Physiology

It can be difficult for male coaches to know their role in helping female athletes navigate performance in context of the menstrual cycle and hormones. Coach Bevan McKinnon shares his experience and learning on this topic and some helpful tools.

Learn the importance of working on your body first to effect change in your brain and mind.

What are the keys to success in ultra running, and are they the same across all distances?

We get asked a lot of great—and nerdy—questions via our Fast Talk Labs Forum. Every month we’ll now be taking the best questions and publishing our answers. This month, our in-house physiologist Rob Pickels tackles the topics of altitude training and the impact of body composition on hypothermia.

The concepts of central and peripheral conditioning help explain why an effective training base period leads to speed and durability in the race season.

Polarized training is most successful when your body is ready for high-intensity sessions. Understanding how your autonomic nervous system works can help you time it right.

In collaboration with Dr. Stephen Seiler, the “father of polarized training,” we have curated everything you need to know about the 80/20 training method.

The demands of virtual racing are different from live racing. Physiologist Rob Pickels explores the science of warmups and how this applies to fast-start Zwift races.

Exercising in cold weather has a significant impact on our physiology—from breathing to metabolism to performance. In this Pathway, you’ll learn about the physiological and psychological effects of cold from many experts.

While VO2max is well studied, VLamax is a relatively new concept. Understanding the relationship between the two measures will help you better define your training.