Sunday, September 20, 2009

Any books on Track Cycling tactics & training?

There are many books and resources dedicated to the sport of Road Cycling and Triathlon racing, but none which I know of dedicated to Track Cycling. Track Cycling is a niche / cult sport in the US and probably in other Countries; maybe that is why no one has bothered writing a book for this rather small target audience. Information gleaned over the years comes from a variety of sources. It would certainly be great to have a comprehensive book dedicated to tactics & training for Track Cycling. Many new comers to the track have to learn by trial and error which can become quite time consuming and costly. Track coaches are rare and expensive, and only available to elite riders or those who can afford them. Thanks to people at Kissena like John Campo, Delroy Walters, Michael Robinson, Charlie Jennings, Joe Brennan, Derick Davis & Andrew LaCorte for sharing some of their knowledge and experience.

Resources about cycling which I found useful:

The Time Crunched Cyclist by Chris Carmichael – Get fit in less time, help build competitive fitness in six hours a week. You don’t need endless miles on the road. You don’t need endless hours in the gym. Who has the time with a full work schedule and family commitments?

The Ultimate Ride by Chris Carmichael – Helps build a strong foundation for incremental leaps in fitness, times, and techniques. Nutritional advice, goal setting methods, mental exercises and physical training tips.

Chris Carmichael training Videos – videos can either be bought and downloaded from the website or purchased on DVDs. These are great cycling workout videos targeting different energy systems using various types of intervals. These videos help to break up the monotony of riding the spin bike by simulating having a personal trainer.

P9OX – Extreme Home Fitness program to help you loose weight and get strong in a short period of time. All you need is a set of dumbbells, a pull up bar, resistance bands and you are all set. The workout program comes with 12 DVDs which you can customize to your personal goals. The plyometrics DVD is a tough workout and perfect for stimulating the cycling muscles used for explosive standing starts and sprints.

The Mental Edge by Kenneth Baum – Maximizing your sports potential with the mind body connection. Your mind is your most valuable piece of equipment, your strongest muscle and your best shot at peak performance for life.

Nutrient Timing by John Ivy & Robert Portman – by timing specific nutrition to your muscle’s 24 hour growth cycle. Deliver the precise amounts of nutrients needed at precisely the right time to optimize your muscle building agents and maximize muscle growth, while minimizing muscle damage and soreness after a hard workout.

High-Tech Cycling by Edmund R. Burke – a unique compilation of current information on the rapidly evolving sport of cycling. With topics ranging from equipment selection to the nuances of cycling bio mechanics.

The Cyclist’s Training Bible 3rd Edition by Joel Friel – shows you how the benefits of a scientific, self coached training plan will refine your skills and improve your cycling performance.

Weight Training for Dummies by Liz Neporent – book on how to lift weights.

The New Power Program by Dr Michael Colgan – another weight lifting book which focuses on body posture and core strength.

Training and Racing with a Power Meter – Hunter Allen & Andrew Coggan – how to train with a power meter and interpret the data.

Racing Tactics for Cyclists by Thomas Prehn – helps cyclists avoid common race mistakes and ride intelligently.

Serious Cycling 2nd by Edmund R. Burke – go faster and train more efficiently by applying advanced science to your cycling. Take the latest scientific data in the sport and translate it into beneficial applications.

Heroes, Villains & Velodromes by Richard Moore – documentary style book about Chris Hoy and Britain’s track cycling revolution. Also points out the high level of secrecy found in Track Cycling. This is more of a book about Chris Hoy's life story rather than training tips for Track Cycling, but still a very useful book.

USCF Introduction to Coaching Cyclists – this manual is the only book where there were about three pages dedicated to useful information pertaining to track cycling.

As you can see most of these resources are dedicated to Road Cycling.

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