How would you train for the biggest ride of your life?

13/03/25

Samuel Thomson has a plan: to ride the Tour de France Randonneur route in 13 days. In his last blog for us, Samuel explained a little more about what the ride will entail and some of the challenges he'll face while covering the phenomenal daily distances he'll need to ride in order to hit his target. This time around, he's detailing the training that he'll be undertaking to prepare for the challenge.

WHERE TO START

How does one train to ride 4,800km in 13 days? A good place to start in the search for an answer to this specific conundrum is to consider how one trains for any goal. Ultra-distance cycling is a very niche part of endurance sport with unique demands but the basic training principles are still relevant and applicable.

As a professional cycling coach (via the ABCC - Association of British Cycling Coaches) who runs a service dedicated to athletes aspiring for ultra-distance goals, my mind is often focused on taking underlying universal training principles and applying them to the specific challenges of cycling a very long way.

In particular, it should not be overlooked that this is a multi-faceted discipline where physical training must be balanced with preparation for all the other elements that will influence one's ability to maintain forward momentum. A lot of this comes down to being as efficient as possible to maximise moving time whilst not neglecting actions which in time affect the sustainability of this progress. For example, adequate nutrition/hydration through resupply, managing levels of fatigue and maintaining personal hygiene. That said, this is still a physical pursuit so if my legs are not prepared to propel me across those 4,800km and 50,000m+ of climbing then I won’t be going anywhere in a hurry!

So in a practical sense, I am basing my training plan on the four key training principles of specificity, progressive overload, reversibility/recovery and individuality. I will run through each of these in order with examples of how the principles are applied in both a high level and day-to-day perspective.

TO BE SPECIFIC

Specificity may well be the most important training principle. Put simply, if you want to become good at something, you must practice doing that thing. This becomes more important the closer the goal event becomes, with training more closely resembling the demands of that event.

Defining and analysing the demands of the challenge is my first step before designing any training plan. You have to know what you are up against to begin to decide how to tackle it. In June, my goal is to ride 4,800km in less than 13 days. That will require covering at least 369.23km per 24 hours (yes we are getting specific!) including 2,000m+ mountain passes in the Alps & Pyrenees and a variety of terrain in between.

However, if I were to follow the specificity principle to a T, riding 369km per day with a couple of cols thrown in would soon send my training volume to an unsustainable level and leave little room for recovery and progression. Therefore a balance must be struck between training specifically and sustainably. Increasingly longer rides will play a crucial part of my preparation, but I must also be smart about how these are employed.

THE SCIENCE BIT

Part of this involves taking a reverse-periodisation approach to my training where I focus on improving my Aerobic Capacity in the early preparation stages. This can be viewed conceptually as expanding my aerobic ‘fitness box’ with the aim of enhancing my overall ability to work aerobically. This can then be translated to consequently raising my Aerobic Threshold (achieved through effectively raising the aerobic ceiling, similar to the rising tide lifting all boats concept), which is a sustainable intensity often referred to as one's all-day pace. Volume will then be prioritised as June approaches.

In practice this looks like a typical week consisting of two key interval sessions at a VO2 Max intensity during the winter months, predominantly on the indoor trainer. This has a dual practical advantage when the weather is less conducive for long outdoor rides. I will still retain a longer ride at the weekend, but as this is usually limited to 4-5 hours I focus on making this as productive as possible by riding consistently at an intensity close to my Aerobic Threshold.

As volume then takes priority, I will begin to increase the duration of a ‘typical’ weekend ride but balancing this against retaining freshness to be able to maintain quality sessions on weekdays. Of particular importance will then be ‘simulation’ rides where I will target specific challenges I am likely to face in June, without necessarily replicating the daily distance. For example, incorporating riding at night, sleeping out to test & familiarise myself with my sleep setup and back-to-back longer days to build my durability. These are all opportunities to find out what works, what doesn’t and apply the learnings to fine tuning my preparation.

PROGRESSIVE OVERLOAD

In order to make physiological improvements, a training stimulus must be applied above and beyond what the body is familiar with. The body responds to the stressor by adapting with more tolerance to the specific activity, and improved performance. This occurs at a greater level than that demanded by the stressor and has been termed ‘super-compensation’.

There are three ways this can be accomplished: increasing intensity, duration or frequency. During the early stages of my training, increasing intensity is the goal during interval sessions. Adding a percentage or two to the power targets each week soon builds up to significant gains, resulting in adaptations which are beneficial for me to exercise aerobically. Duration then takes the lead as my longer rides become the priority. Again, this will be in a progressive manner and balanced against the other training principles so that overall quality is retained.

I would also add in here the importance of consistency. Forming good habits with your training, including establishing a routine that fits around the rest of your life commitments, will assist with this progression and ensure that your training is a sustainable pursuit. Consistency has gladly always been one of my strong suits. I love training for training’s sake - not getting out of bed to get the job done is never more than a fleeting thought. The greater goal just adds that extra element of motivation to get the best from each session.

REVERSIBILITY/RECOVERY

Without adequate recovery time, the body will not have the opportunity to adapt to the training stimulus, causing fatigue in the short term and potentially burnout in the longer term should the situation persist. The principle of reversibility, however, implies that the opposite also occurs if there is not enough of a training stimulus, leading to detraining.

This concept is particularly important when I consider scheduling my longer training and simulation rides. These require extended periods of recovery, where additional stress too soon would prove unproductive. Trying to fit in ever-longer rides each weekend allows inadequate time to recover and build in quality work during the week, hindering progression. I therefore plan to space my truly long rides and overload sessions by 3-4 weeks so that a ‘reload’ week (my more positive term for a ‘recovery’ week!) can be programmed immediately afterwards and permit the beneficial physiological adaptations to be absorbed.

I also consider this principle on a week-by-week basis. I prioritise the key sessions of that week, ensuring I am entering them fresh so that I can get the most out of them. The days in between, the primary issue is recovery, unless there is a specific focus on simulating training in a fatigued state (which will naturally be the case after day one of the ride!). Above all, I will be seeking to maximise the most effective and beneficial recovery modality, which is surprisingly free and seldom prioritised by many - sleep. Yes, there is no more powerful way to recover than good shut-eye. Just because my sleep will be limited during June doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be employing it to its maximum in the build-up. Sleep-deprivation training isn’t a thing and can be dangerously unproductive.

INDIVIDUALITY

We are all humans with similar physiologies, but there is a large variation between how we each respond to training. This may be due to genetic factors, as well as our training history, lifestyle and nutrition. As we are all unique, our training and preparation must therefore also be this way. This implies matching my training plan not just to the demands of the Tour de France Randonneur, but also to my distinct characteristics for it to be most effective.

When applied to the multifaceted demands I will be facing, the individuality principle goes well beyond physical preparation. My individual tolerances, requirements and preferences must all be reflected in my setup and dialed in through practice and an element of trial and error.

Developing a comprehensive understanding of what works for me and what doesn’t can come both from experience and specific practice. Through my role as a coach, when assigning similar workouts to different athletes I witness first-hand how distinct the physiological responses can be. There are many training protocols aiming to achieve the same outcome - the application often comes down to individuality.

For myself, I find that I respond well to repeating the same high-intensity workouts for a number of weeks in the early preparation stages. By habituating myself to the execution, I can clearly define and track my progression by adding small amounts to the power targets each week. This allows progression to be gradual, quantifiable and targeted.

HARD WORK CAN BE FUN TOO

A bonus key element of the training process which I am ever keen to emphasise is enjoyment. I will have to work bloody hard to be prepared to take on this challenge but this doesn’t mean I can’t have fun along the way and combine my training with seeing incredible places, welcoming new experiences and sharing it with others. To this end I am a great proponent of incorporating rides and trips where there is less focus on numbers and analysis, rather riding from a to b in a fashion more akin to ‘touring’. The training impact of these rides also cannot be overlooked. Travelling and living off one's bicycle without the time pressure of a ticking clock allows one to practice many of the skills that will be required to be mastered in a more relaxed setting (e.g. sleep setup, resupply, clothing choices). The first of these - a traverse across the south of France from east to west that I have just enjoyed in the sometimes challenging conditions that February can bring.