Get Ripped to Rip It!

By Coach Keller

How are your cornering skills? Are your joints ready to get slammed in techy sections? Do you wish you had more juice in the tank for that last lap? With more daylight in the evenings now, it’s time to grease the chain and hit the trails, but it’s up to you to make sure your body is ready. 

Our Mountain Bike Strength Camp starts on Monday, March 13th, and in just 8 weeks from now, your body will be in much better shape for bike season. Some people say that you simply need to ride your bike in order to be a better biker. We won’t deny that time in the saddle is a valuable teacher. But by specifically targeting muscle groups through weight lifting and pushing your cardio capacity with high intensity intervals, you will see a noticeable difference in your speed, power, and stamina. 

Here are a few things to consider when training for bike season:

1. A stronger core means better control
   Although it seems like your legs are doing all the work, your core is critical for protecting your back and providing stability. When entering a corner, we often have our pedals even, outside elbow up, and are pressing down with the inside arm. This gives our tires better traction, and at higher speeds, an ability to maintain momentum through the corners. But it is our trunk–both the anterior and posterior chain (ie. abs, glutes, and back muscles)--that controls those positions. Without a strong core, it is very hard to maintain stability and power through corners. 
   
   DO: Romanian deadlifts, superhero raises, russian twists, side planks

2. Double your power with strong hamstrings and glutes
   Most bikers are quad-dominant. These are the muscles that tend to be the most used and most tired after a ride. But the “pushing” of your legs against your pedals, or the stabilization when off the seat in a descent, truly comes from your glutes and hamstrings, ⅔ and ⅓ respectively. When you target these two major muscles in training, your power and stamina can nearly double. For many bikers, learning how to simply activate these muscles will help you better recruit them. Stronger glutes means less quad fatigue and better balance. 
   
   DO: Deadlifts, back squats, single-leg glute bridges, hamstring curls, banded walks
    

3. Healthy joints can handle impacts
   Strength training increases bone density, tendon and ligament strength, and overall joint health. It has been shown to decrease arthritis and risk of osteoporosis, as well as reducing inflammation in joints. Whether it is landing a jump or just holding on through a bouncy section, your wrists, shoulders, knees, and ankles take a beating while biking. Stronger muscles hold your joints steady. This is why we often focus on eccentric (slow lengthening of a muscle) and isometric (holding without movement) exercises, as they are great ways to improve tendon and ligament strength. Plyometrics (jumping and landing) build bone density and joint stability.
   
   DO: Box jumps, squat holds, pullups, shoulder press, planks, lunges 

4. Two hours of work in 15 minutes
   Study after study (after study) continue to show the cardiovascular benefits of short, high-intensity interval training versus a long, steady burn. Metabolic conditioning workouts such as EMOMs or Tabatas give athletes the opportunity to kick the anaerobic system into gear. These are short (1 minute or less) bursts of anaerobic work, followed by a brief recovery via the aerobic system. These workouts teach the body how to burn lactic acid more efficiently during rides, meaning you can ride longer and with less fatigue. The upside is that you can do more for your body with 15 minutes of interval training than you will from a 2 hour ride. The catch? You’ve got to be willing to enter the pain cave and push yourself. But if you’re willing to go on a 6 hour mountain bike ride, we’re pretty sure you can work hard for 30 seconds.
   
   DO: Go as hard as you can during an interval– Echo bike, shuttle sprints, burpees, jump rope, rowing

Overall, strength and interval training will improve your power, resilience, and endurance as a biker. Although we don’t teach you how to hit jumps or look through corners, when your body is confident, your brain will follow. Or as we like to say, “Get ripped to rip it.” 

See you next week to kick off your best season yet!