Measuring power, blood glucose, and fatigue: Hunter Allen on bike training

Hunter Allen has been coaching cyclists since the mid-1990s and went on to co-found TrainingPeaks in 2004. He was an early proponent of using power data to inform training, and today his company, Peaks Coaching Group, helps athletes around the world.

• When you retired from pro cycling in the mid-90s and decided to become a coach, why did you start with mountain bikers specifically?
• When you first looked at power meter data from cyclists, was it obvious that this data could be useful for training? How did you analyze it?
• What are mountain bikers missing with an informal approach to getting faster/stronger/fitter?
• How does the way you coach a mountain biker in their 40s differ from how you'd coach the same rider at 25?
• How do we know if a fitness metric — like heart rate, power, or HRV — is useful or not?
• How do you know how much recovery you need after any given effort?
• What does measuring blood glucose levels tell you about an athlete?
• If someone's listening right now and wants to become more intentional about improving their fitness for mountain biking, where would you tell them to start?
• What is your most popular training plan for mountain bikers?
• What's got you most excited right now in the world of fitness and coaching?

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An automated transcript will be available at Singletracks.com later today.