When Less is More with Alexey Vermeulen | The Breakdown

Alexey Vermeulen raced in the World Tour with Lotto NL-Jumbo, then came home and rebuilt his career as one of the US's very best gravel racers. With five years in the Life Time Grand Prix, he's come away convinced that most of the riders around him do too much. We talked about how he builds a season from off-season to race days, and why he aims for 99% and leaves the last 1% on the table. Alexey fuels for success, relentlessly pushes through failure and paces his career better than most. Hear his three things any athlete can use to stay consistent across a season and how he's come to find happiness through it all. 0:00 Intro 0:33 Welcome Alexey Vermeulen 1:30 Building a season from off-season to Sea Otter 6:56 Working with the same coach for almost 20 years 9:02 Why he barely races before the Grand Prix 12:47 World Tour vs. gravel, and why most riders do too much 17:56 How he measures a training block 20:55 Tempo, TSS, and a 370-watt threshold 25:06 Life TSS and the builds that didn't work 28:17 Fueling: 130 g/hr racing, 30–40 g/hr training 33:15 In-season training between Grand Prix races 38:46 The 99% rule 41:19 Racing without power: speed over watts 48:26 Young athletes, data, and education first 52:36 Pacing a career: happiness and failure 55:24 Three tips for longevity