It depends on the part of the season and the events I’m racing, but I generally practice everyday, one way or another. 2 days high-intensity biking and 1 or 2 longer ones over the weekend. I alternate the intensity days with rowing and ski-erging. Also include 2 strength days and flexibility in the mix. Playing with the kids, e.g. Spikeball, is a huge bonus and adds diversity.

Depends on the competition:

1) for shorter, intense events, such as triathlons I go for digestability and high energy content, with some protein bundled in for muscle protection only.

2) during multi-day ultras, I try to get as many calories in as there is no way of replacing every one lost – a daily deficit is part of the deal. So, running through different types seems to work for me, aiming to get as much as possible in paralell, as frequent as digestible and with different absorption speeds: complex carbs, simple carbs and fat. An eat fest!

Sometimes there’s no active thinking, you’re just in the zone. The largest share I like to let my mind wander, think about life – early years and ideas for what’s next, family and friends. Some mental challenges and math come in handy when I get sleepy. I also listen to music (single ear always) for rhythm, audiobooks and even make short phone calls, sometimes catching up and surprising people I haven’t talked to in a long time!

There are many ways to toughness. But the first that comes to mind is Liège-Bastogne-Liège because of injury to a knee vs. steep gradients and, especially, due to the terrible weather conditions arriving at Bastogne – nearly froze during an hailstorm and took some minutes to feel my whole hands again after stopping before the return point.

Easy. N+1, where N is the current number of bikes owned.