It's 'Get Ready for Racing Week' on Cycling Weekly: your guide to the prep you can do to achieve your racing goals

With the racing season right around the corner (or already just begun for some), our week-long special runs you through how to get your legs and gear ready for race day

Image shows a rider who is getting ready for racing
(Image credit: Future)

From 13-17th February, here at Cycling Weekly we'll be providing you with all our tips and advice for bringing your best self (and bike!) to upcoming races and events - so you can better hit your cycling goals.

A large part of your performance comes down to your physical fitness and your freshness on the day. Following a cycling training plan through the winter (and into spring) is great preparation, but as race day draws closer you’re going to want to taper down your sessions and flush the fatigue out of your system - we’ll be taking you through just how to get the balance right later this week.

Come the big event itself, one of the next most important considerations is your cycling nutrition strategy - without the right fuel, and in sufficient quantities, even the best riders can end up coming unstuck. 

There’s a huge variety of different ways to take on carbs your muscles need. Energy bars can be easier on the stomach and deliver a less spikey release of energy, whereas mixing energy powders into your water bottles can provide an easy and instant hit of sugar just when you need it. The best energy gels sit somewhere between the two and make another useful tool. But with all cycling nutrition, it’s best to experiment before hand - what works for some people might not work for you, and you don’t want to find that out in the middle of a race!

Then there’s the bike. In terms of where you’re likely to see the biggest gains, it’s the physiological side of things that is generally most important - but a badly maintained bike can see even the strongest riders out of the running. We’ll take you through everything you need to know on getting your bike in tip top racing condition - as well as providing a few suggestions for those contemplating an upgrade.

You can find all our articles from the week below: 

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Anna Marie Abram
Fitness Features Editor

I’ve been hooked on bikes ever since the age of 12 and my first lap of the Hillingdon Cycle Circuit in the bright yellow kit of the Hillingdon Slipstreamers. For a time, my cycling life centred around racing road and track. 


But that’s since broadened to include multiday two-wheeled, one-sleeping-bag adventures over whatever terrain I happen to meet - with a two-week bikepacking trip from Budapest into the mountains of Slovakia being just the latest.


I still enjoy lining up on a start line, though, racing the British Gravel Championships and finding myself on the podium at the enduro-style gravel event, Gritfest in 2022.


Height: 177cm

Weight: 60–63kg