any mountain bikers in this forum?

[picard]

Is there any serious mountain bikers who also do some weight lifting in this forum? Have you guys notice any increase in strength in upper body & legs power at all?

 

[The Bad Ass Canadian]

I'm a pretty serious biker, and I've only really noticed that my stamina is alot greater in the gym..... I'm scared that I might be eating up a bit too much muscle with all the extra cardio, but I'm trying to get lean and not bulky, anyways.

So far so good....

 

[picard]

did you gain any bulk in the gym? I am trying to gain bulk.

what kind of weight do you use for squat? I want to increase strength in my legs

 

[MrLuvr]

Originally posted by picard
did you gain any bulk in the gym? I am trying to gain bulk.

what kind of weight do you use for squat? I want to increase strength in my legs

Are you doing some serious mountain biking, like a couple of hours a day and numerous times a week?

If so, you are NOT going to gain bulk. End of story. There are no two ways around it.

That kind of cardio over an extended period of time is going to burn through your muscles.

 

[Francisco d'Anconia]

I'm a road cyclist but I mountainbike in the off season. I was pretty bulky when I started and had a lot of strength but not much power. I lost the bulk, gained the power and became a better all around cyclist.

 

[The Bad Ass Canadian]

Originally posted by picard
did you gain any bulk in the gym? I am trying to gain bulk.

what kind of weight do you use for squat? I want to increase strength in my legs

Nope... I'm losing bulk (a bit, anyways) But I eat like a horse, so the bulk is being replaced with alot leaner, more toned body mass (I'm not losing alot of muscle, and I keep a good pump most of the time)......which is the look I prefer.

I love the stamina and the power, though..... you can't get that from just lifting.

 

[picard]

I wish I can ride 2hrs for 4dys a week but I dont' have time. I ride twice a week and spend 3hrs on a ride.

 

[Create Reality]

I've currently set aside my biking goals for a bodybuilding program. But yes I do love to MTB and hopefully next summer I will have a good oppritunity.

I've also started training fast-twitch in my legs which can bring alot of power. Francisco, what do you think MTB is, more endurance or more sprint style?

 

[Francisco d'Anconia]

Originally posted by Create Reality
I've currently set aside my biking goals for a bodybuilding program. But yes I do love to MTB and hopefully next summer I will have a good oppritunity.

I've also started training fast-twitch in my legs which can bring alot of power. Francisco, what do you think MTB is, more endurance or more sprint style?

Depends, true MTB is mostly agility unless you get into cyclocross or some of the other races; then endurance plays a major factor. I've found that I've done better after loosing a bunch of the bulk but maintained mostly lean muscle. Being lighter AND adding power makes me very agile on the bike.

Understand though that road cycling gave me the endurance/speed/power. I don't regularly push the big gears so I depend on staying aerobic for long lengths of time (between 2-4 hours typically or 40 to 80 city miles). That converts very well to MTB where you must do a lot of spinning with a lower gear ratio anyway. Couple that with pulling less mass on climbs and having strength and agility to thrash on the downhills; it's a leathal combination!

 

[check_mate_kid_uk]

I do MTB and road, i dont work out on my legs only upper body, and the progress is slow alhought my pecs which where no existant before are looking good now and my stomach is more tone, 6 pack starting to show through a tiny bit.

If oyu want to build stregnth for cycling you can work out, or better yet, train cycling up hill a lot, this will build a lot of power!

Remember to spin thou, dont chomp down on the pedals, to gain good pedal strokes either (if you have spd's) practice cycling with 1 foot and if you dont have spd's then cycle at a cadence of about 130

cycling offroad in the winter is great to perfect for makign the good pedlaing stroke stick with you because when its that muddy especialy going up hill, if you have to pedla efficently or you just get wheel spin! For this reason mountainbikers have better pedal storkes then the roadies beacuse on road you do not relaise that you are not being efficent!

 

[Francisco d'Anconia]

Originally posted by check_mate_kid_uk
...Remember to spin thou, dont chomp down on the pedals, to gain good pedal strokes either (if you have spd's) practice cycling with 1 foot and if you dont have spd's then cycle at a cadence of about 130...

Are you saying that your regular cadence is 130??!! I'm not talking about short bursts but what you can hold for extended times without anaerobic.

 

[check_mate_kid_uk]

Originally posted by Francisco d'Anconia
Are you saying that your regular cadence is 130??!! I'm not talking about short bursts but what you can hold for extended times without anaerobic.

Defintly not 130, maybe 90, hopefully not much less. But 130 is great for getting good pedeling technique, it practicly forces you in to doing it properly. I have never tried maintaining it for long, infact i bearly do it at all but when i do i notice that at that cadence you start to spin perfectly.

 

[Francisco d'Anconia]

Originally posted by check_mate_kid_uk
Defintly not 130, maybe 90, hopefully not much less. But 130 is great for getting good pedeling technique, it practicly forces you in to doing it properly. I have never tried maintaining it for long, infact i bearly do it at all but when i do i notice that at that cadence you start to spin perfectly.

Ok, that's more realistic. I hold at about 105 for typical rides of a couple of hours or more (road bike of course). For sprints and hill climbing it goes up to somewhere between 115-125 depending on the road.

If you want to build your cadence, just try boosting your cadence by 10% for ten to fifteen second bursts. Rest to get your heart rate back under control and then do it again. Keep practicing until you can hold it for longer periods. Then not only hold it for longer periods (30 to 60 seconds) but also do it with little fluctuation of your heart rate.