Everyone wants to be fast.
But the truth is—speed doesn’t mean shit if you can’t hold it together.
Backend is where it’s at—the ability to hold it together when shit is falling apart.
And you don’t build that by chasing pace every session.
You build it by laying down unsexy, relentless durability.
If you don’t develop durability, you’ll be like a cat with nine lives.
You’ll have some good races, sure—
Then wonder why your middle name is inconsistency.
Make no mistake though:
Eventually, the up-and-down nature of that inconsistency will reach its ninth life.
And then you’ll be done.
You’ll tell yourself some bullshit about not being fast enough,
But the truth?
You never developed the capacity to hang in long enough.
Capacity is the operative word, folks.
What can you actually hold?
The more durable you are, the more capacity you carry.
The more you carry, the deeper you go.
Speed is the reward for consistency, not the shortcut.
You want to run 3:30/km off the bike? Cool.
But can your body—and your mind—handle 10 weeks of progressive load without crumbling?
Can your ego handle the unsexy shit
When everyone else is flexing on Strava?
If not—
You’re not training for the race.
You’re training for validation.
Here’s the hard truth:
Most DNFs and breakdowns don’t happen because someone wasn’t fast enough.
They happen because someone wasn’t durable enough.
Speed without durability is a gun without bullets.
Gilesy 🔥❤️