Guads

This

BDop for the win.

quads, the vast majority. Some in the glutes

http://lovingthebike.com/wp-content/...oke_large1.gif
from http://lovingthebike.com/uncategoriz...faster-cyclist

Please forgive me for linking to this article.

My quads are the only muscle group to send me a thank-you card for getting off the bike after hard rides.

This does not mean it is the mucle worked the most. Use of a stronger muscle for a longer time without the feel of a hard workout can occur if that muscle can handle the task and the glutes are just such a muscle. Inherently stronger one must ask why? Because they are used the most in day to day activities. Sore quads after a ride may simply be telling you they are not as strong a muscle group for the task involved. Look at the diagram in post 29. Which group has the longest use in the cycle? The glutes. Sit down at a weight machine and do leg presses that mimick the downward range of the pedal stroke . How much can you lift with the leg press mimicing this range. 400lbs, 500 lbs, 600? Now sit at the weight station mimicking the relative leg extension in a pedal stoke of the leg. How much can you lift? 100 lbs, 200?. The glutes are one of the strongest muscles in the body for a reason- they are worked the hardest by this bipedal , upright walking creature known as man.

Good article. Also another factor is the amount of out of saddle climbing

This one. Back in my Cat2 racing days, I developed tendinitis of the hamstrings. My sports doctor measured the strength in my quads and my hamstrings and the result was that they were woefully out of balance - overdeveloped quads and under developed hamstrings. It basically ended my racing career amongst othe things. Anyway, the doctor said at that time that it was a common problem with cyclists.

BTW, twenty years later, my hamstrings still flare up if I string together several weeks of 250 miles or more.

I like hiking as a complementary type of exercise to cycling. I just came back from Palm Springs and its Agua Caliente Indian Reservation. We only hiked 10 miles round trip but the ascent started at about 850 and then up to about 2,260 according to my Garmin Edge. Yeah, different type of leg extensions, maybe what the runner would like.

Perhaps a tandem bike analogy would explain Surgeonstone's view. If a tandem bike is doing a hard climb, and one of the riders is very strong, and the other weak, it may be perceived that the weaker one is working harder (suffering more), but in actuality, the stronger one is doing more work, but is less affected by it.

In the end however, your quads are the muscles that will tire the soonest, be sore the next day, and ultimately be the limiter of your ability.

I try to do as many other activities as I can get away with doing to keep my muscles balanced. This includes running, weight lifting, and basketball. I find that if I ride my bike too much without doing these other activities, my upper body starts to lose muscle mass very quickly. My upper body strength also dwindles very quickly if I don't go out of my way to strength train. I also don't want to deal with the complications of unbalanced leg muscles that are being mentioned here. It works out nicely in the winter though because between the bad weather and reduced daylight I can't ride my bike either way. I'm pretty much forced to find other activities to do in the afternoons when I get home from work. I do want to try spin classes this winter, but I still need to stay conscious of a well-rounded physical activity regiment.

This has to be the best post I have seen on a cycling fitness related thread in a while. To many people focus only on "ride lots" and not overall body fitness.

I'll stick with peer-reviewed journal articles over pretty pictures.

Do you mind posting a link or two to such articles?

What workouts can be done to get the hamstrings up to a balanced strength?

Quads

Not 100% necessary - but it will definitely help.

Hey thanks for the replies everyone! I actually forgot I started this thread :innocent:

Anyway, my trainer and I have a suspicion that my hamstrings are way behind my quads, but I wasn't sure which group cycling worked the most. Not to mention the fact that I've been doing tons of quad work in physical therapy, but barely any hamstring curls because they hurt my knees (I only do 3x10 @ 50 pounds 2 days a week).

Does anyone know any good hamstring exercises (using weights) that don't involve this thing:

http://www.pro-fitness.com/photos/leg_curl_machine.jpg

lunges, make them deep and you can also hold a dumbbell in each hand

Guads FTW!!!

Here are a few ideas:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/54...ng-no-weights/

http://www.livestrong.com/article/13...out-equipment/

Seems to me that one's pedaling style would affect this as well. Are you mashing or spinning more? Circles or squares? How much time do you spend out of the saddle hammering away? Certainly your guads are going to be doing the yeoman's share in any case, but standing should engage the glutes more and also stretch the hamstrings out.

Google: "Single Leg RDL". Hits the posterior chain and also helps ankle and knee stability.

A couple of thoughts that are related and a bit more application oriented:

1) Generally, the more bent over I get (the closer my torso is to the top-tube), the more power I generate; and when I want to generate more power (but, not in a sprint situation), I tend to get more bent over. I think this lower/more-bent-over position recruits relatively more glute and hamstring than when sitting more up.

2) Again, generally, when my quads feel sore over a period of days or more when walking up stairs (while off the bike, of course), I know that I am using too much quad in my stroke; I will adjust my position to recruit more glute (and hamstring).