NEWS
NEWS DETAIL
Top 10 tips for cycling and staying fit |
25-Apr-2013 |
Cyclists' squats
If you ride around a lot, most likely you're going to have pretty tight calves, which can
make squatting well fairly tricky. Elevating the heels about 5 cm by placing some weighted
plates (if you are in the gym) or books or magazines (if you are at home), allowing you
to squat deeper with an upright torso. Keep the feet parallel (as you would if you were
cycling). Try three sets of 12 repetitions, with enough weight to mean the 12th repetition
is very hard indeed.
your core strength. A strong core will help you to keep good posture while you ride,
especially when you're out of the saddle, going uphill for example. The plank is an exercise
you can do at home, outdoors, or under your desk: lie chestdown on the floor. Push yourself
up onto your elbows (kept directly beneath your shoulders) and tuck your toes under. Hold
strong. Place your hands behind you, fingers pointing forward, on a bench, block or step.
Keep the knees bent and thighs parallel to the ground. Bend the elbows until your bottom nearly
touches the ground. Extend the elbows. Repeat 12 times. Rest one minute and go again.
I'm doing a long ride: the lower back ache. Now I'm sure it's partly because I haven't spend
hundreds of pounds on the best bike in the world and getting it set up by an expert (another
tip, get the ergonomics right), but it's also just because the back gets tired. And it gets tired
because it's not strong enough. So keep the lower back strong by performing weighted row
movements with dumbbells or kettlebells.Stand with feet hip distance apart. Bend down until
your torso is as close to parallel with the floor as you can manage and make sure your back
is straight, shoulders pulled back into their sockets. Tilt your pelvis slightly forward so that you
hips point upwards a little. Holding the weights in either hand, bend at the elbows and pull the
arms up until the weight brushes your chest, keeping elbows close to the body. Extend the arms
and repeat! Start with three sets of 12 repetitions, with a minute's rest in-between. It should be
heavy enough that you struggle to get out the last repetition.
Intervals
Increase your cardiovascular fitness quickly by including intervals in your training. Start with
basic repetitions of one minute hard, say 80% of maximum effort, one minute easy, around
40% of maximum effort. Obviously this isn't very conducive to commuting so try to do it either
on a stationary bike in the gym, or in a park where you can let rip for a minute! Also, spinning
classes or similar are basically just one long interval and hill session.
very hard power session each week. This is best done on a spin bike indoors where you know
you won't have to stop for any reason. Start with, say, 46 minutes on a high resistance, then take
1-2 minutes recovery. Repeat it 4 times and build it up each week."
interested, and set yourself a goal to get up it a certain number of times. It's simple, it's effective and
you'll feel amazing (and be fitter) after: it's hill training.
us stretch for at least five minutes every time we get off the bike? One great way of ensuring that you
do the flexibility work necessary is to do a couple of yoga sessions every week, ideally heated (where
you practice in 3538C) as that helps the muscles to warm up quicker and allows for safer stretching.
stronger. It has to be rest in between training sessions (or long commutes by bike) of course, rather
than just never going out your bike kind of rest.
Athletes and bodybuilders, or those with special dietary needs (suffering from diabetes for example),
do need to take more care over the detail of their diet, but for regular, active people, good nutrition
remains fairly simple. Eat regular meals and snacks, ideally consuming something every 34 hours. Lots of
green leafy vegetables, fruit and meals consisting of protein, slowrelease carbohydrates and vegetables.
If you ride around a lot, most likely you're going to have pretty tight calves, which can
make squatting well fairly tricky. Elevating the heels about 5 cm by placing some weighted
plates (if you are in the gym) or books or magazines (if you are at home), allowing you
to squat deeper with an upright torso. Keep the feet parallel (as you would if you were
cycling). Try three sets of 12 repetitions, with enough weight to mean the 12th repetition
is very hard indeed.
Core training
your core strength. A strong core will help you to keep good posture while you ride,
especially when you're out of the saddle, going uphill for example. The plank is an exercise
you can do at home, outdoors, or under your desk: lie chestdown on the floor. Push yourself
up onto your elbows (kept directly beneath your shoulders) and tuck your toes under. Hold
this position, keeping your back straight, for as long as you can.
Tricep dips
strong. Place your hands behind you, fingers pointing forward, on a bench, block or step.
Keep the knees bent and thighs parallel to the ground. Bend the elbows until your bottom nearly
touches the ground. Extend the elbows. Repeat 12 times. Rest one minute and go again.
Lower back
I'm doing a long ride: the lower back ache. Now I'm sure it's partly because I haven't spend
hundreds of pounds on the best bike in the world and getting it set up by an expert (another
tip, get the ergonomics right), but it's also just because the back gets tired. And it gets tired
because it's not strong enough. So keep the lower back strong by performing weighted row
movements with dumbbells or kettlebells.Stand with feet hip distance apart. Bend down until
your torso is as close to parallel with the floor as you can manage and make sure your back
is straight, shoulders pulled back into their sockets. Tilt your pelvis slightly forward so that you
hips point upwards a little. Holding the weights in either hand, bend at the elbows and pull the
arms up until the weight brushes your chest, keeping elbows close to the body. Extend the arms
and repeat! Start with three sets of 12 repetitions, with a minute's rest in-between. It should be
heavy enough that you struggle to get out the last repetition.
Intervals
Increase your cardiovascular fitness quickly by including intervals in your training. Start with
basic repetitions of one minute hard, say 80% of maximum effort, one minute easy, around
40% of maximum effort. Obviously this isn't very conducive to commuting so try to do it either
on a stationary bike in the gym, or in a park where you can let rip for a minute! Also, spinning
classes or similar are basically just one long interval and hill session.
Add power
very hard power session each week. This is best done on a spin bike indoors where you know
you won't have to stop for any reason. Start with, say, 46 minutes on a high resistance, then take
1-2 minutes recovery. Repeat it 4 times and build it up each week."
Hit the hills
interested, and set yourself a goal to get up it a certain number of times. It's simple, it's effective and
you'll feel amazing (and be fitter) after: it's hill training.
Stay flexible
us stretch for at least five minutes every time we get off the bike? One great way of ensuring that you
do the flexibility work necessary is to do a couple of yoga sessions every week, ideally heated (where
you practice in 3538C) as that helps the muscles to warm up quicker and allows for safer stretching.
Rest
stronger. It has to be rest in between training sessions (or long commutes by bike) of course, rather
than just never going out your bike kind of rest.
Eat well
The same goes for what you eat. The microfibres will rebuild much faster if you feed your body well.
Eating the right things, at least 7080% of the time will ensure that you can recover well between sessions.Athletes and bodybuilders, or those with special dietary needs (suffering from diabetes for example),
do need to take more care over the detail of their diet, but for regular, active people, good nutrition
remains fairly simple. Eat regular meals and snacks, ideally consuming something every 34 hours. Lots of
green leafy vegetables, fruit and meals consisting of protein, slowrelease carbohydrates and vegetables.
•Lucy Fry is a journalist and published author as well as being a personal fitness trainer, boxing .
