FONDO TRAINING APP
How do you start The Ride Gravel 2025 in good shape? Fondo, the KNWU's award-winning training app, will help you get started!
Download the free app. As a participant you will receive a discount code to use all Pro features within Fondo for free. From March, 11 to The Ride Gravel: 26 weeks of free Fondo Pro worth € 41.95. Only for The Ride Gravel participants. The app is in Dutch. For international participants we have the schedule in English.
The Fondo training schedule for The Ride Gravel
A KNWU talent coach who normally makes the training schedules for top athletes, has put together a training program per distance especially for The Ride Gravel. In 26 weeks time you will prepare yourself optimally through various training sessions, such as endurance training, block training and sprint training.
Your Fondo training schedule takes into account both the intensity and the distance of The Ride Gravel:
1. Intensity. The Ride Gravel is an event through five different countries on unpaved trails. The intensity on the gravel roads is challenging and requires different training. The differences in elevation also offer an additional challenge. You cannot escape the fact that you will get high in your heart rate zones and have to deal with tempo changes. This is what we will work on in the training schedule.
2. Distance. Depending on the course of The Ride Gravel, a certain training distance will be determined. The longer the distance, the more training work is required. Through endurance training, you will soon be able to handle any distance and successfully complete The Ride Gravel.
why use a training schedule?
The Ride Gravel is an event that requires preparation, by considering specificity, supercompensation, build-up and variation in your preparation, the stages will be easier for you.
1. Specificity. As indicated above, your training schedule is perfectly tailored to both the distance and intensity you'll be facing.
2. Supercompensation. Finding the optimal balance between exertion and recovery is not easy. By following a training schedule, your body recovers after each workout slightly better "than necessary. We call this supercompensation. By training again and again at the moment when your supercompensation is optimal, you get better. Read a more detailed explanation of basic training theory for cyclists (in Dutch).
3. Structure. A training schedule offers a gradual, science-based build-up in terms of intensity. That way you avoid overtraining yourself and you recover faster from heavy efforts.
4. Variation. Monotony - doing the same thing over and over again - does not make you a better cyclist. Variation in intensity and duration does. De Fondo training schedules keep training interesting.
getting started with fondo
The following four steps will help you personalize and customize your Fondo training schedule.
1. Enter your power or heart rate zones. This way you will always use the right energy system and train at your level. Don't know your training zones yet? The Fondo app will guide you step by step in determining them.
2. Choose your training days. How often you train is up to you, you can determine this yourself in the app. Choose a realistic number. When you can get on your bike without stress and with a relaxed feeling, your training will be more effective. You can manually adjust your availability each week by pressing the plus or minus in the Fondo app.
3. Training sequence. The training sequence that Fondo prescribes is the optimal balance between intensive and quiet workouts and sufficient recovery in between. You will therefore often see intensive and easy workouts alternating in the program.
4. Doubts and questions. Should you doubt whether you train in the right way, or do you have questions about the composition of the program towards The Ride Gravel? Then you can easily and quickly get in touch with the KNWU talent coach, via the chat function in Fondo.
Have fun training with Fondo!
