Chris Case

Chris Case

Cofounder and Content Director of Fast Talk Labs, Founder of Alter Exploration
Chris is a lifelong endurance athlete, journalist, editor, explorer, and photographer. He cofounded Fast Talk Laboratories and founded Alter Exploration.

Chris is a lifelong endurance athlete with a diverse academic and professional background. He has degrees and experience in neuroscience, clinical psychology, art, documentary photography, and journalism, and has decades of professional experience in the cycling and travel industries. Most recently, he founded Alter Exploration, which crafts challenging, transformative cycling journeys in some of the world’s most stunning destinations.

Chris was born and raised in southeastern Connecticut. He took up running in elementary school, and it quickly became his sole competitive outlet. Ultimately, he won multiple state championships in cross-country and track.

Chris attended Colgate University and graduated with degrees in neuroscience and art. He spent the next three years at the National Institute of Mental Health conducting research on patients with schizophrenia. After another year researching a stem cell treatment for Parkinson’s disease, he decided to pursue his second passion. This led him to the graduate journalism program at the University of Texas at Austin, where he concentrated in documentary photography. This is where Chris rediscovered his love of cycling, joining the collegiate team before expanding into categorized racing.

In 2012, Chris became the managing editor of VeloNews magazine, a position he held for nearly eight years. It was during that time that he became co-host of Fast Talk.

His cycling pursuits took him around the world to race on the road, mountain, and in cyclocross, to places like Taiwan, Costa Rica, Israel, and throughout Europe. He has stood on the podium at several cyclocross national championships, and is a silver medalist at master’s cyclocross worlds.

Chris is the author of The Haywire Heart, a groundbreaking and critically important guide to heart care for athletes, and the first book to delve into the relationship between long-term endurance athletics and heart health.

He is a cofounder of Fast Talk Labs, with Trevor Connor, and was the COO of Fast Talk Labs and The Paleo Diet until January 2022.

Latest: Page 16

Red Yellow Flare Light Graphic for Managing Heat

Managing Heat, with Rob Pickels

Physiologist Rob Pickels joins our hosts to talk about how heat affects athletic performance and the different strategies you can implement to manage it.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 21

Get Better at Sprinting

We discuss the ins and outs of sprint technique and training, and are joined by two-time national criterium champion Eric Young for some pro tips.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 20
Wooden numbered blocks in stacks for training data metrics

Training As a Numbers Game

We talk to Dirk Friel of TrainingPeaks to explain how cyclists can use data to make their workouts more effective and productive.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 19

Top Tips for Pre-Race Prep

Your body is ready to race, but is your bike ready? We are joined by VeloNews’s tech team of Dan Cavallari and Kristen Legan to dig into the tech side of proper race preparation.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 18

The Art of the Breakaway with Tom Skujins

We are joined by Cannondale-Drapac’s escape ace Toms Skuijns, winner of two breakaway stages of the Amgen Tour of California, as well as Chris Case, to discuss the tips, tricks, and tactics needed to make a breakaway move stick.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 17

Forget What You Thought You Knew About Warm-Ups

We go in-depth on the science behind warm-ups and provide tips on how to get the most out of your next race by tailoring your routine to the event and your own needs.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 16

Should You Eat Gummy Bears Like Sagan?

In this episode, we are joined by Dan Cavallari and Stacy Sims, founder of Osmo who now works with Nuun, to discuss the difference between food and fuel — what you should be eating on the bike, and off.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 15

Which Is Better: Polarization or Sweet Spot?

Which is better, sweet spot training or polarized training? To find out, we invited in proponents of each type of training — FasCat’s Frank Overton on the sweet spot side, and Boulder Center for Sports Medicine’s Ryan Kohler to advocate for a polarized model — and let them have at it.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 14
Picking a power meter for cycling on Garmin computer head unit

How to Pick a Power Meter

We are joined by our tech crew, Dan Cavallari and Kristen Legan, to answer these questions and many more. Plus, pro power insight from Cannondale-Drapac’s master of the breakaway, Toms Skuijns.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 13

Use Tactics to Your Advantage

Let’s say you’re on an amateur team. A bunch of Cat. 3s with varying strengths and weaknesses. How do you use each rider effectively?

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 12

Busting the No Pain, No Gain Myth

We are joined by Brent Bookwalter, Lucas Euser, Inigo San Milan, and Grant Holicky to help you determine when you should and shouldn’t push through bad legs, and when you should and shouldn’t do intervals at full gas.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 11

Hit Race Weight the Right Way

We are joined by Dr. Philip Goglia, a nutritionist to the stars (and Phil Gaimon) to discuss safe and effective ways to drop weight, how to best fuel your training, and why paying close attention to your food matters.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 10

Cycling Roundtable with Andy Pruitt and Rob Pickels

We are joined by Andy Pruitt, an internationally-known fit guru and sports physician, and Robert Pickels, a coach and researcher working at the leading edge of endurance training at the CU Center for Sports Medicine, for a wide-ranging discussion

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 9
Torso of a woman rounding a steep switchback on her bike for neuromuscular training.

Stop Your Legs from Fighting (Themselves)

Neuromuscular training expert Grant Holicky of Apex Coaching offers insight into how this type of training works and how exactly to implement it in your own training.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 8
cyclist races by with bare legs in cold weather

Cold, Bare Legs Make You Dumb, Not Tough

We dig into the physiology behind pedaling in cold weather and offer up a few tips and tricks for dressing properly. Internationally renowned trainer Andy Pruitt and former pro Ted King add their own insights on the subject.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 7
Free weights inside a weight room gym

Like It or Not, You Should Be Lifting

In this episode of Fast Talk, we explain why serious cyclists should be spending time in the gym, incorporating weight lifting into their weekly programs. We speak to pro cyclist Svein Tuft, as well as Dr. Andy Pruitt to learn more about the benefits of strength training.

Fast Talk Podcast Episode 6