This is the second book I picked up in my pursuit of increased cycling speed. Written by a doctor, Maximum Performance is a very technical book. Not so much from medical point of view, but all of the presented workout plans require difficult to measure cardiovascular metrics such as VO2max, Critical power, and Tmax. I did find some interesting information about the different kinds of muscle fiber in the human body. It turns out you have three flavors, and different forms of exercise promote growth of the different types. One paragraph caused an immediate change in my behavior. The author said that after 45 minutes of hard exercise on an empty stomach, your body will start consuming muscle! That's exactly what I don't want to do, and exactly what I was doing three times a week. My regimen consisted of 2.5 hour rides first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach. Now I eat half a PowerBar each hour. This book also encourages high intensity training to improve endurance. Again, performing lots of low intensity (slow) miles doesn't do one much good. You burn calories, but you don't build a stronger body. I have managed to increase my speed recently. I had been stuck at around 13 MPH for two years but recently averaged over 15 on my normal rides. More than anything, I started pushing harder at all points along my route, rather than "saving" myself to make the entire trip. I also concentrate on keeping my breathing rate up, rather than my cadence. This book has motivated me to eat more and drink more (Gatorade) during a ride. I feel better at the end of my longer rides (60+ miles). More importantly, I recover much faster. No more spending the rest of the day on the couch.