dleccord

what kind of sets and repetitions am i looking at for strengthening my legs so that i can spin faster or mash harder for a sprint?

thankles

Elvo

High intensity intervals on the bike

mmmdonuts

So what do you want, to spin faster OR mash harder? Both can be done on the bike...

adriano 

deadlifts.

Seattle Forrest

None. Sprintervals on the bike are your answer. Do some hill repeats, too, to break up the monotony.

AdelaaR

For this winter I have set up my stationary bike to have 3 minute intervals alternating between 180W and 400W.
I do this exercise for 30 minutes about every other day.

dleccord

can i solo 25mph without ever hitting the gym? on maybe like a 30 mile trail?

mmmdonuts

yes

But I do like strength training with weights. Strength training makes you stronger, riding a bike fast makes you faster.

AdelaaR

30 miles is a lot for a non pro time trial.
Most recreational TT races are between 10 and 20 miles.

Seattle Forrest

Yes.

Your time at the gym should be spent on upper body work (because most cyclists are lacking here). Or in the pool. Or enjoying the scenery. The best way to get better at any aspect of cycling, is to practice the hell out of it. Want to get better at climbing hills? Go climb lots of hills. If you want to sprint faster, do lots of sprinting intervals. And while sprinting isn't the same thing as cruising along at 25 mph for more than an hour, straight, if you want to get better at that, you just put in the miles. Climbing hills in a (slightly) higher gear than you should is good for strength training.

tagaproject6

This is probably why Vicelord couldn't get out of that bear hug!

ancker

I picked up the book "Weight Training for Cyclists". I plan to read it and use whatever I learn this winter as part of my training program.

achoo

Wanna mash? Do some 10-8-6-4-2-10 pyramid squat workouts every week, with the two-rep set at about 90-95% of your one-rep max, and explode up on each rep. But you gotta EAT to get stronger from that, so while your power to mash WILL go up, but your long-term W/kg will go down compared to what it would be if you spent that time on the bike, because that added fast-twitch muscle fiber won't add anything to your aerobic power output.

Want to spin? Do 5-6 sets of 15-18, starting at a real light weight - like THE BAR if you've never done squats before. Do 'em slow and make those quads BURN. For LOTS of reps. And I'm not kidding about starting with just the bar on your shoulders - the 15th rep of the 4th set is going to BURN.

And whatever you do, NO PUDDIN' PAD ON THE EFFN BAR!

oujeep1

Thigh extensions. Pick a weight you can just lift 10 times. Do 3 sets of 10 3x weekly. Recommended by bicycling magazine

AltheCyclist

I don't like leg presses or extensions or any other machine-based workout. Squats and deadlifts are valuable. You'll notice an improvement in your biking. I certainly did.

Try a strength routine, start light and move up to heavy weights for a couple reps.
E.g. Start with bar (45lbs.) x5 reps
Add 25 lbs. per side x5 ... keep doing until you're up to a weight you can only do 2 times. Then do 2-3 sets at that weight.

Add a couple other muscle groups ... routine could look like:
Monday: Squat, bench, deadlift, pull-up
Wed: Squat, clean/press, barbell rows
Fri: Repeat monday

This only takes ~1.5 hrs. a week. Do this for a while and then leave all your friends in the dust on the next hard climb...

JaceK

Don't weight train, unless you are ready to post how do I recover from over training.

kleinboogie

Might want to read what the race forum has to say.

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...x-sprint-speed

gsteinb

I've done everything from low reps to sets of 100. I tend to start this time of year with modest weights and simply work on form. In a few weeks I'll start increasing the weight until I'm doing sets of 6-8. As the season approaches I'll probably start doing high rep stuff again along with some plyometrics.

tadawdy

Based on studies from the past several years, my approach is to work up to sets of 5RM; 2 days a week in the offseason, 1x a week in-season. Something like 4 sets of squats or leg press (or a couple of each), and 2 each of plantar flexion and hip flexion. I also add a couple sets of deadlifts (usually a single-leg version) for the sake of balance.

mrardo

Leg presses don't help you spin faster. They help a little for closing gaps and sprints. I don't lift heavy during the riding season. I do 5 sets of 30 with 400 lbs. In the winter I do 5 sets of 40 with 400 then 1 set to failure with 500. Squats are a good way to get hurt if you lift heavy.

adriano 

single leg deadlifts? do them with two legs and heavy.

tadawdy

Like any other, the exercise must be performed correctly, and not be done by people who shouldn't.

People like to cite the leg press as being safer, but, again, there are risks. The lumbar spinal loads are still significant, especially if much ROM is used; part of the problem is that you have a bunch of 45's bearing down on you, which does get transmitted to your spine. I'd guess you're pretty strong and your ROM is relatively small if you're banging out 200 total reps at 400#.

I'd argue that, for a healthy person with good form and mechanics, the squat (not necessarily a back squat) is actually going to be a better way to go. Everyone is different, but most people can do some version of a front squat quite well, and achieve a training effect with lower loads (and a safer situation for the spine).

Personally, I stick to back squats because I can do them well, I like them, and I'm not throwing up 400# squats anytime soon.

You'd also have a hard time scientifically validating sets of 40 repetitions for use in most situations. You'd probably get more out of 5x5's at whatever weight it takes to get you there. If you aren't lifting to failure, the leg press also uses a lot of it's merits. Something like lunges or RFE squats would serve the same purpose with less actual weight.

mb2000

lol

ilovecycling

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDawl...e_gdata_player

tadawdy

In this case, one leg does not preclude heavy. It can be easier on your back, trains balance, and you eliminate the strength deficit of training two limbs vs. training one.