Winter 'training'

[annie]

Yes, that does help with what exercises to do. When you are doing the heavier leg work, are you still riding at all? And if so, are your legs tired from amost a double workout? Just curious.......

Thanks for all the advice! It's nice to hear from someone who knows her stuff because it works for her! Experience is a good teacher.

[vinnysmom]

I totally agree with your going crazy part.
I am up and at the gym in the darkness of the morning since the weather has decided to be cold, and rainy.
It's a splurge I do for myself. If I don't do it then - it won't happen on most days.
Keep going - keep going - keep going - keep going - my mantra.
I also want to start next spring at a higher level of biking than I ended this late fall. I'm not a maniac biker, just want to keep setting the bar a little higher for myself and see where it will take me. What are you goals??

[Irulan]

I"m in Spokane, I hit Mccall at least once a summer for mountain biking. Next summer's plan is the 20 Mile trail. I hook with some Boise and Cascade/McCall folks, plus others from CO and so on... fun stuff!!

Irulan

[sno4rent]

That sounds like fun, Irulan! McCall is only 2 hours away at the most. Let me know when it is and if I can, I'll ride with you guys - I'll probably bring my training partners too.

~ Wendi

[vinnysmom]

Is anybody a member of a cycling club?
Do you ride in any club-sponsored events?

I sort of like to ride by myself or with one or two friends and not so much in a group setting.
I've done some massive group rides and the people all spread out after the first couple of miles which makes it nice.
The starts are sort of crazy though if you have very many inexperienced riders.

Thinking about joining a couple of local clubs just to get on their mailing lists for different rides in this area.
Another question too - does anybody have a suggestion for a cycling magazine that offers interesting articles etc???
A little off-season reading material and am building a Christmas wish-list.

[Dogmama]

Originally posted by annie
Yes, that does help with what exercises to do. When you are doing the heavier leg work, are you still riding at all? And if so, are your legs tired from amost a double workout? Just curious.......

I do the heavier leg exercises in the winter when I'm not riding as much. I don't schedule a heavy leg exercise before a big ride, however. Sometimes a nice easy spin after a heavy leg day helps to work the gym-kinks out.

[Irulan]

My legs develop muscle easily, so I don't train them additionally. Right now I do spin classes 2-3 times a week, and as soon as the mountain opens I will be alpine and telemark skiing twice a week.

I do weights for my upper body: I do a group of basic excecises to hit all the main groups for chest, back and shoulders. The arms are secondary; they get hit by all the main group work. And stretching, I do a lot of that.
Irulan

[annie]

Originally posted by vinnysmom
[B]Is anybody a member of a cycling club?
Do you ride in any club-sponsored events?

I belong to two cycling clubs, one that consists of mostly road riders, and one that is more oriented towards off-road riding. They compliment each other well. The off-road club is also more into racing, both road and off. I can't imagine not belonging to either one. I have found SO many friends and riding companions through both clubs. Riding with others has taught me so much that I can now pass on to newcomers.

I do quite a few of the club rides. Can't do them all! I'd like to....... but I also enjoy riding alone sometimes and can still do that whenever. Joining a club gives you the option of doing either, riding with others or alone. I think it's a great way to go, assuming you can find a club that suits your type of riding.

[laura]

Do you work your legs with weights? If so, does it have a negative or beneficial effect on your riding? And what exercises do you do? [B]

The main reason I go to the weight room is to work my hamstrings and glutes. I ride seven days a week during Spring and Summer but notice these areas are a lot weaker than my quads and calves. If you build some mass there in the off season it will provide a better base for power and endurance and climbing will really improve. Of course I don't ignore the rest of my body and do two upper body workouts (one day biceps, triceps, shoulders and then chest, back and abs) per week and one leg.

I have terrible knees and can't really do lunges so I do wall squats, presses, and hamstring curls. I also do the step machine at two steps up each time. I don't do a hard ride within a day of the workout but will do a flat recovery ride.

[Irulan]

Originally posted by laura
Do you work your legs with weights? If so, does it have a negative or beneficial effect on your riding? And what exercises do you do? The main reason I go to the weight room is to work my hamstrings and glutes. I ride seven days a week during Spring and Summer but notice these areas are a lot weaker than my quads and calves. If you build some mass there in the off season it will provide a better base for power and endurance and climbing will really improve. Of course I don't ignore the rest of my body and do two upper body workouts (one day biceps, triceps, shoulders and then chest, back and abs) per week and one leg.

I have terrible knees and can't really do lunges so I do wall squats, presses, and hamstring curls. I also do the step machine at two steps up each time. I don't do a hard ride within a day of the workout but will do a flat recovery ride. [/B]

Let me preface my reply with the note that I am a former body builder, former gym rat, and nowadays I have to make myself go inside and workout.
I don't do any weights with lower body. I ski hard and ride hard. I used to do a lot of preseason ski weight training, but since I mountain bike so hard I haven't felt a need for that. If I raced I'd put more thought into that, but I don't race.

Upper body: I concentrate on super setting opposing major muscle groups, and don't really do any isolation work.
chest press, overhead press, seated or bent rows, lat pulldown and upright rowing. Some times I add in some reverse flys but not always. I use free weights as much as possible, working on the core is a plus with free wieghts. Oh, and some ab work.

I'm very much into "functional " fitness. I do the weights for back health and being able to do things like lift my bike up on a rack. I spin for cardio and to maintain bike conditioning over the winter. There's the mental health aspect of a good work out.

laura, I am surprised if your knees give you trouble that you can do a stair climber, they just kill my knees. Spinning or an eliptical are the only things that don't hurt my knees.

Irulan

[Dogmama]

Originally posted by Irulan
Upper body: I concentrate on super setting opposing major muscle groups, and don't really do any isolation work.
Irulan

I really like super setting because I can focus on endurance as well as strength. Granted, I can't lift as much when I go from one to the other without a rest, but I think it's important for bicycling.

One workout that I really like is push/pull. One workout you do all pushing exercises, e.g., chest press, squats, overhead press, tricep push down, calf raises, etc. The next workout you do all pulling exercises, e.g., rows, chins, hamstring curls, crunches, bicep curls. You can really move quickly between squats & chest presses, since they're entirely different muscle groups. Although squats & chest presses are pretty heavy compound exercises & maybe wouldn't lend to supersetting as well as, say, chest press & hamstring curl.

I'd really rather be on my bike, but I think this is a good alternative. After all, you can't have joy without sorrow & you can't love cycling unless you're stuck inside sometimes!

[Trek420]

" I am surprised if your knees give you trouble that you can do a stair climber, they just kill my knees. Spinning or an eliptical are the only things that don't hurt my knees.

Irulan"

I'll join you gals in the weight room in a month the day after my test. I gain muscle easily when I lift but I get real tight.

I stretch before, after, during, I've tried massage, keeping my muscles warm, putting them on ice, gallons of green tea, before, during or after sports drinks that promise this or that for the acid..you name it I'm stiff, sore and about as fluid as a redwood tree. What am I doing wrong?

The eliptical trainer feels like it gives legs a real good workout and it doesn't hurt my knees. Thanks for the suggestion, I'd skipped that before.

[Dogmama]

I always start my winter lifting schedule with a couple of weeks of light lifting - lots of reps (12-15), not a lot of weight to build a base. If I start lifting heavily without a base, I'll be stiff & sore. I'm wondering if that might be your case also? Tendons & ligaments adjust more slowly than muscles. I see lots of sore rotator cuffs in the gym - you can tell those because the guys are "doing the chicken" - holding their shoulder and rotating their elbow - between lifts.

When I started to get as serious with my winter training as I am with my cycling, I saw great results. It's too bad, though, that we're wearing all these sweaters that cover up our great delts & biceps!

[annie]

You can always wear really tight-fitting sweaters........... Or bodysuits - they show off a well-defined physique if you don't mind the snapping and unsnapping part every time you need to visit the potty.

On a more serious note, it sounds like we have some very knowledgeable weight lifters around here that I can ask for some advice. I've lifted on and off for quite a few years now. I used to lift quite heavily, but have backed off since tearing a ligament 5 years ago. Now I lift because I know its beneficial for my aging body. I've discovered that some muscles respond much faster than others for me. I'm pretty much with Irulan on legs - I don't do weights but work them hard on the bike or hikes or skiing- and concentrate on upper body and abs in the weight room. My problem is my deltoid muscles. No matter what I've tried in the past, I cannot seem to get my shoulders to look the way I would like. Triceps and particularly biceps, I have to be careful with and not lift too heavy or I don't like the results.( It's not necessarily a good thing to have bigger biceps than one's husband.)I work chest and back with various exercises and that seems to be fine. But these shoulders are my weak point. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I know I have to work with what I have and I don't expect miracles but it'd be fun to try something different and see if I get any results. C'mon coaches, let's see what you've got.

[Dogmama]

To find out about muscle groups, there is a great book called "Strength Training Anatomy by Frederic Delavier. It has pictures showing muscles being used during hundreds of weight training exercises. Talks about the major muscle groups that are hit during an exercise and gives variations. Highly recommended.