How to Ride a Bike: From Starting Out to Peak Performance

by Chris Hoy

'Chris is someone I've always looked up to. A true role model.' - Geraint Thomas, 2018 Tour de France winnerAn invaluable manual for cyclists of all ages, experience and ability, which will help them achieve peak performance.Full of practical advice, this book includes information Strength conditioning to improve your performance Targeted training plans to focus on strengthening weaker areas Bike care & maintenance Riding different terrains & environments Road cycling skills & safety The book will also help you explore your five key abilities of cycling fitness, defined as the maximum effort you can maintain for the following periods of 6 seconds (max sprinting) 30-60 seconds (sub-max sprinting) 3-5 minutes (VO2 max) 1 hour (zone of transition) Several hours (long steady distance riding) This book is training toolbox to structure bespoke sessions to improve these five facets of performance. How to Ride a Bike also features diet and weight loss advice, the psychology of cycling, and stories and anecdotes from Sir Chris Hoy's Olympic track career.Full of helpful and inspiring advice for those getting on a bike for the first time in a while, along with plenty of tips and tricks for seasoned cyclists looking to take it up a notch, this is a book for beginners and pros alike.

Genres: Nonfiction, Cycling

414 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 20, 2018

About the author

Sir Christopher Andrew Hoy is a former track cyclist and racing driver from Scotland who represented Great Britain at the Olympic and World Championships and Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.

On 18 April 2013, Hoy announced his retirement from competitive cycling. He said he was very proud to have taken part in the transformation of the sport.

Abridged from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Michael Hillman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only rated as 2/5, not because it's a bad book. but because it's not the right book for me. Opening chapters on general riding technique were OK, and some useful stretching/core strength exercises. but really aimed at performance cyclists, not commuters.

[Dave B · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would class myself as a occasional leisure cyclist. I learnt nothing from this book. It is really for young people with no real cycling experience.

[Ian Udell-Hart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book, links to online videos for doing the exercise

[T K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't I already know how to ride a bike from my early childhood training? Yes, mostly.

But the practical aspects can sometimes escape me. For instance, had I read Sir Chris Hoy's book a month prior I may not have inadvertently crashed into my friend who stopped ahead of me to be photographed—her hands cradling her face like a daffodil held in a rapturous pose—before we inevitably spiraled onto the black concrete asphalt. The lesson was clear from Hoy's book: don't follow directly behind someone, rather ride to the side to as you never know when the person ahead may suddenly stop.

Is this some common sense for the "starting out" crowd? Yes, we humans can do dumb shit and need the dumb stuff spelled out at times.

The book then goes into peak performance: speaking of mitochondria, our comparatively infinite fat vs glucose reserves, Zone 2 cardio, and then the finer mental and emotional aspects of peak athleticism. There's a lot to consider here in terms of grit, consistency, and practice, even if my admiration in the realm of "peak performance" is from afar.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great piece of 21st-century publishing. Stuffed full of colourful photos, infographics and charts, it appears at first a simplified, dumbed-down picture book aimed at selling a few Hoy bikes.

It's good enough to work as just a picture book... but there's plenty of substance too - tips and shortcuts for riding, bike care, training, selecting kit and some really good strength and recovery workouts and drills (with online video links).

There's a tantalising introduction to mental techniques and some observations and career highlights. All presented with authority, experience and a likeable, down-to-earth concise style that's familiar from Sir Chris's TV appearances.

Plenty of nuggets and tips come back to you in your everyday riding, whether it's how to position yourself on the bike, approach turns, choose a gear or deal with physical and mental tiredness. Great stuff.

[F J Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much aimed at the male racer, this book is full of tips about how to ride effectively, and kept fit generally. I would have appreciated a more mindful approach to the subject, and more information about dealing with cycling as a recreation and commuting; learning to pootle along comfortably etc.