Tips to Master the 2023 AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championships

The Gran Fondo is back at RoadNats in 2023. Photos: SUPPLIED.

The 2023 AusCycling Gran Fondo National Championships is back at RoadNats in 2023.

This is your chance to tackle the Mt Buninyong climb head on before the elites, and enjoy the perks such as fully closed roads, professional timing and nutrition support, while $5 from every entry goes to Ronald McDonald House Charities.

With the Gran Fondo seven days away, we take a deep dive into managing your final week into the ride to get you primed for a fun and enjoyable Gran Fondo experience.

BACK OFF YOUR TRAINING VOLUME

By lightening your training load the week before the event, your cumulative fatigue from training fades and your ability to perform rises.

Our simple tips for tapering are to keep your riding frequency the same but shorten those rides and include some short but hard efforts

The 58km course will consist of 5 laps at 11.6km’s.

Prioritise sleep

High-quality sleep for this final week is crucial for effective training and for feeling fresh and strong on the start line.

Pre-Ride Fueling

“What should I eat for a big ride?” is a very common question. Here are a few simple keys to remember:

Eat what is familiar:

Just eat like you’d normally eat before a big ride

Don’t worry about carbo-loading:

Consuming a pre-ride meal that’s rich in carbohydrates (vegetables, pasta, rice and potatoes) is a good idea, but over-emphasising carbohydrates in the days before the event is unnecessary

Base your lunch on how early you eat:

You want your lunch to be digested before the start.
A big lunch might be fine four hours before the start, but reduce the size of your pre-ride meal if you only have 1-2 hours to digest it.
The less time there is between your pre-ride meal and the start, the more you should prioritise carbohydrate and reduce the amount of fat, protein, and fibre.