FOR THE RECORD

From online platforms to paper notebooks, training diaries can be powerful tools. We asked three riders to share a page of their training diaries to show how a daily check-in can deliver invaluable cycling insights

- Mark Bailey

Whether you scribble notes in a dog-eared journal, plan and analyse your workouts on TrainingPeaks or track goals and progress on Today's Plan, training diaries are a fantastic self-development tool for riders of all levels. A training diary will sharpen your organisation, identify weaknesses, enhance your confidence and ensure you keep improving week after week. From complex power data to simple notes on ride feel and nutrition, your diary can be as detailed or as basic as you choose. All that matters is that you start tracking the small daily details and insights that can help to make you a stronger rider.

THE PRO RIDER

Talent, dedication, adaptivity....there are countless reasons why pro riders make it to the very top. But what can we learn from their elite journey? Over to Hayley Simmonds, the 2018 Commonwealth TT champ

Key session

"Keeping a diary helps me to plan my training better. My remit with this set was to do a 2-hour ride with 5mins at 350 watts in the first half. The goal was just to get my legs going after some tiring days of travel, and to include a 'priming' effort before my 10-mile time trial race the next day. So not too hard. As this was the day before my race, my coach deliberately set a prescribed power, rather than a max effort, so I wouldn't overdo it! That's the detail you get from planning everything.

I upload my data to TrainingPeaks manually because it means I engage with the data. Today, I was 10 watts off my target. But I knew I was tired, because I didn't start the effort until 45 mins in, and I was riding at a low base before then. Also, my heart rate was 170bpm for the effort, whereas if I went all-out it would be 195-197bpm.

→ Distance 65km

→Duration 2hrs with 1x 5min effort @ 350 watts 

→Heart rate during effort 170bpm