[LukeNCMX]

like prozach said diet is #1 by a long shot for reaching your athletic potential. With weight loss you can chalk up all the diet fads as bull****, it is all simple math. You MUST burn more calories than you consume every day without fail.

As far as cardio goes running is the best for me by a huge margin. I have experimented with other types of training but running as hard as I can for 20-30 minutes 6 days a week is the only thing that has worked for me. The problem with running all the time especially on concrete is that it can be painful and wear out your joints, especially if you are slightly overwieght, old shoes etc.

The whole strength training=armpump I don't buy it. Lack of saddletime is what creates armpump. The fear of gaining too much muscle mass is very overrated. Unless you are gentically gifted most people struggle to put on much muscle mass beyond your body's normal equilibrium. All the pros strength train. Especially training fanatics like carmichael etc.

If I had to list the most important things it would go like this:
Time on the bike
Rider weight
Diet
Flexibility training
Cardio
Strength

of course you have to work on your biggest weakness first, so that you can see the fastest benefit and gain momentum from there.