Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

Chen Junyi, a high-level professional in the sports field with a degree in Sport and Health Sciences from the University of Birmingham, UK, had no desire to respond to Huang Chong’s pointless skepticism.

As far as she was concerned, given her expertise, she should have been analyzing data for athletes in mainstream sports like basketball or soccer.

Now, having been implored by Zhang Guowei to take sole responsibility for training and managing a Road Cyclist, if she couldn’t even handle this, she had no business being on the provincial team.

So for the next month, Huang Chong was tortured beyond words by the dozens of training programs she designed.

Yet his various stats skyrocketed, thanks to her meticulously customized training plan and the nutritional regimen from the diet she provided.

This was her preferred way of answering her critics.

Athletes unfamiliar with her might question her professional abilities upon their first meeting.

But as long as they could endure her unique methods, in due time, the athletes were guaranteed to see a significant improvement in their performance.

Take Huang Chong, for instance. A month after joining the team, his weight had been precisely restored to 65 kg, thanks to her scientifically calculated diet that meticulously controlled every food item he consumed down to the gram.

Next, his ITT cycling posture, including his habits for changing grips on the handlebars, was comprehensively optimized and improved. She had hired a professional coach for guidance and then personally supervised him day after day, following him in a car during training.

Finally, his overall endurance reached a new level thanks to her high-intensity training regimen, which incorporated various aerobic exercises.

It was no exaggeration to say that after this month of professional training, Huang Chong’s cycling proficiency had improved dramatically compared to when he first joined the team.

It went without saying for his FTP Power. Although he hadn’t triggered any system missions during the training period, his natural power had increased by over ten points from Chen Junyi’s high-intensity training alone.

He had now successfully broken the 300W barrier, reaching 307W.

As a result, after his weight returned to 65 kg, his Power-to-Weight Ratio once again exceeded 4.5.

After he had gained the required weight, Chen Junyi immediately drew up a new plan for him focused on training specific muscle groups.

Huang Chong appeared calm on the surface, accepting the plan with a willing expression, but inwardly, he was grumbling:

’I have to take a shortcut with this. I can’t just follow the program step-by-step.’

’Otherwise, if I actually follow her training program and pump a ton of iron in the gym, it’ll not only take forever, but the process will be excruciating.’

So, Huang Chong planned to secretly complete the muscle training missions the system had issued earlier.

Only then could he skip the physical conditioning program designed by Chen Junyi and focus all his training efforts on road cycling.

In fact, he now deeply regretted not going to the gym to complete the system’s muscle training missions before joining the provincial team.

The reason was that after arriving at the base, he had to weigh himself every day under Chen Junyi’s watchful, hawk-like eyes, and absolutely did not dare use the system’s enhancers to build muscle.

The system’s enhancers were fast-acting. Once consumed, his weight would change immediately.

Given Chen Junyi’s meticulous, cautious, and professional work style, any significant change in his weight would undoubtedly be noticed, and he would have no way to explain it.

Thus, when Chen Junyi handed him the new muscle training plan, he decisively followed the system’s instructions and asked her about the specific gym exercises that would work the various muscle groups he needed to train.

Chen Junyi found it a bit strange. She was surprised this guy was actually taking the initiative to ask her about various gym exercises.

After a month of working together, she had come to understand his personality fairly well.

Huang Chong never slacked off during training and always completed 100% of his daily tasks as she required, but compared to cycling, he had a fundamental aversion to indoor gym workouts.

However, when Chen Junyi considered the exercises Huang Chong was asking about—all of them core movements for the chest, back, and gluteal muscle groups—she decided to instruct him carefully.

Regardless, in her eyes, an athlete proactively seeking guidance on a type of training he disliked was a very commendable quality.

If a cyclist like this couldn’t get results, then who could?

And so, a week later, Huang Chong successfully completed his first chest muscle training mission:

[Congratulations! You have completed 4 sets x 10 reps of Flat Barbell Bench Press, 4 sets x 10 reps of Incline Dumbbell Press, and 4 sets x 10 reps of Pec Deck Fly. Reward: 2 Basic Optimization Value points, Chest Muscle Enhancer x1.]

...

When Huang Chong saw the system notification appear, he was so excited he could have cried. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Without a second thought, while Chen Junyi wasn’t looking, he quickly took out the Chest Muscle Enhancer and downed it in one go.

He could soon feel the soft flesh on his chest—the result of a high-protein diet—rapidly solidifying, hardening, and becoming fiercely powerful—

’Finally, the first step is done. Next up, optimizing my back muscles!’

Huang Chong felt his pecs. They weren’t monstrous like those of a bodybuilder, who might train their muscles until they looked like two bricks embedded in their chest.

But he was already quite satisfied to have two well-defined pectoral muscles despite his low body fat percentage.

He was now the perfect example of "lean in clothes, ripped without."

Most importantly, optimizing his muscles this way caused no change in his weight, which was what made him the most pleased and relieved.

Then, about twenty days later, he finally completed the back muscle training mission.

He did this to avoid undergoing too many changes in too short a period.

[Congratulations! You have completed 4 sets x 12 reps of Lat Pulldown, 4 sets x 12 reps of Incline Dumbbell Row, and 4 sets x 12 reps of Seated Cable Row. Reward: 2 Basic Optimization Value points, Back Muscle Enhancer x1.]

...

Now an old hand at this, Huang Chong once again took the Back Muscle Enhancer secretly behind Chen Junyi’s back. His entire back instantly firmed up.

When he bent his arms and flexed them backward, the large muscle groups covering his shoulder blades immediately contracted distinctly.

At the same time, no matter what strange pose he struck, the muscles and sinews of his entire back became elastic, and he no longer experienced any adverse reactions like cramps.

’I didn’t expect this enhancer would not only build back muscle but also improve the flexibility of my back’s tendons and ligaments. This will greatly increase my efficiency at holding an aero tuck for long periods during an ITT!’

Huang Chong was deeply satisfied. Compared to building muscle through arduous training, hacking the system was just too easy.

After all, it’s easy for a man to get some basic muscle definition.

But to get them truly sculpted and defined? That would be nearly impossible without one or two years of consistent effort.

Finally, in mid-November, nearly three months after he joined the provincial team, he completed the last mission for his glute muscles:

[Congratulations! You have completed 4 sets x 15 reps of Hip Abduction, 4 sets x 15 reps of Hack Squat, and 4 sets x 15 reps of Hack Squat Good Mornings. Reward: 2 Basic Optimization Value points, Glute Muscle Enhancer x1.]

...

Huang Chong downed the final enhancer, and his posterior instantly became round, perky, and aesthetically pleasing.

At the same time, with his gluteal muscles enhanced, his overall pedaling efficiency skyrocketed the next time he got on his road bike, as he could now engage them in concert with his leg muscles.

He could clearly feel that the force from every pedal stroke was now being effectively applied, transferring through the drivetrain to spin the wheels and give him immediate feedback in the form of speed.

This was the advantage of a stable core and lower body. Combined with his fully optimized upper body muscle groups, his physical condition could now be considered completely optimized, with no remaining weaknesses.

Unless he wanted to switch from being a GC Cyclist to a pure sprinter, which would require him to build even more muscle mass.