Hill reps

[montage]

Not that I am getting involved, but Peter Sagan does weights - there is some Slovakian video of him somewhere on youtube which you can find if you search hard enough.

Ian Stannard also mentioned that he enjoys the "strength and conditioning" part of his training in the off season. However I also remember Geriant Thomas saying that he never touches weights, all strength specific stuff is on the bike. With 45 minutes a day, I'd stick to the bike

 

[amaferanga]

You don't need to be strong to be a strong cyclist.

Strength is a red herring.

Sure go to the gym if you're vain and/or you want to perve at women, but not if you want to become a good cyclist.

 

[Rob3rt]

Oh FFS. This old crock again.

Without entering into a squat/no squat debate (I just don't care any more) and as respectfully as I can put this, Drago, we don't care about how much you squat, your epic mass and your road map vascularity in this context. No-one needs crazy mass to know that epic leg strength doesn't equal epic climbing ability. Feel free to argue in favour of squats but do yourself a favour and leave out the meat head stuff, it will work in your favour!

 

[Scruffmonster]

I love it when you read a thread and there are loads of missing posts from folks you've blocked. You entertain your curiosity and click 'show messages' and then get this endorseement of why they were blocked in the first place.

I won't be doing any extra in the way of off bike strength work. I like running, I like riding my bike. I do a bit of conditioning work, and a dedicated session if I feel a bit burnt out from the fun stuff. Very rare.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

Sure i've seen this debate somewhere before.

There is no denying that some pro teams add weight lifting to their regime. Depends on the cyclist, the coach, the goals set and even the time of year. Some pro's even post their workload on some websites and even make them viewable for the public. Most of these, such as Ivan Basso's workouts, need you to sign up or sign in to access the info. Some of them read '30 minute weights session'. This is part of a 5-7 hour training day though so hardly a big % of the overall. Endurance is the big %.

It seems to depend on who you ask:

"Pro cyclists spend an average of two to six hours per day training. Most of that time is spent riding, but they might spend an hour in the gym a few days a week lifting weights to build leg and core strength, especially during the off-season months (mid-October to mid-January)".


http://www.amgentourofcalifornia.com/Peloton/TNT-corner/life-of-a-pro.html

http://velonews.competitor.com/2010...ength-training-for-cycling-a-good-idea_139198

On the other hand some coaches do not recommend any non cycling activities, though most seem to advocate core work.

Different approaches for different people.

I personally only do core work, now and again. I ride lots more.