In simple, clear terms, thankfully absent the mind-numbing details of other cycling books, Armstrong and Carmichael destroy the myth that training harder means going faster. Anyone who thinks that huffing and puffing until your thighs throb and burn is the way to grow stronger, is going to be outraged by this book. "How can you become stronger when it does not feel like you are working out? How can anyone reach ultimate fitness unless they pedal until it hurts?", they will wonder.

In a book that covers every aspect of cycling important to a rider, Armstrong and Carmichael lay out is a program for riding slower and riding less, but gaining strength and fitness you cannot reach the old fashion way of continually pushing beyond your aerobic limit. What Lance has proven beyond all doubt by his fitness level is that the key to expanding your aerobic limit is to stay within it. Forget the burn: if you burn you are lactating and if you do so every time you ride then you are loosing fitness, not gaining it.

It is a wonder that they decided to publish this book before Armstrong retires. We could have watched him perform for years and never guessed his secret. But his now open secret is safe, because it contradicts decades of training practice, so it is doubtful his opponents will use and capitalize on it. You may not be a world-class rider, but this is certainly a world-class book that will benefit any rider who applies its lessons.

58 of 58 found the following review helpful:

good content /doesn't go far enough/needs to be more usable  Aug 02, 2001
By J. D. Moffatt "jdweb"
I'm not sure who the target audience is for this book: the fitness rider, or someone out to win races. For either group, this book isn't detailed enough, but what is there is excellent. I think that more experienced athletes won't buy it after a quick browse in the bookstore because there is too much really basic information between the nuggets.

The advice about cornering (weighting the outside pedal and shifting your weight, etc.) is something I haven't seen in print before, and I found it to be an awesome technique, having learned about it only at a criterium racing clinic a long time ago (the instructor adapted it from motorcycle racing). Also, the emergency turn advice is a great technique I learned at the same clinic, and it saved me from a few crashes in races. These explanantions, however, could have been aided by a bit more detail, and maybe some useful diagrams and photos. The dramatic and counter-intuitive emergency turn technique is poorly explained, and needs an explanation in terms of the angular momentum of the wheel (you have to take your front wheel off, spin it, and hold it in your hands to understand the technique).

The nutrition section encouraged me to be more rigorous in counting calories, which I've never done. That section didn't really tell me anything I didn't know already, but it was a good kick in the seat of the cycling shorts to shape up. On the negative side, the book makes a common mistake in recommending the amount of protein and carbohydrate by percentage. It may be ok for Lance to take in 10-15% protein, but given the total number of calories he needs to take in, he's probably still getting well over 120 grams a day (I need about 130 a day to be healthy at my comparitively modest activity level). But if your caloric requirements are much lower, then be careful - your protein levels must be kept up or you'll get ill. Joe Friel and Loren Cordain both have important things to say about this in their books, who recommend more like 0.8 or 0.9 grams per lbs of lean body mass for athletes (corresponding to about 25%-30% in most diets), as well as the "Protein Power" book by Eades and Eades. The bottom line is: beware of protein/carb/fat ratios.

I think James McCullagh's 1984 book "The Complete Bicycle Fitness Book" was a better book for newby riders, though it would be out of date in some areas now and is also out of print, unfortunately. It very nearly lived up to its title and was jammed with information. It's got some cool sections that Armstrong's book should have, like calorie output (and horsepower) vs. bicycle speed, and much more detailed suggestions on a variety of areas. Carmichael measures this stuff (see the Armstrong website for data about Armstrong's scary figures) so why isn't it in his Armstrong book? The Carmichael/Armstrong book therefore comes off as somewhat watered down: what's there is good, but they are only answering some of the common questions. I raced on and off road about ten years ago, and took up running after that (o.k. but far from elite results - a sub 17 minute 5k and a sub 3 hr marathon), so a lot of the training principles are old hat, and I know a lot that isn't in this book, too.

But what about the people who can't fill in the spaces? For example, in the climbing techniques section they mention that Armstrong "breathes out through his mouth and nose" and not in, and that he "concentrates on breathing deeply and regularly". This isn't sufficient information to really help someone: What they also need to know is you have to breathe from your diaphragm instead of your upper chest like most people, and that you only exchange 80% of your lung capacity in the first second when exhaling,so you need to increase your Peak Flow; there are abdominal exercises for helping with breathing, plus martial arts techniques, and respiratory devices (eg. The Breather) for strengthening your diaphragm to nearly double the peak flow in some cases, etc. This is what I mean by it not going far enough to be useful for the uninitiated, and it gets frustrating after awhile. In another section they refer to ab workouts and reference the excellent "Stronger Abs and Back" book, but all they show are lousy abdominal crunches, which are painful and difficult for some people, and a very incomplete recommendation as they only isolate one area (and they don't even mention specific ab exercises for helping with breathing). Why talk about it at all if they aren't going to do it right? That doesn't seem to be Armstrong's approach to his racing, so we expect the highest standard from his book.

The Armstrong training book is better than the old Lemond book, however, for new riders. I sort of get the impression that both the Lemond and Armstrong books coast a bit on the names, and that's unfortunate. Being a big Lemond fan, I was really disappointed with his book (should have been either stories or advice), as it seemed like something that was rushed out, and I get a similar impression with this one. I'm a bit more surprised at Carmichael than Armstrong, as Carmichael is in the business of training people. Is he trying to keep some of his really good advice proprietary so he can stimulate people to sign up for his coaching programs? Not a nice thought, but surely he knows more than this. I hope that future editions of the Armstrong/Carmichael book take a unblinking look at what's already published, and how usable some of their advice is, and try to do better. But hey, I gave it four stars because what's there is a good start.

60 of 61 found the following review helpful:

A very good book (Ignore nay-sayers)  Jun 24, 2003
By Kenneth Wilson
The self-appointed elitists who gave this book a bad review only have themselves to blame if they bought this book only to find out that it wasn't for them. It only took me a few minutes scanning through the book to realize that it was geared more for beginner and recreational cyclists. (although there is good advice even for racers here) Even if you only had this website to go by, (instead of a personal visit to the bookstore) the Edtorial reviews here gave plenty of information to allow one to determine the content of the book.
Many athletes I've dealt-with over the years were guilty of over-training, and neglecting the basics that help prevent injury. This book will be a help to anyone who wants to work and improve at cycling without "killing" themselves every time they head out to train.....or literally killing or injuring themselves because they didn't learn a few riding techniques to stay vertical during turns, pack-riding or emergency maneuvers.
It's an excellent place to start.

43 of 44 found the following review helpful:

This is what you really need  Feb 05, 2001
By josh fredericks
I think this book is one of the best examples of what cycling and training is all about. Too many cyclists form beginners to pros are constantly looking for that magic workout of secret training plan that will make them the next superstar. The fact is, and what this book demonstrates superbly, is that in order to be a better/stronger cyclist you need to "train smarter". Contrary to popular belief, its not the quantity of your training, but the quality. This book helps more than any other I've read in detailing a QUALITY training program complete with everything you need from specific workouts to nutrition to weight training for cyclists. I am an elite level cyclist who for years has been training as hard as my body will allow. Now, because of this book, I have refocused my energy on quality workouts and a balanced program. The results have been amazing. I recommend this book to all levels of athletes, to anyone who wants to get the most out of their training.

26 of 27 found the following review helpful:

One can always learn something...  Dec 01, 2000
By Domestic Gnome
Although I have read and pedaled a fair amount, I found this book interesting as it revealed the specifics of the work and training that produced Armstrong's remarkable accomplishments in cycling. As with any book, it provided bits and pieces both known and new. Simple, clear, and direct, it outlines a comprehensive program that can serve as a "preflight checklist" -- for newcomer or veteran. The book pulled together information that I had read or heard here and there. The weight training program is good for off-season cross-training and is clearly cycling specific. The dietary information and recommendations have the ring of common sense about them. As well the techniques and tactics for cycling are precise and easy to understand. The book does not provide too much info but simply gets to the matter at hand. Reminds me of the Greg Lemond "Complete Book of Bicycling" brought up to date. And as with Lemond, Armstrong and his story are inspirational -- an aspect of the book that can provide just that little extra push in training -- "Hey, if Lance can..." The Armstrong tale is extraordinary by any measure and this book affords us an inside look at the actual program that was hinted at in his book, "It's not About the Bike." (Aside re. "It's not About the Bike": the book is from the "gee whiz" school of sports writing but the story is so powerful that it compels ones attention and admiration -- esp. the portion dealing with what the Armstrongs went through to have a child). In sum, we all need more from guys like Armstrong to inspire our best efforts -- on the bike and off.

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