Getting Faster
With few exceptions, the primary focus of athletes is to get faster. We all want to swim faster, transition faster, bike faster, and run faster. How do we do this? Bottom line, it comes down to developing a more efficient and powerful engine. The table below shows the average time benefit an athlete can gain by adopting various changes in preparing for and racing a 40 KM time trial (TT). The greatest improvement is realized by proper training.
| Novice Cyclist | Well-trained Cyclist | Elite Cyclist | |
| Carbohydrate Beverage Ingestion | 0:42 | 0:36 | 0:32 |
| Caffeine | 1:24 | 1:03 | 0:55 |
| Lighter Bike (flat TT) | 0:13 | 0:07 | 0:05 |
| Lighter Biker (uphill TT 3% grade, 20km) | 1:34 | 0:42 | 0:29 |
| Lighter Bike (uphill TT 6% grade, 20km) | 3:38 | 1:52 | 1:15 |
| Aerodynamic Positioning | 2:00-2:30 | 2:00-2:30 | 2:00-2:30 |
| Aerodynamic Frame | 1:44 | 1:26 | 1:17 |
| Training (minimum) | 3:35 | 1:10 | 0:32 |
| Training (maximum) | 7:18 | 2:20 | 1:33 |
| Training (average) | 5:27 | 1:45 | 1:02 |
from USA Cycling Club Coach Manual v 2005.1
It is unfortunate that many athletes will spend thousands of dollars on light frames and components just to take a few grams of weight of their bikes. The benefit they are gaining on a 40 km TT (the same bike length as an Olympic distance triathlon) is 5-13 seconds. If that amount were invest in aerodynamic positioning (a proper bike fit on a triathlon/TT bike) they would cut 2-2.5 minutes off their bike split! If that were invested into proper training, the bike split would be cut an average of 5.5 minutes. What should also be mentioned is the athlete will likely shave weight off their bike via the proper training program (via increased lean body mass).
