Any riders/commuters lift weights regularly?

[DaveK]

I do but I’ve gradually taken off the heavy squats and deadlifts to allow for going harder on the bike. I find my legs just can’t keep up with trying to increase my max squat and deadlift while cycling regularly. I still do both exercises but at lower weights.

Generally I have an A and B workout, A being chest/core/squats and B being back/shoulders/deadlifts. I alternate those MWF so my weeks look like A-B-A, B-A-B, etc. I try to stress compound movements so things like hang cleans, bench press, squat, deadlift.

I will say this – I hate lifting. Absolutely hate it. But I’ve been into regular cardio before without lifting and I don’t like what happens to my body shape when I do that. The word “deflated” comes to mind.

A great place to start (and where my routine comes from originally) is Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. Between that and exrx.net you can learn a lot about lifting. I’d recommend getting a trainer or at least someone who knows the movements to help you at first though. I almost seriously injured myself trying to learn how to lift just off the internet.

[Tim Kelley]

The off-season is when I really get jacked up.

Stair running, a lot of compound lifts and core specific exercises!

[Jason]

I found also that I can’t keep up in the DL or Squat when I am biking. Before biking to work, I could hit the DL and squat hard, doing DL reps with 280lbs and squatting with 270 for sets of 10 at a bodyweight of 180. Not stellar, but not so bad for the geeky kid in the front. When I started biking in to work, the extra hip movement taxing my system kept me from any squat/DL work for 4 months until I acclimated. Only a few weeks ago I was able to start adding back the major movement. My gym at work has a Trap bar, so I have been working parallel deadlifts with that, not a DL replacement, but more ergonmic for me than the squat. I also felt deflated when I wasnt lifting, so glad to be back at it.

[acc]

Yes, I lift on the machines in the weight rooms in the Fairfax County Rec Centers. Have been lifting for five years, twice a week.

I wouldn’t be able to do much on a bike or in a pool if I didn’t.

[PotomacCyclist]

I also follow a periodized schedule, like Tim does. I spend a little more time and intensity on strength training in the early winter. Once I start ramping up my bike training (and swim and run) in the mid-winter, I ease back on strength training a bit. Over the spring and summer, my strength training becomes haphazard, but I don’t get too worried about it at that point. That’s when I’m doing more sport-specific exercises like hill sprints, hill repeats, paddles (on the swim) and press-outs (for the upper body — again, for the swim).

My focus is on compound movements, core work (meaning the entire core, not just the abs) and a healthy dose of bodyweight exercises. Bodyweight exercises can be effective for building balanced strength and functional strength. They may not be quite enough to become a massive bodybuilder, but that’s not what I’m going for.

I also do a full-body routine each time unless I’m doing an abbreviated core-focused session. For the core sessions, shortly after a bike or run workout, I will just go through a few bodyweight and/or dumbbell moves, covering the obliques, back, spinal erectors, glutes, hips, abs and deep core muscles (compression). I tend to do most of the weight sessions in the early winter phase. Over the summer, I may only do squat/hamstring work a few times a month, or even less.

I guess I should do a little more on the pure strength side of things in the early winter, but I’m just not that motivated to lift really heavy. Max strength isn’t that important for an endurance athlete. Muscle balance, neuromuscular coordination and core strength/balance is more important. So that’s what I tend to focus on. I often do pistol squats (bodyweight, single-leg squats, dropping all the way to the floor, meaning that my rear just about touches the floor) instead of barbell squats. I do back raises or single-leg deadlifts with a dumbbell instead of barbell deadlifts, most of the time.

For upper body, I stick to bodyweight and dumbbell exercises. I never do barbell bench press. I don’t think it’s healthy for the shoulders, plus it does very little for the core and stabilizer muscles. For the core, I rotate through various exercises, mostly based on what I feel like doing that day. Lately I’ve been doing the bicycle exercise (great for the obliques), side planks, neck bridges and one-arm/one-leg front planks. Sometimes I do back raises for the lower back and hamstrings. On those days, I make sure to include a quad exercise to balance out the hamstring work. Usually the quad exercise is the pistol squat (great for the gluteus medius, an important hip stabilizer, as well as the quads and gluteus maximus). I haven’t done barbell squats that often this year, maybe just a few times. I might get back into it after my off-season recovery phase. But even then, I may only do barbell squats and a weighted hamstring exercise for a few weeks.

I think strength training is very important for every individual, but especially for adults in their 30s, 40s and beyond. That’s when we start to lose muscle mass. The sedentary person loses an incredible (and terrifying) amount of muscle mass each decade. But with regular strength training and general exercise that includes hill workouts, an adult can stem most of the muscle loss, down to barely a trickle. Actually, if someone was sedentary in his/her 20s, that person can have more muscle mass in the 30s and 40s than in the 20s. The max potential decreases in the 30s but if you were nowhere close to that potential in your 20s, then you can be more fit and stronger in your 30s and 40s. Even for someone who was relatively fit in his 20s, he may not have had the opportunity to work on his strength (and aerobic fitness) as much as he could. The time for extra training and body development (and mental development) helps explain why older athletes (mid 30s to upper 30s) can dominate some endurance events at the world-class level. Some examples are Craig Alexander (triathlon), Chrissie Wellington (triathlon), Cadel Evans (cycling) and Haile Gebrselassie (middle and long distance running). Compare that to sports like tennis and gymnastics where you are considered ancient by your late 20s.

[PotomacCyclist]

A couple other points:

Some studies have shown that elite cyclists actually have lower bone mineral density than the average adult (which includes non-athletes!). It’s thought that the low-impact nature of cycling is the reason. Cutting calories to lower body weight could be another reason. I don’t know if this is the case with non-elites, but it could be. Cycling will always be a low-impact activity, which means that it won’t build strong bones.

Strong bones are important for general health but also in case of a crash. You are much better off with strong bones than weak bones in any crash, even if that doesn’t provide absolute protection against injury. The only way to build stronger bones, especially in the upper body and midsection, is strength training.

As for the effectiveness of bodyweight exercises, just look at the Olympic gymnasts on TV this week. Elite gymnasts often say that they do very little traditional weight training. Most of their strength work comes in the form of functional bodyweight exercises. You can see how powerful and strong their shoulders, pecs, lats and core are. So clearly it’s possible to develop functional strength primarily through bodyweight exercises. The key is increasing intensity by transitioning to single-leg and single-arm exercises. One example is the staggered push-up. It’s intermediate in difficulty between traditional push-ups and the one-arm push-up. For the staggered version, move one hand forward about 12 inches and do the scheduled number of sets. Then switch hands, with the other hand forward and do your sets. Be careful though. This can be a big step in intensity from a regular push-up. I tweaked a shoulder (deltoid) a couple years ago when I jumped up to staggered push-ups too quickly one winter. It wasn’t a serious injury but it did bother me for a few weeks. I was still able to swim and do strength workouts, but I did notice some discomfort.

I’ve never been able to move up to a true one-arm push-up. That requires a lot of focus and specific training. Maybe one of these days…

[PotomacCyclist]

One more item:

I’ve had some issues with muscle imbalances in the legs in the past, including the lower legs. So I try to include calf raises (bent-knee and straight-leg) and toe raises (dumbbell or exercise band on toes, then lift toes while heel remains stable). This helps to balance out the two calf muscles with the front shin muscles. If I go too long without these lower leg isolation exercises, I start to develop minor issues with shin splints and calf/Achilles tendon tightness. Fortunately I haven’t had any serious problems with this in 2.5 years because of the strength training.

I read that former marathon world record holder Haile Gebrselassie had similar issues with muscle imbalance in his lower legs. And he is one of the fastest and most efficient distance runners on the planet. He said that if he doesn’t include some strength work for the legs, that he starts to develop lower leg problems too. So at least that’s one thing I have in common with Gebrselassie. (Marathon speed is not one of them. He was the first person to finish a marathon in under 2:04:00! I’m just hoping for a sub-4 hr. time this fall.)

[pfunkallstar]

I haven’t had a gym membership in about two years but still try to mix in daily body-weight exercises to keep from “deflating” (good term). I’ve still got a good bit of residual muscle mass form my weightlifting days, but it goes away rather quickly. Situps, crunches, tricep dips, push ups, and some yoga have been able to help. Can’t say I miss the smell of the weight room….

[Riley Casey]

This is an informative and timely thread from some obviously knowledgeable folks. I’ve been exercising 45 minutes daily for 20 years now but largely on an aerobic basis, with sit up and burpees as the most strenuous element of the work out. As a result I have nice low blood pressure, can bike for more miles than my age without running out of gas but above the waist I have no strength of any use. Can I improve on this without equipment and a training regimen by simply changing my mix of home exercise or is there no way around signing up for a gym membership?

[Tim Kelley]

@Riley Casey 27296 wrote:

This is an informative and timely thread from some obviously knowledgeable folks. I’ve been exercising 45 minutes daily for 20 years now but largely on an aerobic basis, with sit up and burpees as the most strenuous element of the work out. As a result I have nice low blood pressure, can bike for more miles than my age without running out of gas but above the waist I have no strength of any use. Can I improve on this without equipment and a training regimen by simply changing my mix of home exercise or is there no way around signing up for a gym membership?

Yes, bodyweight exercises focused on the upper body can be extremely good. Plenty of routines and videos online for the searching!

[eminva]

@Riley Casey 27296 wrote:

Can I improve on this without equipment and a training regimen by simply changing my mix of home exercise or is there no way around signing up for a gym membership?

Riley — As a result of surgery several years ago, I was left with diminished upper body strength and flexibility. I got a recommendation for a personal trainer who works with people rehabbing from surgery. She came to my house and set me up with an exercise routine. It uses bands and light dumbbells — stuff we already had at home. During the session she corrected my posture and made sure I was doing the exercises correctly. A couple of days later she emailed me detailed instructions with photos for all the exercises she taught me (as well as some stretching).

I can’t remember what I paid, but it was a one time only fee and I thought it was quite reasonable. I have no other reason or desire to belong to a gym so this worked out well for me.

Liz

[KelOnWheels]

@Riley Casey 27296 wrote:

Can I improve on this without equipment and a training regimen by simply changing my mix of home exercise or is there no way around signing up for a gym membership?

I recommend a 35-pound bike and a vertical bike rack, myself

This is a great thread, seriously. Now that I am getting back to exercising I need to incorporate some weight training. I’d like to start swimming again too – when I did masters swimming before I had decent form but absolutely no power.

[Jason]

I volunteer to help anybody develop a routine if they want. I like to keep things simple.

[txgoonie]

@Tim Kelley 27298 wrote:

Yes, bodyweight exercises focused on the upper body can be extremely good. Plenty of routines and videos online for the searching!

+1 I think I mentioned somewhere before, but I borrowed a friend’s P90X DVDs. It is amazing how a few base pieces of equipment (pull-up bar and resistance bands) and a bunch of mostly bodyweight exercises can really kick your butt. So push-ups don’t sound hard? Try doing 10 sets with different hand positions alternating each set with a set of varying types of pull-ups and you’ll be wrecked. Same can be said for lower body exercises, too. A standard squat without weight might be super easy, but 25 reps of an 80/20 squat (80% of weight on one leg, 20% on the other) done at a really high cadence which turns into an actual jump halfway through the set? OMFG.

[Jason]

The problem with P90x is that you are only using bodyweight. In order to create muscle building you need to steadily increase weight, or reps or both. With p90x, your bodyweight is relatively fixed, so you cant increase that. You can only therefore increase reps. You will never be able to handle greater weight than say your bodyweight. But there is a limit where you will hit your endurance threshold far before you hit muscle building when you use body weight alone. P90x is great for burning calories, but not for muscle building and strength, you will only get a little bigger at first, and not much stronger. You will be limited by the weight you are moving, namely your bodyweight. You may feel stronger, but instead you will be only increasing your max endurance, after you gain a certain threshold of basic strength by moving your own bodyweight around. You will build endurance for sure, but there are probably even more effective ways (given that time finite) than p90x. After you have gone through a true muscle and strenght building routine, you will know the difference for sure.

[Author]

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