Most cyclists think the difference between amateurs and pros is training volume.

They think it’s FTP.
Or VO2 max.
Or how many hours they can cram into a week.

They’re wrong.

Dan Lorang has coached Olympic gold medalists and Tour de France winners.
When I sat down with him this week, he revealed something that caught me completely off guard.

The real gap between amateurs and pros?

It’s what happens outside of training.

The 3 Silent Killers of Amateur Progress
1. Lack of Periodization for Life Stress

Pros don't just plan training.
They plan stress.

At Bora–Red Bull, riders plan their hardest training blocks during the same periods when their life demands are lowest.
Fewer family obligations.
Less travel.
Minimal external stress.

In short:
They free up bandwidth so that the hard training actually lands.

How many amateurs do the opposite?
Working a 50-hour week. Juggling kids.
Trying to squeeze in 15 hours of training.
Then wondering why they're constantly exhausted.

If you don't plan for recovery — physically and emotionally — you’re always chasing fitness you’ll never catch.

2. Misunderstanding Tapering and Peak Performance

Most people think tapering means "do nothing and get fresh."

Dan’s taper protocol looks very different:

Volume down

Intensity up

Recovery dialed based on the athlete's fiber type (sprinters need more recovery, endurance riders need more load)

There’s even a strategy he uses called "preloading" — adding purposeful fatigue before a peak event because some riders perform better when slightly loaded rather than perfectly fresh.

You have to know yourself.
Not every “cookie-cutter taper” will work.

3. Obsession with Metrics at the Expense of Feel

Amateurs chase TSS. CTL. FTP.
Pros use power, heart rate, and RPE — but they also trust how they feel.

Dan put it bluntly:

"If you’re always glued to a screen, you lose connection with your own body."

Training needs to be guided by data, but anchored in awareness.

Pros know when to shut off the metrics, go explore the mountains, ride for the soul — and come back sharper because of it.

Weekly Update: Strength Work
Quick one — I’ve been getting a lot of DMs on Instagram lately asking about my strength training routine.

I'm sticking to a simple plan right now: twice per week, targeting full-body strength that's designed specifically for cyclists (not just random gym work).

If you’re curious, I mapped out the exact program I'm following here:
👉 My Strength Plan for Cyclists

Strength work is one of the best unfair advantages you can give yourself on the bike — but only if you do it right.
(I’ll keep you posted week to week on how it’s progressing.)

The Takeaway
If you're feeling stuck:

Audit your external stress

Learn your ideal taper style

Balance data with instinct

You don’t need more intervals.
You don’t need another app.

You need to create a life where your training can actually work.

That’s the real secret.

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