Why we've created the FulGaz training programs and how they will make you a better bike rider

FulGaz looks and feels like you're riding outside, which let's face it, that's pretty awesome. However, we recently we asked ourselves the question "What else do people do when they ride outside?" After "Drinking coffee with friends" The two biggest things that came up were "I do specific training sessions" and "I ride with a training partner" As the indoor training market grows and matures, there is an increasing demand for apps to tell you what to do, so the logical step is to add these "other" things into FulGaz without losing the basic simplicity and ease of use we've become known for.

Fast forward a few months and we can now add specific training sessions into some of the rides to create a training program, and "Bernard" the virtual training partner will tell you what to do as you ride. It's been a significant investment in coding, design, testing and expert coaching expertise and you can now benefit from the results of that effort.

You'll find lots of information on these pages to help answer the most common questions related to this program. hopefully that gives you all the information you'll need but let us know on these pages if we've missed something. Above all, please understand that this is all new, and despite our best efforts there may be some small teething problems along the way. Be reasonable in your expectations and you'll have great time.

What to expect
Three sessions to ride each week, including monthly testing to define your training levels. Session duration is usually 60 to 90 minutes. You also get general guidelines for what to do on the "other" days.

The number one rule when doing the sessions is to equate what you're doing with what you would do when you're riding outdoors.  Think of this as the chance to go riding with a top coach who will give you power and cadence targets as you ride and let you know if the road is going to get steep or you're going to do a U-turn. This results in an incredibly immersive training experience. On the other hand, if you expect the experience to be like TrainerRoad in Erg mode or Zwift in Workout mode, you're going to confused and potentially disappointed.

Don't just produce more watts, learn to be a better bike ride
One of the trends in modern cycling is people starting to ride later in life. I did my first bike race when I was 14. These days, the bike riding bug is more likely to take hold at 34. The result of this, along with modern technology that can throw numbers at you all day is many riders have not developed the "feel" for riding intensities and pacing. Ask any top pro how many watts he's producing and most of them would be incredibly close just by knowing how their legs feel. To help you learn to feel what's right and when you really need to change gear, the rides feel like normal roads and you need to change gear as normal.

Why most of the sessions ridden in steady mode
We need to be able to prescribe precise effort levels and for to rest ratios. Not worrying about how fast you're going (in reactive mode) stops you going too hard and allows us to make sure the efforts and recoveries are the correct lengths. It also has the added advantage that you know exactly how long the sessions will take to complete.

Why you'll improve
We're not going to mindlessly smash you. We're going to test you to get your training levels, then help you make the most of every training minute. There's a big emphasis on building better technique and efficiency early on, with the aim being to make you a permanently better hill climber, not just to have a brief flash of form at the end of the program.

There's lots more information listed below and I'm looking forward to hearing about your progress.

Regards,

Mike Clucas
Founder
FulGaz