"I always have scales to weigh food" - Juan Ayuso reveals he has just four days a year where he can eat what he likes

Juan Ayuso is widely regarded as one of the hottest prospects in the peloton today. Aside from his vast natural talent on the bike, it is his incredible dedication to his craft that looks likely to take the Spaniard far in the sport he loves.

In a recent interview, the UAE Team Emirates rider who finished on the podium at last year's Vuelta a Espana, gave an eye-opening insight into life as a professional bike rider and the rigours that coincide with the dedication needed to stay in top shape. Ayuso even reveals how in the whole of the year he only has "four days in which I can eat whatever I want."

"I always have scales to weigh food and to weigh myself," Ayuso, whose usual weight is around 64.5 kilos, explains. "Now I only live in Andorra, but when I lived with my parents I started weighing food. At 17 I started working with my nutritionist Gorka, until then I was like any other boy and now it costs me nothing to take food, put it on the scale and eat."

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"It's useless to do everything right on your bike, to be in spectacular shape if you don't take care of your diet," says the 20-year-old, explaining his routine. "Better to train less and take more care of food and other things, it's a fundamental part and you have to take care of it. The permission they gave me at Christmas is enough for me and I don't need to go astray."