ConnorS

Hey,

Is there any point to doing free weights to aid road biking? Not particularly hilly route, just for the occasional race. If so what kind of weight training?

Im 16, and am preparing to start racing in the next couple years.

What about going to spinning classes?

Thanks

Carbon Unit

Having strong core muscles will benefit you in cycling, but I can't say that weight training will make you faster on the bike. What weight training will do is improve your overall fitness and appearance. You will look better and feel better. Weights also increase bone density which will help you later in life. I work upper body and abs but no longer works legs. If I want to increase the strength in my legs, I ride bigger hills in harder gears.

simonaway427

Since I'm not a fan of Schleck arms, I do supplement my riding with Crossfit (used to be a die-hard crossfitter before I picked up cycling). I foresee going back to the gym more often in the winter as trainer rides won't nearly be as attractive as outdoor riding.

Carbon Unit

I have never done spinning classes but I do have spinerval DVDs and a trainer. It is boring but it does help improve your fitness and speed. I do intervals on the trainer. I live in a place that is warm all year but I still put time in the trainer for when I can't ride because of my schedule.

Lamabb

If you want to get faster and better at cycling, ride more.

/Thread

dploy

+1

WHOOOSSHHH...

Finally a Question in which PCAD and UMD will have nothing to say....I've seen your pictures, so don't you dare!!Young man. By all means, at your age, incorporate some weight training into your trainig program. Doesn't matter if it helps you on a bicycle. It will improve your overall fitness and health. Skinny sucks!!

Tio

I tend to agree with the sentiments of most here. If you are already 16 and not on a recognizable national team, the likelihood of you making a life out of riding your bike is minimal. What is more certain is that you have many years ahead of you and adding muscle to your frame is a generally healthy course of action.

Also, you might hear/read some rhetoric about it making you slower on a bike; while there might be some marginal truth that the added weight will slow you down when climbing, the overall benefits outweigh (no pun intended) this issue. Also, you can build rather lean and dense muscle without compromising the your race-ready physique.

ModeratedUser150120149

By all means do weight training with free weights. You will not regret the improvement in strength and appearance weight training will bring. BUT they can also hurt you so get qualified instruction on their use and on proper safety protocols.

DannoXYZ 

Consider that every single Olympic and TDF champion incorporates weight-training into their yearly training programme. Check out Lance's book and try his 8-week weight-training regimen in the off-season. You'd be surprised with the results. Most people think of thick-neck macho red-necks when the word "weight-training" comes up. But there are many, many different types of training programs with different results. One specifically tailored for cyclists provide benefits such as increasing muscle-strength and endurance without gaining any bulk or weight. Just don't hire a Mr. Olympia as a trainer, go for a guy that's won State or National championships. Due to the final speedwork phase, I recommend machines for safety.

patentcad

Incorrect you HD moron.

I am already in the gym. Light upper body (I don't need to add any more bulk there), core work, legs. I feel it really helps my riding, helps cut fat, keeps me leaner.

Skinny, of course, RULES.

cappuccino911

The worst thing you can do at 16 is go to the gym and attempt to mimic people and copy what your buddies are doing which 90% of the time is done with poor form. Also, young men are always caught up in "how much ya bench" I have a huge upper body because I come from baseball, basketball, football backgrounds and picked up cycling this year at age 32. Now that I love biking so much, I'm trying to get it smaller.

One of the main reasons to strength train is to avoid overuse injuries. Certain positions put much more stress on the outer portions of the legs and people don't strengthen the inner thighs. also, I include flexibility training in strength training so getting stronger and maintaining flexibility is key. Everyone thinks building muscle makes you tight; it only does so if you don't train properly.

patentcad

Hey wooshy, who loves you?

pdedes

a well designed programme 10-12 weeks in length that gets you into march is beneficial. 2 days per week is enough. focus on freeweight moves that are not isolating. squats, shoulder press etc. first third is strength building. at your age, 4 sets of 15 reps at 80% of one rep max. if you are needing to add muscle to your frame, (and you're a bit older), 6 sets of 8 reps at 90% of one rep max for the next third of the cycle. finally last third, add speed and endurance. 3 sets of 20 reps at 75% of one rep max. at the beginning of each third you'll add one day for the one rep max test.

then stop. i hate the gym. i don't race any more. i don't lift.

patentcad

I also hate the gym. But regardless of whether you race or not, the weight training complements cycling perfectly, given the well documented bone loss that seems to plague cyclists. Resistance training offsets that. I focus mostly on my core, in the winter on my legs, and always lift light weights with my upper body. I already look like Paulie Sr. on gastric bypass. I don't need bigger arms and shoulders. Strapping hunk of Pcad that I am and all.

agarose2000

I recall being 16 and all skinny and all. Ate whatever I could and pumped as much iron as I could to beef up, and still stayed on the "slim" side.

Now over twice as old, and finding that I'm already too heavy to contemplate adding even more bulk to my frame. Even if I ride 200 miles per week, I slowly, but surely, gain weight.

Enjoy the thinness of youth while you can - it gets harder and harder to do so in the future!

ConnorS

Generally I do upper back weights quite alot, for climbing, so I can pull harder for longer on a hill.
I also do light upper body weights for the rest of the muscles.

I might pick the weights up more for legs during the winter, along with spinning classes (because I live in an area, where last year there was snow and ice for over a month), and the light for the day get seriously short to the point where its dark when i get home at 5pm.

echappist

You didn't seriously mean that. Thinness (which i have yet to achieve and never will) and being very physically fit (toward which im currently going) are different. Also, unless if you are doing races featuring the finishes found on the climbs you see in the Grand Tours, thinness is overrated. Take the winner of Giro di Lombardia 2009 (or the top ten finishers for that matter). Gilbert, the winner is 5'10" 147lbs; Sanchez, the second place, is 5'9" 140lbs. Neither are skins and bones. In 22nd place is Janez Brajkovic, most famous for this shot below. Brajkovic finished 2nd in 2008. That he didn't get anywhere near the top 10 after placing second should signifies that thinness is not the end all & be all in cycling. And when you get into stage racing involving time trialling, a skinny ass is not gonna get you anywhere. Just ask purito Rodgriguez


QFT

alexvpaq

I'm going to go back to the gym and do some weight training since I'm 5f11 and I now weight 140pounds... And I still have some fat to lose?! damn wtf with that...

Anyway I just believe that 140 pound is Really light for my height

echappist

Tom Voeckler at 1.77cm & 66 kilos outkicked a lot of those skinny ones to win in your town last weekend. i think it's fine to pack on some muscles for those anaerobic efforts

wens

It falls in the normal range.

Japhy

Either purchase or get from the library the following book. This is an excellent resource for your question and all cycling and weight training related questions.

https://www.amazon.com/Cycling-Anatom...4842581&sr=8-1

J

deadprez012

At 16, as has been said above, learning and applying strength training to your LIFE is an absolutely great decision. Resistance training techniques will benefit your general health, help keep your body fat percentage down (assuming you eat with any measure of sense and moderation), increase bone mineral density (as mentioned above), help adapt the musculature to being efficient in compound movements, and will make you look better, which makes you feel better, which makes you think better, which makes you ride better.

If you have no background in resistance training, however, go to your local college/university and attend a resistance training seminar OR ask a strength & conditioning coach (collegiate preferably) OR hire a personal trainer.

As a fitness instructor and personal trainer who happens to be very well rounded, PT is often your very best choice, and can be used to benefit the muscles most used in cycling while also crafting a balanced body, but PT can be expensive and a kind coach will provide a lot of the same benefits.

NEVER think that the guys in the gym are doing it right--they typically end up with us or the pain management physicians after a few months of lifting without a structured program.

Lanterne Rogue

I ride long, not fast, but have found that kettlebells are great for blasting up your heartrate and building usable strength (as opposed to bench press strength, which doesn't really help you much outside the weight room). Do regular kettlebell swings, snatches, and get-ups, and you won't feel as battered after long rides or tours.

aboss3

I'm 6'2", 197lbs. I was 160 few years back when I was 18, then started working out and gaining like crazy. Got to the point where I was 216 one time. Started cycling for endurance and to build stronger legs. Recently added the core workout to my already established gym routine. I usually hit the weights 5 times per week, working out 2 body parts at a time. I built strong arms and big upper body, but needed more beef on the legs. So I use cycling as a way to get shredded, build legs, and endurance. I've only put 300 miles this summer, but looking to ride more. Way better than spinning pedals at the cycling class!!!