Does gym help.

[Peter Parker]

Does leg strength training help one to become faster. Increase power to mass ratio

[sias]

Strength training will up your strength but you will also gain some muscle mass, so your power/wheight ratio won't increase drastically.

[Caerus]

Does leg strength training help one to become faster. Increase power to mass ratio

It will do, just keep it low weight & high reps, but then again nothing beats time in the saddle.

[BLACKvoodoo]

Only if you go......

[Cav']

Only if you go......

[Agteros]

Do core exercises, and work in secondary muscles before you strengthen primary cycling muscles to the point where you have huge muscle imbalances. Try core work for six weeks (not only sit ups / crunches / push ups!) and then reflect on strength, explosive power, etc...

[BigGuy]

No, gym does not help. Just look at Arnie now. Our hearts come with a pre-programmed total number of beats. Almost like an office copier. And our blood is like toner. Once it is used up... No need to get tired and rush to the limit I say.

[rattlesnake]

I do some solid power / endurance weight training during winter and it definitely helps me in the climbing dept.

 

Try and break down the pedal stroke into its key components and exercise the muscles responsible for the movement. Your movements and exercises should mimmick your pedal stroke as much as possible.

[rattlesnake]

Do core exercises, and work in secondary muscles before you strengthen primary cycling muscles

 

this is interesting, traditional sports science would have one working primary muscles first using compound movements which has the benefit of strengthening the (smaller) stabiliser muscles?

 

Whats your rationale behind this?

[Caerus]

I do some solid power / endurance weight training during winter and it definitely helps me in the climbing dept.

 

Try and break down the pedal stroke into its key components and exercise the muscles responsible for the movement. Your movements and exercises should mimmick your pedal stroke as much as possible.

What exercises are you doing? I'm just doing squats, leg press, leg extensions & calf raises.

[RooiWillie]

No, gym does not help. Just look at Arnie now. Our hearts come with a pre-programmed total number of beats. Almost like an office copier. And our blood is like toner. Once it is used up... No need to get tired and rush to the limit I say.

 

My average heart rate for a 60 min Gym session is lower than my average heart rate for a 3 hour ride. If you follow this logic, you should become a samurai and cut the air with your blade in slow-mo. And do not make "wooosh" sounds.

 

But yes, it does help. I agree on the core, and exercises like jump squats, weighted step ups, lunges, etc will help! In addition to this, it is proven that the combination of cardio and weight training aids weight loss, so if you trade some flab for muscles, you will notice it in the saddle, in life and most importantly the morale boost of looking better cannot be quantified.

Edited May 22, 2012 by RooiWIllie

[rattlesnake]

What exercises are you doing? I'm just doing squats, leg press, leg extensions & calf raises.

 

Try and do some one legged stuff. Lunges are very good, as they recruit the glut's which play a very large role in the pedal stroke. I also do step ups on one leg at a time (i.e. foot on bench and step up 15-20x), using a bench about 40cm high with dumbells in each hand. This is similar to 1 o clock to almost 6 o clock on pedal stroke.

 

I also do cable kickbacks on the cable machines with a strap around the ankle, mimicking the 6 oclock to 12 o clock movement of the pedal stroke.

 

Leg press, try one legged.

 

Also try one legged squats on a bosu ball for ankle and knee stability.

 

For explosive power I run up and down stairs using kettle bells.

 

Oh and leg extensions arent going to do much for you for your pedal stroke, they dont incorporate the muscle in the same way as you would on the bike, so wouldnt be functional. Also these have been known to lead to knee problems in many people.

Edited May 22, 2012 by rattlesnake

[GLuvsMtb]

I'm also a firm believer that doing core work is far more important than doing primary muscle training. I prefer use of body weight primarily complemented by light weights, bosu balls, swiss balls and medicine balls to do legwork. Eg.Say develop your quads. Doing lunges and variants of lunges (twisting lunges, reverse lunges, samurai chop lunges etc) will help develop the muscle and improve flexibility to ensure that you don't bulk up too much. Start using weights once 4 x sets of 20 on each leg becomes do able without stopping.

Also try to super-set your workout, eg. do 20x lunges, followed immediately by 20x leg raises, followed by 20x shoulder presses (using light weights and standing on the bosu ball), followed by a short rest. Repeat for 3 to 4 sets

Next superset: do 20x hamstring curls on the swiss ball, followed by 20x reverse crunchies, followed by 20 bicep curls (standing on the bosu ball, using light weights, possibly with one leg raised at a time).

etc.

[Agteros]

this is interesting, traditional sports science would have one working primary muscles first using compound movements which has the benefit of strengthening the (smaller) stabiliser muscles?

 

Whats your rationale behind this?

 

Traditionalists will tell you to be better at something you have to do more of that (more of the same)... So runners should run more if they want to run faster, and cyclists should cycle more to cycle faster?

This is true to a point, yes. It is not the absolute truth though... Cross-training? Muscle imbalances? Injuries?

Like a chain, you are only as strong as your weakest link. So work on your weak spots!

 

If you just want to sit through a 4 to 5 hour 100km, yeah sure, just ride your bike more but if the improvement you want to gain is measured in minutes.... think outside the box!

 

Core (and proper breathing) did more for me than any quantity of cycling/running or whatever combination did for either of the two disciplines!

[rattlesnake]

 

Core (and proper breathing) did more for me than any quantity of cycling/running or whatever combination did for either of the two disciplines!

 

I agree with what you are saying i.t.o core training. I do quite extensive core work 3-4x per week based on the lyno method (lynosport.co.za).

 

I thought that you were referring to weight training only. I.e. training minor leg muscles using movements such as leg extension is not very beneficial to the pedal stroke. If you have a look at a chart which breaks down the pedal stroke into its key components and main muscles involved, it makes sense to train the muscles that are responsible for 80% of the pedal stroke more as opposed to focusing on the 20% more. Just my 2c

[Agteros]

 

I agree with what you are saying i.t.o core training. I do quite extensive core work 3-4x per week based on the lyno method (lynosport.co.za).

 

I thought that you were referring to weight training only. I.e. training minor leg muscles using movements such as leg extension is not very beneficial to the pedal stroke. If you have a look at a chart which breaks down the pedal stroke into its key components and main muscles involved, it makes sense to train the muscles that are responsible for 80% of the pedal stroke more as opposed to focusing on the 20% more. Just my 2c

I've attended Benita's workshop for athletes and been under the guidance of a very good lynotherapist/bio and it did wonders for me!