As the world’s best take to the slopes of cycling’s iconic climbs this month at the Tour, it is hard not to daydream about conquering some mountains of our own this summer. What are some tips to get you through a big climbing day?
There is something special about a big climbing ride and the unavoidable challenge of those thousands of vertical meters. Some amount of suffering is inevitable on a big climbing day, but preparing the right way can make all the difference between finishing strong or limping your way home in tatters. Here are some practical tips to raise your game when the road tilts upward.
Train for the Demands
I have had the privilege of coaching athletes for some of the toughest climbing events in the world at the Trans Alps and Haute Route races in the mountains of Europe. Through this, I’ve recognized the unique demands of truly epic climbing days. The efforts required to ride strong on these days can be very different from those needed for success in most fondos or road racing.
On a day filled with extended uphill efforts, you make your time by being steady and emptying your gas tank at a very gradual rate over the course. In rolling events, punchy accelerations at the right time can be very effective in making the right group and getting the best, fastest draft on the flatter sections. In the mountains, it is a more precise zero-sum game. The 80-95% FTP zone is the most efficient use of your precious resources, and any accelerations above that range come at an exponential cost and deplete your glycogen stores faster than you could possibly make up for with in-ride nutrition.
So when training in the 4-6 weeks before your goal climbing ride, the specific intensity focus should be training in that tempo to sweet spot range. Many training plans will have athletes working in that range much earlier in the periodization cycle in the “base period” and working on more high-end lactate threshold and VO2-type intervals in the peaking period before the target event. In preparation for rides like the Haute Route, I have found it is more effective to essentially reverse that process.
If you are like most North American riders, you have likely spent a lot of time in those higher zones already at this point in the season between fast group rides and more typical race prep. If you are now looking towards a big climbing goal in late summer, consider transitioning to a lower overall intensity level with longer, steadier intervals and committing to an aerobic pace on more endurance rides. You can still get out and smash town line sprints and Strava segments with the local group, but try to make those rides the exception rather than the norm as you prepare for the big climbs.
Getting The Most Out of Your Gas Tank
A big challenge on climbing days is running out of energy. You can start strong and feel like you are pacing moderately, but the constant power needed on climbs inevitably drains your carbohydrate stores and can lead to the dreaded bonk after a couple of prolonged efforts. Fuelling throughout the ride is crucial, and in your workouts and long rides in the weeks leading up to your goal, you should aim to build up your intake. On a more flat route where you can ease off, draft and get away with burning fewer kilojoules, 40-60 grams of carbohydrate per hour can be plenty. I recommend adding 5-10 grams a week as you get closer to your big ride and aiming for 70 to 100 per hour, depending on your size and power output.
The other part of the energy equation is becoming more metabolically efficient and more economical with your pacing. If you can train your body to burn more fat and become better adapted to riding with lower glycogen stores, it will pay off big time in the later hours of your big ride. I rarely recommend fasted training because even short, fasted rides can be very costly in recovery. I prefer using back-to-back long ride weekends to simulate the demands of energy-depleted riding.
We will aim for 2-3 “big weekends” in training in the final phases before big climbing events. Usually, the first day will be a 3-5 hour ride with lower-end tempo climbing efforts mixed in throughout. The second day will be a longer one again, but aiming for a more reserved aerobic pace in the 60-75% FTP range. On both days, we aim for “race fuelling” to train the GI tract and find any potential kinks in that approach. On the first day, we get great stimulus on goal-specific efforts and on the second, the body is naturally depleted. We can adapt to and get a feel for that unique strain. This technique is a big ask in terms of time commitment and motivation, but even a couple back to back-to-back weekends can pay big dividends when it is time to climb big.
A Little Strength Goes a Long Way
My final tip requires the least effort but may be the most overlooked by even elite-level riders. Prolonged climbing puts a much higher load on your core muscles than regular riding, where you aren’t under constant muscle tension. Many strong climbing performances have come undone not because of aerobic fitness but because of sore and cramping lower backs, shoulders and glutes. You can build the required strength to avoid that by riding a lot of hills, but a little time spent doing simple core exercises is a much better time investment.
Most of us like the bike a lot more than we like the yoga mat and weights, of course. Thankfully, you don’t need to spend an hour at the gym or lift a kettlebell to make significant strength gains on the bike. As a pro racer, I would force myself to do 10 minutes of mostly bodyweight exercises every second day, whether I had a good excuse or not, and it made a massive difference over time. It doesn’t need to be anything groundbreaking or technical. Even doing basic sets of 30-60 second planks with your earbuds in can be a huge boost when you take on your epic climbing day.
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