Most riders treat fuelling as bonk insurance. A new study says your bottle is doing something bigger: protecting how hard you can go late in a ride. Carbohydrate preserved critical power at hour three in a clear dose-dependent way, though it did nothing for your sprint. Plus a rethink on VLamax, the gym, and what actually raises your glycolytic power.

This week's study: Norte BR, Slinn MM, Johnson KO, et al. Graded Carbohydrate Ingestion up to 120 g/h Attenuates the Reduction in Critical Power Following 3 h of Moderate-Intensity Exercise in a Dose-Dependent Manner. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2026;36(6):e70326. doi:10.1111/sms.70326

Watch this week's video: I Cycled Up Timor-Leste's Steepest Road (While Talking Mindset)

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Daily cycling intelligence from SEMIPRO CYCLING, produced with AI-assisted research, scripting, and synthetic voice.