5 Ways Functional Breathing Makes You a Sharper, Calmer Rider Starting on Your Next Ride

There’s one performance tool that most mountain bikers completely ignore — and it doesn’t cost anything, doesn’t require extra time in the gym, and you can start using it on [...]

What Your First Ride Back Tells You About Your Winter Training

There’s a moment most riders know well. You’ve been off the bike for a while — winter, life, whatever the reason. You finally get back out on the trail. And [...]

The 1 Gram Per Pound Protein Rule Is Wrong

What 82 studies actually say about how much protein you need to build strength after 40 Here’s something that might surprise you. You’ve probably heard the rule: eat 1 gram [...]

The one pedaling position that’s hurting your riding (and you don’t even know it)

Most riders have no idea they’re making their rides harder, their bodies more beat up, and their skills worse — all at the same time. And it comes down to [...]

Stop Training Like You’re 25 – Here’s What Actually Works After 40

When you’re 25, you can get away with almost anything. Sleep 5 hours, ride hard every day, skip the warm-up, ignore your recovery…and you still feel fine the next morning. [...]

The 3 numbers that make your training smarter

Most riders have no idea how fast they’re moving the weight in the gym. They grab the bar, lower it in about one second, bounce off the bottom, and grind [...]

Why Most Riders Can’t Fix Their Skills (and Don’t Even Know Why)

One of the biggest breakthroughs a rider can have is realizing this simple concept: movement is the building block of skill. A lot of riders struggle with their bike skills because [...]

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The “Secret” Movement Tip For Better Jumps

Next to cornering, getting better at jumping your bike is one of the most sought after skills for a lot of riders. Even if you don’t have any plans to [...]

Some Thoughts on Red Bull Rampage — And How To Save It From Itself

This past weekend’s Red Bull Rampage lit up everyone’s SM feeds – both the highlights and the lowlights. As amazing as the riding was, the injuries were hard to watch.  [...]

The Fastest Way To Improve Your Performance – Breathing Gears & Isometrics

One of the quickest ways to improve your performance on the trail doesn’t involve more intervals, fancy equipment, or even extra time on the bike. You can make a real [...]

Strength is the glass – how big is yours?

When it comes to riding, think of strength as the glass and everything else—cardio, endurance, skills—as the liquid you pour into it. If you’ve got a small glass, it doesn’t [...]

Why You Need To Master Standing Up (And How To Do It)

One of the biggest upgrades you can make to your riding is learning how to master the standing position. Once you feel strong and stable when standing up then you’ll [...]

10 Minute Reset For Less Pain & Better Performance For The 40+ Mountain Biker

Let me ask you something: Have you ever gotten up from bed or off the couch and felt like the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz? A little tight here… [...]

From Functional Purist to Joint-Saving Realist: My Training Evolution (And Why It Matters For You)

I used to be that guy in the gym… No machines. No “bodybuilding” work. And if you caught me doing bicep curls? I’d probably tell you I was just warming [...]

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The Missing Link Between Your Strength Training and the Trail

If you’re like me, you spend time in the gym doing squats, deadlifts, lunges, and other movements designed to build real-world strength and power on the trail. But here’s something [...]

Why Kettlebells Are the Perfect Training Tool for the 40+ Rider

When I first started training with kettlebells over 20 years ago, I approached them the same way I approached most things back then—how hard can I push myself and how [...]

From Sending Gaps to Finding Peace on the Trail

There was a time when I lived to push the limits on my bike. I’m talking 40+ foot gap jumps. 15-foot drops. The kind of stuff that made people stop [...]

The Power of Coaching Language for MTB Performance

One of the most overlooked aspects of improving your riding isn’t found in a workout program, a new bike setup, or even the best nutrition plan.  It’s in the words [...]

Riding For A Lifetime Podcast – Meditation For Mountain Biking

I’m a few days late getting this newsletter out but I think you’ll find it worth the wait. My daughter and I were in Denver for a Jiu Jitsu tournament [...]

How to Use Rep Ladders to Safely Build Strength for the 40+ Rider

As we get older, training smart becomes more important than training hard. The days of grinding ourselves into the ground with high-rep sets and excessive fatigue are over if we [...]

The 3 Best Kettlebell Exercises To Help Your Riding.

Most riders I talk to tell me that they face three big obstacles when it comes to starting a training program: 1) Time: We tend to live busy lives and [...]

Mastering MTB and Life: Lessons from The Art of Learning

One of the most powerful things you can do to improve your riding and longevity on the bike has nothing to do with fancy new gear, harder workouts, or even [...]

RFAL Podcast: Strength Training Basics For The 40+ Year Old Rider

As you get older, strength training changes from a “good to do” to a “must do” status. Losing your strength, muscle and power are all realities for the 40+ year [...]

Top 3 Strength Training Mistakes To Avoid For The 40+ Rider

If you’re a mountain biker over 40, you’ve probably noticed that your body doesn’t bounce back like it used to.  Recovery takes longer, injuries linger, and if you’re not training [...]

The Most Important Skill You’re Probably Ignoring

When it comes to improving your performance on the bike, most riders focus on their fitness, their bike setup, or their technique.  And while those things are important, there’s another [...]

Using Breathwork for Performance and Longevity

When it comes to improving performance on the bike, most riders are quick to focus on the obvious: strength training, cardio, and technique.  But there’s one fundamental piece of the [...]

The Power of Small Changes: Applying Atomic Habits to Your Riding and Training

One of the best books I’ve read on building better habits is Atomic Habits by James Clear.  The big idea in the book is that small, consistent actions create massive [...]

Fuel for the Trail: Nutritional Tips for Energy and Recovery for 40+ Riders

One of the biggest factors in your performance on the bike—and how you feel afterward—is your nutrition. What you eat before, during, and after your ride directly impacts your energy [...]

Mental Resilience For The 40+ Year Old Rider

As mountain bikers, we all reach a point where we start thinking about aging differently.  Maybe it’s a ride where you don’t recover as quickly as you used to, or [...]

The Essentials of Pain-Free Riding for the 40+ Rider

If you’ve been riding bikes long enough to see 40 (or 50, or 60…) on your birthday cake, then you’ve probably realized that your body doesn’t bounce back quite like [...]

Unique MTB Training Methods for Staying Strong on the Bike at 40+

If you’re over 40 and love mountain biking, you’ve probably noticed that your body doesn’t bounce back like it used to. The same training methods that worked in your 20s [...]

Why Flat Pedals Are the Best Choice for the 40+ Year Old Rider

If there’s one thing the cycling industry loves, it’s pushing clipless pedals as the “must-have” option for every rider, regardless of their needs, experience, or goals. Sure, things have gotten [...]

Making Nutrition Simple For The 40+ Rider

Nutrition is one of those subjects where it is easy to get lost in the details. There are a lot of great approaches and the truth is that there isn’t [...]

Save Big On My Newest 40+ Training Program PLUS 5 Free Bonuses

Black Friday is here, and it’s your chance to grab my newest workout program, 40+ Dumbbell Conditioning Workout Program, for over 20% off the regular price. Designed specifically for 40+ [...]

Is Exercise Variety Overrated For The 40+ Year Old Rider?

If you do something long enough you will most likely end up with some things that you change your mind about. New information and experiences can lead to a new [...]

Comfort Zone Expansion

When I first started getting serious about strength training in high school one of the things that was taken as a given for getting stronger was the idea of “no [...]

Is “Optimal Body Position” Limiting Your Progress?

Perhaps no term gets thrown around more when talking about riding your bike than “body position”. It is recognized as being an essential part of your riding skills and performance, [...]

Top 5 Leg Exercises For The 40+ Rider

When I first started MTB Strength Training Systems back in 2005 the ideas around getting stronger in the gym for mountain biking were much different. Beck then strength training wasn’t [...]

Using A Straw To Build Better Cardio?

If you have followed my newsletter for any length of time then you know that I am a huge advocate for better breathing habits. Breathing is the one lever that [...]

Why Physicality Is The Foundation For Performance

In order to excel at mountain biking you need three things – physicality, technique and tactics. You need all three in the right amount and having a weakness in any [...]

How To Deal With Knee Pain.

As you get older dealing with pain becomes more and more of a reality. Old injuries flare up, wear and tear add up and it all leads to more and [...]

Better Breathing = Better Skills

While most people come into mountain biking worried about their fitness and cardio, it doesn’t take long to realize that your technical skills play a big role in your performance. [...]

“What is the secret to staying in shape”?

“What is the secret to staying in shape”? I have to admit, I was caught a bit off guard by that question coming from a water softener salesman that had [...]

Cardio Training For The 40+ Year Old MTB Rider

Over the last 5-10 years my cardio training program has changed a lot.  My old plan was to ride 5+ days a week and hit some hard intervals after my [...]

Beyond Intervals – Using Anti Glycolytic Training To Improve Performance And Health

When it comes to building MTB specific cardio, the best method is to actually ride your bike – that is the most sport specific training you can do. However, there [...]

8 Tips To Help Low Back Pain

Low Back Pain is one of the most common things that riders suffer from both on and off the bike. It can ruin the good time that mountain biking is [...]

RFAL Podcast: Strength Training Basics For The 40+ Year Old Rider

As you get older, strength training changes from a “good to do” to a “must do” status. Losing your strength, muscle and power are all realities for the 40+ year [...]

My Morning Routine: High Leverage, Healthy Habits For The 40+ Year Old Rider

In this episode of the Riding For A Lifetime Podcast I share with you my morning routine that helps me set my day on a good trajectory.  Maximizing your health [...]

RFAL Podcast – MTB Specific Exercises You Might Not Be Using…But Should

The term “MTB Specific Training” gets thrown around a lot but what does it really mean? At its core, it means using a training program that helps you ride faster, [...]

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RFAL Podcast: Meditation For Mountain Biking

In this podcast I wanted to share my experience with meditation for mountain biking. I’ve been meditating in some way since I was first introduced to it through a Tai [...]

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