Improving your sleep could provide the single biggest boost to your cycling performance it’s possible to make by legal means. Though it was arguably made famous as a “marginal gain” when Team Sky (now Ineos Grenadiers) started carting their own mattresses with them at the Tour de France, sleep may in fact be a maximal gain – it really is that fundamental in building fitness and maintaining health. So how can you make sure you’re getting the optimum dose of the most potent legal performance-enhancer known to cycling humanity?
First off, it’s important to acknowledge that no one chooses to sleep poorly. But we all know that cyclists chase after every available gain – often at great expense – and what is the point of spending hundreds of pounds on lightweight wheels or a more aero helmet if a crucial (and free) part of your daily life is holding you back? No matter how much you spend on components, you won’t compensate for a chronic lack of sleep. What’s more, given the squeeze on everyone’s finances recently, many of us are putting on hold the tech upgrades – all the more reason to make sure our sleep is as good as it can possibly be.
My interest in this subject goes back several years. As an under-23 racer competing in professional UCI races in Europe from 2015 to 2018, I frequently struggled to sleep – not just before big races, but much of the time. Back then, I pretended to myself that repeatedly yawning my way through training sessions after restless nights wasn’t a big deal, but I’m now realising the extent to which it held me back. As I start to rebuild my fitness as an amateur cyclist – I’m no longer pursuing a career in cycling – I want to find out how just how much sleep matters. Was it the key weakness that derailed my progress?
Denne historien er fra September 22, 2022-utgaven av CYCLING WEEKLY.
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Denne historien er fra September 22, 2022-utgaven av CYCLING WEEKLY.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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