Squats?

Curb Dog

I've started dumbbell squats as part of a weight training program. Generally I ride and work out on alternate days.

Should I do squats on the days I ride or the days that I work out? If I did squats on the days that I ride, I'd effectively be giving my legs a recovery day. I once read a piece in cycling weekly about a rider who swore by squats after cycling.

I ride about three times a week, 25-50 miles at a time. As I'm not covering a great deal of miles does it actually matter?

Plus are there any other dos or don'ts that I should know about?

Thanks.

TechnoBuddhist

You can do them on days you're on the bike, if you can do them on days that you do endurance rides, rather than intensity rides(intervals, hill climbs, etc.) then the riding will help to stretch the legs.

The reps, sets and weight all depend on the reason you're doing the squats.

If it's for any sort of muscular-endurance then you could be doing them twice a week. 2-3 sets of 40-60 reps(moderate speed of lifting) of 30-50% 1rep max weight. Power-endurance, 3-4sets of 8-15reps(raise the weight quickly with bursts of power) of 30-50% 1rep max weight.

If it's strength related you could be doing them twice a week. 3-4 sets of 4-8 reps(slow lift) of 30-50% 1rep max weight.

If you're racing then cut back to the minimum of the sets/reps and weights. Likewise every 4th week to give a recovery.

shockedsoshocked

I either try and do squats the day of a training ride, or leave a days rest after doing squats till I do a training ride again. I've only tried to ride the day after once and it didn't really work.

rohloff-rich

I once read something about not doing strength work on the same day (or within 8hrs) of cardio work, but as above if it's for endurance rather than strength I think it'd compliment the riding if you did it on the same day - then your rest day would probably be more effective, even if you were to work your upper body too.

ut_och_cykla

If its for cardio work you'd be much better off doing structured on teh bike training with heavier gears. Doing after riding will mean your legs are warm, but tired. Doing them on cycling off days is probably best, but not to the detrement of cyclingteh next day!
It's always a bit of a choice - more cycling is probably of more help than squats at this time of year.
And some put forward plausible arguments as to why most cyclists don't need to do weight training at all! (which I don't subscribe to but that's another story....

Ric_Stern/RST

ut_och_cykla wrote:

If its for cardio work you'd be much better off doing structured on teh bike training with heavier gears.

as nice as it sounds, riding at the same power in a bigger gear doesn't do anything for you compared to riding at the same power in a normal sized gear. Simply, the forces are much too low to increase strength.

It's always a bit of a choice - more cycling is probably of more help than squats at this time of year.

unless you're a 200-metre track sprinter, or kilo rider, etc., squats are always going to be of less importance than riding the bike. In trained cyclists, weights are more likely to cause a decrease in aerobic performance.

And some put forward plausible arguments as to why most cyclists don't need to do weight training at all! (which I don't subscribe to but that's another story....

That's right. very little need to do any

Ric

ut_och_cykla

Weight training may not be such a brill idea for pro cyclists (tho' I believe many do it 'off season') but as part of a varied fitness programme that includes a lot of cycling weight training can be beneficial by adressing flexibility, fat loss etc. Horses for courses I suppose - I'm not inclined to be so prescriptive as Ric!

Ric_Stern/RST

ut_och_cykla wrote:

Weight training may not be such a brill idea for pro cyclists (tho' I believe many do it 'off season') but as part of a varied fitness programme that includes a lot of cycling weight training can be beneficial by adressing flexibility, fat loss etc. Horses for courses I suppose - I'm not inclined to be so prescriptive as Ric!

while my comments were aimed at improving (or not) endurance cycling performance

1) i know of no data to show that weight training increases flexibility in healthy individuals
2) while exercising in general (versus not exercising) will cause a greater expenditure of energy, cycling will expend more energy than weight training

Ric