role?

9. How has thinking about the nuances of executing a workout (eg build into power, backloading stress, etc) played into your development?

10. How’s your relationship with the FTP?

11. What have you learned about software platforms and their ability to engage and support doing the right training right?

. 

Ask A Coach: What muscle groups to develop for the bike?

Setup (Rich): Here are the different phases of a bike pedal stroke and the muscles used during each phase:

1. Downstroke (1 to 5 o'clock): This phase involves the quadriceps and the gluteus maximus. The primary action is knee extension and hip extension.

2. Pullback (5 to 7 o'clock): The hamstrings and the gluteus maximus are engaged. This phase involves knee flexion and hip extension.

3. Upstroke (7 to 11 o'clock): The hip flexors and the anterior tibialis are primarily used. The action here is hip flexion and knee flexion.

4. Over-the-top (11 to 1 o'clock): The quadriceps and the anterior tibialis help to lift the pedal. This phase involves knee extension and hip flexion.

 

Get Gritty Tip:

 

Stop Sleepwalking Through Life 

 

Do you ever feel like you're just going through the motions, like life is passing you by in a blur of routine and mental chatter? You're not alone. Scientists in the UK discovered that our brains have a kind of "autopilot" mode—a trance-like state where we zone out, consumed by trivial thoughts. It’s like we're sleepwalking through life, and the result? Days, weeks, even years that feel hollow and forgettable.  

 

Why does this happen? As we age, we fall into patterns. Experiences that once thrilled us now become automatic routines. Think about it: When was the last time you truly experienced something *new*? Remember how slowly time seemed to move as a kid? That wasn’t just your imagination. Back then, everything was fresh. Every hour was an adventure, and your brain had to focus on learning, adapting, and figuring out how to respond.  

 

Psychologist William James explained this beautifully in *The Principles of Psychology* over a century ago. He wrote about how, in youth, life feels vivid and stretched out, like an intricate journey. But as adults, our lives tend to shrink into the predictable.  

 

Here’s the good news: you *can* break out of this autopilot mode. The key? Newness. Novel experiences force us into the present moment. They snap us out of our mental trance because we can’t predict what’s coming next or how to respond.  

 

And you don’t need to meditate on a mountaintop to find this mindfulness. Learning something new—a skill, a hobby, even a sport—engages both your mind and body, pulling you fully into the moment. The journey toward mastery isn’t just about achievement. It’s about the fulfillment that comes from being completely engaged in the *process.*  

 

Think of your life as a scrapbook. When you look back on it, what will you see? Is it full of rich, meaningful experiences that make time slow down? Or is it a blur of sameness? If the latter, it’s time to wake up. Start saying yes to novelty. Break free from your routine. Add new skills, adventures, and memories to your life’s scrapbook.  

 

Because when you take inventory on your life, you’ll want to see a collection of stories that prove you *lived.*  

 

TriDot Workouts of the Week: 

 

Here are 3 incredibly powerful workouts for building bike power: Power Intervals, Big Gear Work and 30-30s

 

Power Intervals

Warmup

10 min @ Z2 with 2 x 30 sec (30 sec) Spinups and 3 x 1 min (1 min) @ Z4

 

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Main Set

2 x 7 min @ Z4 ~70 rpm (3 min)
1 x 3 min @ Z2
1 x 10 min @ Z4 > 90 rpm

Balance of time @ Z2

Big Gear Work

 

Warmup

10 min @ Z2 with 2 x 30 sec (30 sec) Spinups and 3 x 1 min (1 min) @ Z4

 

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Main Set

Dismount
30 sec Squats (shoot for 1/second)
30 sec Isometric squat

Mount quickly w/o recovery
1 x 3 min @ Z5 in biggest gearing at 55-65 cadence
1 min @ Z2 before dismount

Dismount
45 sec Squats (shoot for 1/second)
60 sec Isometric squat

Mount quickly w/o recovery
2 x 1 min @ Z5 (60 sec) in biggest gearing at 55-65 cadence
1 min @ Z2 before dismount

Dismount
60 sec Squats
30 sec Isometric squat

Mount
5 min @ Z2

Balance of time @ Z2

30-30s

 

Warmup

10 min @ Z2 with 2 x 30 sec (30 sec) Spinups and 3 x 1 min (1 min) @ Z4

 

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Main Set

4 sets of 4 x 30 sec @ Z5+ (30 sec @ Z3) with 2 min @ Z2 rest between sets

Balance of time @ Z2

 

That’s this week’s TriDot workout of the week! Give it a go and tell us about your experience!

 

Today’s Fun Segment: Transition Troubles (Winter Triathlete Edition)

Concept:

Players navigate a series of humorous and absurd challenges they might encounter during a triathlon transition. You describe a scenario, and they have to choose how they’d handle it.

The Shoe Switcheroo: You reach T2 and realize your running shoes are missing, but there’s a pair of Yeti slippers sitting in your spot. Do you:
a) Wear the slippers and hope for the best.
b) Run in your bike shoes.
c) “Borrow” a random pair of shoes from someone else’s transition area.

The Snack Attack: Your nutrition bag was replaced with a box of donuts. Do you:
a) Eat the donuts and enjoy the sugar rush.
b) Offer them to other athletes as a goodwill gesture / barter.
c) Ignore the donuts and power through without your planned nutrition.

Helmet Havoc: You find your helmet filled with shaving cream. Do you:
a) Scoop it out with your hand and put it on anyway.
b) Run back to the start to see if someone will lend you a helmet.
c) Smear the shaving cream on your face like war paint and declare yourself ready for victory!

Ski Struggles: You’re ready to start the ski leg, but you see that someone has put peanut butter on the underside of your skis. Do you:

a) Attempt to ski anyway and hope the pb melts off.
b) Lick the peanut off (protein boost, right?)
c) Use it as ski wax, and convince others that it’s a secret performance hack.

 

Train With Coach Rich:

Coach Rich Soares

[email protected]

Rich Soares Coaching

TriDot Signup - https://app.tridot.com/onboard/sign-up/richsoares

RunDot Signup - https://app.rundot.com/onboard/sign-up/richsoares

 

Train with Coach April:

Coach April Spilde

[email protected]

Grit2Greatness Endurance Podcast Podcast Series - Apple Podcasts

TriDot Signup - https://app.tridot.com/onboard/sign-up/aprilspilde

 

Shoutouts to: @genucan @grit2greatnesscoaching @ironmantri @303triathlon @tridottraining @tridottrainingsystem

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