Riders' Build
05-06-23, 11:10 AM
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Riders' Build
While watching the Giro D'Italia today, my wife and I were discussing how all the riders have a similar build; i.e., thin, very thin. The question comes up, do they choose to get like that through diet and exercise in order to cycle better, do they cycle better because they are naturally built that way, or do they get that way because of all the cycling?
Also, many seem to pedal pigeon kneed, with the knees pointing slightly inward. Is that just an optical illusion or is that actually a preferred technique?
Also, many seem to pedal pigeon kneed, with the knees pointing slightly inward. Is that just an optical illusion or is that actually a preferred technique?
05-06-23, 11:56 AM
#2
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While watching the Giro D'Italia today, my wife and I were discussing how all the riders have a similar build; i.e., thin, very thin. The question comes up, do they choose to get like that through diet and exercise in order to cycle better, do they cycle better because they are naturally built that way, or do they get that way because of all the cycling?
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
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05-06-23, 01:38 PM
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I think the Q factor on cranks and chainlines have gone up through the years. That might be the reason for the knock kneed look, or not.
Last edited by seypat; 05-06-23 at 06:59 PM.
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05-06-23, 02:37 PM
#4
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05-06-23, 02:40 PM
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While pro cyclists may appear quite thin, on average they fall into a pretty normal, "healthy" range.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
As well, the riders who were seen on camera today were mostly the ones expected to do well over all. Watching a sprint stage we would see the sprinters more often. They are much more muscular.
Anyone remember "the gorilla?"
Last edited by alcjphil; 05-06-23 at 05:02 PM.
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05-06-23, 04:59 PM
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If you ask me, the various specialties (climbers, sprinters, time trialists) look noticeably different on average.
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05-06-23, 06:20 PM
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you'd also have to take into account their strict diet and what they eat and drink
05-12-23, 04:49 AM
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While watching the Giro D'Italia today, my wife and I were discussing how all the riders have a similar build; i.e., thin, very thin. The question comes up, do they choose to get like that through diet and exercise in order to cycle better, do they cycle better because they are naturally built that way, or do they get that way because of all the cycling?
Ah yes. What came first. It's like the James Smith quote about Olympic swimmers: "Swimmers don't look the way they do because they swim, they swim because of the way they look."
In the same way a pro rugby or gridiron athlete didn't get 'big and broad' by playing rugby / gridiron, he
Of course that's overly simplified. It's a bit of both. At our amateur level genetics are less important. If you're a bigger build you're likely never going to be a professional cyclist no matter how hard you train. How many 6 foot 6 inch pro road cyclists are there? And on the flip side how many NBA pro basketballers are there under 6 foot 6 inches?
While hard work and dedication are paramount, at that 0.1% elite level of sport, genetics plays a big role.
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05-12-23, 05:48 AM
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Ah yes. What came first. It's like the James Smith quote about Olympic swimmers: "Swimmers don't look the way they do because they swim, they swim because of the way they look."
In the same way a pro rugby or gridiron athlete didn't get 'big and broad' by playing rugby / gridiron, hetook a lot of steroids plays rugby because he is big and broad!
Of course that's overly simplified. It's a bit of both. At our amateur level genetics are less important. If you're a bigger build you're likely never going to be a professional cyclist no matter how hard you train. How many 6 foot 6 inch pro road cyclists are there? And on the flip side how many NBA pro basketballers are there under 6 foot 6 inches?
While hard work and dedication are paramount, at that 0.1% elite level of sport, genetics plays a big role.
In the same way a pro rugby or gridiron athlete didn't get 'big and broad' by playing rugby / gridiron, he
Of course that's overly simplified. It's a bit of both. At our amateur level genetics are less important. If you're a bigger build you're likely never going to be a professional cyclist no matter how hard you train. How many 6 foot 6 inch pro road cyclists are there? And on the flip side how many NBA pro basketballers are there under 6 foot 6 inches?
While hard work and dedication are paramount, at that 0.1% elite level of sport, genetics plays a big role.
05-12-23, 07:42 AM
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While pro cyclists may appear quite thin, on average they fall into a pretty normal, "healthy" range.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
05-12-23, 08:04 AM
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05-12-23, 08:05 AM
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05-12-23, 09:35 AM
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GC riders are definitely on the thin side, and getting to race weight is a big deal for them since stage races are won on mountains and against gravity. Some pros have given up on becoming or staying GC riders because of the pressures to be as light as possible. Even ones who are naturally light will gain weight in their relatively short off-season -- Geraint Thomas mentioned in his recent podcast that diminuitive Adam Yates would complain about "getting fat" after gaining a mere 2 kilos, which to Geraint was next to nothing. I've also heard some pros say that when running into their peers outside races, one of the default things they'll say to the other is to compliment how thin they look.
There are lots of accounts of old school nutritional thinking that led to pros practically starving themselves. Thankfully modern science has shown that training while properly fueled leads to better outcomes. Maybe that's one reason that a number of the top GC men in recent years (Pogacar, Roglic, Evenepoel) aren't the most emaciated-looking riders in the peloton.
There are lots of accounts of old school nutritional thinking that led to pros practically starving themselves. Thankfully modern science has shown that training while properly fueled leads to better outcomes. Maybe that's one reason that a number of the top GC men in recent years (Pogacar, Roglic, Evenepoel) aren't the most emaciated-looking riders in the peloton.
05-12-23, 09:59 AM
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Reminds me of when mrs datlas and I were dating 34 years ago....I was watching a cycling event on TV (most likely the Tour), she was not especially interested, but she watched for a few minutes and exclaimed "Wow! They all have YOUR body type!"
Sadly, although I may have the body type of a GC/Climber, I don't have the V02 to match.
Anyway, back to OP question it's partly self-selection and partly the training.
Sadly, although I may have the body type of a GC/Climber, I don't have the V02 to match.
Anyway, back to OP question it's partly self-selection and partly the training.
Last edited by datlas; 05-13-23 at 11:20 AM.
05-12-23, 10:03 AM
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Reminds me of when mrs datlas and I were dating 24 years ago....I was watching a cycling event on TV (most likely the Tour), she was not especially interested, but she watched for a few minutes and exclaimed "Wow! They all have YOUR body type!"
Sadly, although I may have the body type of a GC/Climber, I don't have the V02 to match.
Anyway, back to OP question it's partly self-selection and partly the training.
Sadly, although I may have the body type of a GC/Climber, I don't have the V02 to match.
Anyway, back to OP question it's partly self-selection and partly the training.
05-12-23, 10:09 AM
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(my height/weight/proportions are similar to say, Chris Froome, so you can see from usual US sports like football/baseball she was suprised)
Last edited by datlas; 05-12-23 at 10:13 AM.
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05-12-23, 11:07 AM
#17
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05-12-23, 11:26 AM
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Great thread! I had a female doctor recently tell me that I was petite.
05-12-23, 11:52 AM
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While pro cyclists may appear quite thin, on average they fall into a pretty normal, "healthy" range.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
Pro cyclist averages:
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 68 kg
BMI: 21
The "healthy" BMI range is 18.5-24.9, so pro cyclists fall in the middle of the healthy range.
Compare that to the average BMI of an adult male in North America: 28.8, overweight.
So pro cyclists appear thin compared to the average overweight North American.
[Insert arguments against BMI as an indicator of health here. Everyone has heard these before.]
On the question of why they are so lean, here's one reason: Anyone who does endurance training 25-30 hours per week will have little body fat. Endurance training consumes fat.
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05-12-23, 01:43 PM
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05-12-23, 02:00 PM
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05-12-23, 02:40 PM
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05-13-23, 10:15 AM
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