Training & Nutrition - Cross training ideas?

I've recently begun road cycling and REALLY enjoy it. Prior to road cycling, I was a collegiate athlete (rowing) and a weekend mtn biker. For a variety of reasons, I have decided to begin focusing on cycling as my prodominant method of exercise (and, down the line, possibly competition). Here are my questions -

1) As cyclists, what other forms of exercise do you do as cross-training - running, swimming, weights, stairs, yoga, etc...?

2) Strength training - full body circuits? Weight lifting programs?

Currently, I ride about 150miles/wk and run about 20miles/wk.

THANKS!!

Karna,

You really don't want to go too heavy on the weightlifting,
the more mass you put on, the more mass you have to schlep
up every hill. Most climbers are rather smallish. If your the bulky
massive quad type, you would probably be good for track riding.
Rollerblading is an excellent cross training excersize as it works
alot of the same muscle groups.
Upper body strength is important for climbing, but again we are
talking strength not bulk.
Stairclimbing would also be a good choice.
Thats about all I can think of for now, I'm sure some of the more
race oriented members will be kicking in right about now.

marty

I run a couple times a week on non-ride days. Good cardio work-out that gives the cycling muscles a break and takes less time and trouble than a recovery ride.

If you are riding 150 miles/wk and running 20, maybe you should try giving your heart a rest.

Go see your girlfriend (uh, well, so much for resting your heart.)

:)

Well, the best form of "cross training" for road cyclists is more miles. Vary the pace and terrain. It is hard to do too many miles.

Doing more miles will probably benefit you more than any kind of cross training. Of course, if you can not do more miles or don't feel like doing more miles, well cross training is better than nothing. I had a recent injury - 4 fractures and I have been off the bike so I have had to rely on crosstraining to keep my aerobic base up - walking, running, weight training and wind training (which I can do but not road riding - too much jolting to my broken arm). It seems to be working reasonably well.

That aside, doing enough weight work to keep your muscles in tone is probably beneficial. That means emphasizing reps vs mass. But if you have any aspirations to performance, mass is not a good thing for cyclists. I did some weight work a while back and never found it to help my cycling performance at all. But having toned muscles is nice if someone wants you to lift something or open a jar.

Some running is probably OK, but distance runners have very different physiques than cyclists. Cyclists need power for sprints. Runners need to pare back all the weight possible and do not have the kind of sustained power or sprinting demands that competitive cycling has.

Stair climbing has always felt something like climbing to me (that is riding up a hill out of the saddle). And if you don't do much hill work that might be a benefit.