The Role of Intensity in Cycling Performance

Intensity may be one of the most important contributors to cycling performance. It's important because all the motivation, confidence, focus and emotions in the world won't help you if your body is not physiologically capable of doing what it needs for you to ride your best.

Whether you are cruising along in the peloton during a long, flat stage, ascending a Category 1 climb, or sprinting the last 100 meters of a crit, you must be at the right intensity to ride at your highest level.

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What Is Intensity?

Simply put, intensity is the amount of physiological activity you experience in your body. This includes heart rate, respiration and adrenaline. Intensity is a continuum that ranges from sleep (very relaxed) to terror (very anxious). Somewhere in between those two extremes is the level of intensity at which you will ride your best in races.

The challenge with intensity is that there is no one ideal intensity for all cyclists. Depending on your physical and psychological make-up, you may ride best when very relaxed, moderately intense, or bouncing off the walls.

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For example, Chris Froome needs to be relaxed during the early parts of the Alpe d'Huez stage of the Tour De France to conserve energy before the big ascents that lie ahead. Brad Wiggins must be at moderate intensity as he attacks Mont Ventoux so that he has enough energy to power up the climb and still have reserves for the final few kilometers. Robbie McEwen must be a nuclear reactor in the final sprint to the finish in Marseilles.

Experience and Perception

Intensity is made up of two components. First, there is the physical experience of intensity. This is what you actually feel in your body when you are riding. Are you calm or filled with energy? Are you relaxed or tense?

Second, there is your perception of intensity. In other words, do you perceive the intensity positively or negatively? Two riders can feel the exact same thing physiologically, but interpret those physical feelings in different ways. One may view intensity as excitement, and it will help his riding. Another may see intensity as anxiety, and it will hurt his riding.

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The physical experience and the perception of intensity are affected by several mental factors. If you're not confident, feeling frustrated and angry or are too focused on winning, you will probably see the intensity as a negative. In contrast, if you are confident, positive and focused only on riding well, the intensity will be perceived as positive.

Signs of Over- and Under-intensity

Intensity produces a wide variety of physical and mental symptoms that can help you recognize when your too high or too low. By being aware of these signs, you will be able to know when you're not at your ideal intensity and can take the steps needed to adjust.

Muscle tension and breathing difficulties are the most common signs of over-intensity. Most cyclists indicate that when they're too intense, they feel tension in their shoulders and their legs. These two muscle groups just so happen to be the two most important for cycling. If your shoulders are tense, they will rise with your center of gravity causing you to lose power and efficiency. When your legs are tense, you lose the ability to generate smooth and strong pedal strokes.

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Many cyclists also report that their breathing becomes short and choppy when they get nervous. This restriction in breathing means that you won't get enough oxygen into your system and will tire quickly. I've also found that the smoothness of cyclists' pedaling tends to mirror their breathing. If your breathing is long and smooth, so will your pedal stroke. If your breathing is abrupt and uneven, you will probably be "pedaling squares."

Cyclists who are overly intense often exhibit poor posture on the bike. Muscle tension causes the shoulders to rise and the body to seem to shrink and close up. Cyclists who are anxious also tend to go out too fast early in a race, causing them to run out of gas when they need energy most. Overly intense cyclists often look rushed and frantic. If the peloton is taking its time, overly intense cyclists may become impatient with the slow pace and attack too early.

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Over-intensity negatively influences cyclists mentally as well. Anxiety lowers your confidence and causes doubts in your ability, which may prevent you from breaking away when you are physically capable of making and sustaining the attack. The physical and mental anxiety produces negative emotions such as frustration, anger and depression. The doubts and negative emotions hurt focus by drawing attention away from important tactical and pace information and onto how badly you feel.

Though not as common, cyclists can also experience under-intensity during races. The most common symptoms of under-intensity are low energy and lethargy. You lack the adrenaline you need to give your best effort. Though not as discomforting as over-intensity, under-intensity hurts your riding equally because you lack the physical requisites, such as strength and stamina, to meet the demands of cycling. Under-intensity can be caused, for example, by a nutritional crisis or the discouragement of being dropped by the peloton.

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Intensity and Tensity

The ultimate goal of finding your ideal intensity lies in the divide between intensity and tensity (yes, that is actually a word). The closer you can get to that line, the more your body will work towards riding its best. If you cross the line to tensity, your body will no longer be physically capable of a great ride.

Pro cyclists have the ability to do two things related to this line. First, they have a better understanding of where that line is so they can 'tightrope walk' on it, maximizing what their bodies can produce. Second, they're able to stay on that line longer than other cyclists, which enables them to ride at a consistently higher level for longer periods.

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What makes the top pros so good isn't that their intensity is always rock solid and never fluctuates. Even the world's best get nervous and have let downs. The difference is, they know what their ideal intensity is and where it needs to be in certain parts of a race.

My next three articles will introduce you to how you can identify your ideal cycling intensity and provide you with the tools needed to reach and maintain your ideal intensity to ride your fastest.

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