A new year means new cycling goals! 🚴♂️✨ Ready to take your indoor training to the next level?
Ollie’s here with essential tips to help you smash your cycling goals in 2025.
From boosting performance to making it as real as possible, these tips will ensure you’re at your best when it matters most! 💪
00:00 Essential indoor tech tips
00:16 Nutrition
02:18 Sodium bicarbonate
04:13 Cooling
04:50 Pre-cooling
05:15 Cooling on the bike
06:32 Temperature monitoring
07:49 Cycling kit
08:20 Elevating the front wheel
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What else would you do to improve your indoor setup?
Watch more on GCN Tech…
📹 Heat Training – How You Can Use It To Get Faster 👉 https://youtu.be/t5ybSriecW8
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43 Comments
What else would you do to improve your indoor setup?
Thanks Dr O and crew , what about Bi-carb lotion ? Do you know anything about this stuff ? Be well .
awesome. GCN is pulling out all the stops!
don't stop content like this please, but honestly I just want to ride my bike. I cannot be bothered with all the science. It makes biking too complicated.
Thanks for making this useful even for those of us who are lucky enough to be riding outside – the nutrition tips alone are helpful.
@GCN Could you tell more of the Core sensor because the placement Oli has is interesting. I know from winter riding in Finland that the blood vessel charts are correct where Oli has the sensor. There is little blood flow there and that area is ice cold after a winter ride when I am sweaty. Yes even in the ice cold area probably due to clothing spreading the sweat. Theoretically people should not sweat when cold. Is the Core sensor supposed to be placed in an area of low blood vessel concentration to minimize effort based hot spots? Makes sense to me but I am not sure of their reasoning.
It looks as though pine bark extract might be a future performance enhancer which is currently being investigated – specifically for improved O2 intake. I understand that Gustav Iden and Kristian Blummenfelt have both invested in a company that deals with the science and production of PBE products
wasn't clear about when you take the carbs before on the first table.
Finnish winter and window next to trainer is a performance advantage, but still a good blower fan is a must
Fresh air from a window and a dehumidifier makes difference.
I am modern cycling training. Without me it wouldn't exist
Great tips as always Dr. B. Love vids like these
I found Ollie's doppelganger.
It's Sam Darnold, quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the NFL!
I found the cheap ice vests on Amazon don’t work great if they are the nylon/cordura material. Look for ones made of a mesh/cotton or some breathable material.
Ride your girlfriend or groupies (in bed) to improve endurance. Sexual Stamina matters!
These are all very good ways to improve indoor cycling training effectiveness. I can attest to the fact that I do better training indoors with the addition of a HR monitor in combination with a smart fan. I finally am able to stay cool enough to sustain efforts longer. I can endure heat training outside on a summer afternoon. I don’t want to heat train during the winter on a bike trainer. For all of internet tough guys with the mocking comments regarding this video, go ahead and keep using your cheap trainer set up or riding outside in January when the wind is blowing and is below freezing. No one is stopping you. No need to mock or try to shame those who want to increase the effectiveness of indoor training.
Love you too
IMO, if you have the budget for a dedicated smart bike, that's the only way to go for indoor training… no drivetrain maintenance and wear on your road bike. It's simply always setup and ready to go which makes me likely to ride more often.
About cooling, yes it's important to have a fan but in my opinion, a fan is like a crutch to lean on. What you should be doing is eliminating your fan during structured workouts and only use it on races. You will find more gains weening off the fan adapting your body to the heat by increasing blood plasma, lowering your average heartrate ,teaching the body how to sweat efficiently and the mental gains from the suffering. When you turn on the fan prepare to be amazed at how efficiently your body now runs, your body will be running much cooler with higher power and you'll be sweating less. Hydration and sodium intake is key because you will be sweating more so that should be your main focus. This is a little advanced so if you haven't done heat training before you should take it easy to start. Start the workout with a fan and everyday keep adding on 5 mins or 10, over time you will see and feel yourself running a little cooler and before you know it you'll be riding 1 hour with efforts and your body will be able to manage your body's heat correctly. When I first started heat training back in 2022 I only did it because the fan was too cold at the start so after a while I just continued to leave it off, at first I over heated pretty quickly and it was a little much for my body, but over time and consistency my body is now able to ride with long ftp efforts without overheating just sweating more. If done correctly prepare to be amazed.
I might try the bi carb before my next Hiit training session in the gym. See if it makes a difference. Thanks for the video
You GCN boys aren't wasting ANY time putting out content in the new year. GCN is the real deal and I couldn't imagine a world without you!
5-8g HC per Kg for 1h race? That should be wrong… if I am 70kg, it can't be that I must take, at least, 350 gr HC in 1h.
Picnic freeze blocks in a jersey pocket, or even the radio pocket of your bib shorts if they’ve got one. (Don’t put directly against the skin). Cheap as chips from your local supermarket, and can be good for up to an hour.
If you have the kicker Core, buy find the tennis ball feet attachment. It does a huge favor on your bum.
Complaints about prices especially coming from the guy with a new Porsche for his profile pic, LOL… You can get smart trainers used for under $200, and use free apps, most people have fans already, that's basically the equivalent of pennies for someone who can afford a new Porsche when you compare it to average people. Look up proportional reasoning, you could learn something if you're capable, but if you're complaining about relatively minor costs my guess is you're hopeless…
You lost me at indoor 😂
Ollie doesn’t need a vest to be cool 😎
Decreased performance, check. But I don't think it is from me being hot. I think it is because I suck! 🤣 But that is what I am working on!
Surely the bicarbonate ion is immediately converted into carbon dioxide and water upon contact with the hydrochloric acid of the stomach. And in the event that some does pass into gut, it's a small charged ion that won't cross into the blood stream. Yes, we know that there's bicarbonate buffering in the blood, but that doesn't mean ingested bicarbonate gets into the bloodstream. What am i missing here?
That’s a crazy amount of carbs to consume for a one hour race.
Can GCN not give Dr Bridgewood an adult sized cap?
For indoor cycling freeze one of your water bottles and use it as a method of palm cooling. You can also damp you sweat towel and T-shirt in the freezer about 60mins before you start your session. Creatine can also give you a boost for indoor where weight isn’t as much of a concern
Oops, just checked the current retail price of the CORE temperature sensor. I wonder if there are less expensive options. I was naively expecting a similar price to a HR sensor.
Ollie's world record attempt 2025; some form of endurance hill climb maybe? Stick to the training plan my man 😁
Just did two 20h weeks on indoors, chamois cream is King!!!
"Which is nerd for…". LOL
Incoming painful watery shits for many, coming soon
The "hands in ice water" – are you aiming at palmer cooling? If so, you should not use ice water. Too cold will result in vasal constriction, rather than moving the cooler blood around your body. Huberman did a few episodes on it, the temp should be cool – not icy.
Those books are finally coming handy 😊
Si's mancave is in need of some TLC.🤔
Back on my younger years I was a haz mat responder and backup firefighter. They had us swallow thermometer that transmitted back to the command unit. They would pull us when our core temperature goal over a certain threshold because of mental and physical fatigue. Heat can do you in real quick.
I got an indoor cycling fan for Christmas to go with the box fan behind me. It was the gift I didn’t know I needed! I love it
This is both hilarious and informative! Protip on the cooling fans: put ice water buckets nearby for additional cooling.