Leg conditioning , paying off !!

[ozboz]

Depending on your previous level of fitness, gym work for cycling purposes ranges from 'useful' to 'useless'. If you have come from a very low level of fitness, then almost any type of exercise will result in a fitness improvement. Focusing on leg work in the gym, such as weights, presses, etc is unlikely to give you any benefit from a cycling perspective, to be honest..

Id say gym work is helping me out of sight , as said Ms 'boz is a full on and employed in the fitness field , also my Son who holds AIF certification in fitness instruction , may well differ with you , there is no quick fix , but riding this week after about 8 hours leg workouts has been a dream , my fitness was not at ground zero as I am an operative the construction ind , but sport specific ,ie cycling demands muscle groups that I have not used for years need to be challenged and honed , as said earlier, to improved PtWR , at 6"00 largish frame and 85 ks riding my 12 ish kg bike and hauling my 10 ish kg back pack I do feel on the right track , , bring on the summer and the Audax rides !!!! Can't wait !!!!

 

[vickster]

Are you really carrying 10kg in a back pack? Have a think about what that might mean for your neck, shoulders and back, not only riding but if you come off. That weight especially if contributed to by hard things with sharp corners like a laptop, I'd seriously consider a rack and panniers as well as streamlining what you are carrying

Best give it some thought but naturally it's down to your perception of risk

 

[ozboz]

10 ish kgs , I have an ex military bag , ergonomically designed , when packed and strapped properly it's doesn't feel to bad , I load it up purposely , when the longer rides begin and have a lightweight ish road bike I'll get a lighter bag and take essentials only , cans of Guinness , pork pies , egg n bacon butties etc !!

 

[ayceejay]

ozboz - are you a recently diagnosed diabetic? Muscle atrophy due to your diabetes is not a good sign and before embarking on a muscle building routine you should get this checked out. If you have the equipment check for ketones in your urine.

 

[Joshua Plumtree]

Speaking as someone who uses the gym 4 or 5 times a week, there's absolutely nothing I could do in a gym that would make me better at climbing hills!

Gym stuff is very beneficial in lots of ways, but getting on the Strava leader board for the local hill climb is not one of them.

The only way to get better/faster at climbing hills is to do more of this -

 

[ozboz]

Speaking as someone who uses the gym 4 or 5 times a week, there's absolutely nothing I could do in a gym that would make me better at climbing hills!

Gym stuff is very beneficial in lots of ways, but getting on the Strava leader board for the local hill climb is not one of them.

The only way to get better/faster at climbing hills is to do more of this -

Mm mm , not according to British Cycling , they actually advocate using weight training , heavy weights in the gym but hey , what do they know ?
Just because you say there is no benefit from working out does not say or mean anything to me or maybe others who do put claim to it being beneficial ,
@acyeejay thanks for the concern , I was diagnosed some 15 years ago , so for normal everyday stuff and the small amount of MTB riding that was going on I've been able to keep it under control , but on the road means longer periods of demand on my leg muscle groups , so have since mid December struggled a fair bit climbing , but contrary to other peoples opinions , the recent combination of cycling and gym work have greatly improved my performance

 

[Joshua Plumtree]

At the risk of opening up a can of worms, if you 'study' the physique of every cyclist in a pro peloton, not one of them has engaged in any form of 'heavy' weight activity IMO!

 

[huwsparky]

I struggle to imagine that gym work can be as good for cycling performance as actually riding a bike.

How can the specific muscle groups be worked more efficiently than actually riding a bike if the objective is actually improving at riding a bike?

However, if the op's happy his training is right then that's all that matters. Half of it's in the head anyway.

 

[steve292]

At the risk of opening up a can of worms, if you 'study' the physique of every cyclist in a pro peloton, not one of them has engaged in any form of 'heavy' weight activity IMO!

what, like this one..................

 

[Joshua Plumtree]

The exception that........etc etc!

 

[Citius]

Mm mm , not according to British Cycling , they actually advocate using weight training , heavy weights in the gym but hey , what do they know ?

Got a link?

 

[ozboz]

I looked at this after Xmas , from this Ms 'boz and Son gave me some starter exercise plans , and by George it has worked,
Have a gander , then you may see where in coming from ;

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/k...icle/izn20130115-All-Cycling-Cross-Training-0

 

[Citius]

I looked at this after Xmas , from this Ms 'boz and Son gave me some starter exercise plans , and by George it has worked,
Have a gander , then you may see where in coming from ;

https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/k...icle/izn20130115-All-Cycling-Cross-Training-0

I've seen that link before and I still don't see anything in there which specifically advocates strength training for the legs. Plenty of core work though. I have three friends currently on BC's academy programme and yes they do gym work regularly, but it is conditioning/core work, not strength work. They also have all day, every day of every week to train, so it makes sense to develop their overall condition for all kinds of reasons.

As has been said many times on this forum before, there is little or no evidence to suggest that strengthening your legs provides any benefit for a sport like endurance cycling, which is significantly sub-maximal in the main. Maybe have a look through some of the other threads on related topics on here for more info.

 

[ayceejay]

I just read the linked article and there is a section on strength training that Citius must have missed.

 

[Citius]

I just read the linked article and there is a section on strength training that Citius must have missed.

I saw that section and I read it. It doesn't actually contain anything which could be regarded as strength work from a leg perspective.