Gym/Cycling/Commuting

dhope

Some talk of quality vs quantity in miles ridden this year, and I'd like to start doing more weekend rides rather 90% of my miles being commuting.

I'll also try to get to the gym fairly regularly (a few times a week) which include at least 1 workout on legs only; leg raises, squats, walking lunges, leg press, calf raises etc., which take 2 to 3 days to recover from. Then there's the notion that it's best to work the larger muscles earlier in the week as working your glutes for example has a knock on effect in terms of boosting testosterone which benefits subsequent workouts.
Then any running or squash can gets fitted in according to friends availability.

So, how do folks tend to arrange things?
- Legs first leading to tired legs for commuting but recovered in time for the weekend?
- Just cram everything in and planning be damned?
- Take the ITB route and cycle when there is time left over in-between drinking Doom Bar, then some sleep and work in the small remaining gaps?

Cafewanda

Not been inside a gym in a few years so can't comment on that segment. I fit long rides around my running club sessions/races and do any body work indoors using whatever's to hand.

Your first option seems like a good plan followed by the ITB plan :-).

rick_chasey

If you're interested in real training for cycling, head over to the training section in road. There's a poster there who's a full time coach and seems to know his stuff.

By and large his responses go like this: want to go fast? Spend the vast majority of your training on the bike.

iPete

Are you gym training to improve your cycling, improve your general strength or to gain mass?

Wrath Rob

Get The Cyclists Training Bible.

2 main things, its time in the saddle not distance you ride and then its the quality of that time in the saddle. To a large extent, distance is irrelevant. Unless you're one of those strange audax type people...

dhope

Not actually too fussed about training for cycling specifically as I'd probably end up ditching any free weights at the gym that way and I quite enjoy that. More just a roundabout way of making sure I'm not doing things in entirely the wrong order or seeing what others with a similarly casual attitude to it all*.

*i.e. pretend not to be too bothered about it until I find out if I can cycle quickly. The SCR approach to training.

Pete: not looking to gain mass, I'm a fairly healthy 5'10" 75kgs and not much fat on me but don't care about bulking up for the sake of it. Guess it'd be heading to a slightly more cycle specific training if I'm aiming to get out on club rides more often. Want to keep things interesting really as I'm healthy enough but a bit of direction wouldn't go amiss.

Rob: Time in the saddle in single rides, or overall time in saddle? Would imagine 1x2hr rides better than 4x30min rides for example.

tiny_pens

It depends on what you are training for.

Assuming a reasonable commute distance (10 miles each way) and training for stamina then you would get decent results out of option A - leg work at gym early in the week using daily commuting as recovery rides and then introducing longer rides at the weekend.

For racing speed you need to follow the Jens Voight path and just smash yourself to bits six days a week and generally commuting is not conducive to administering the levels of pain needed to get fast so you would need to be thinking about a turbo trainer.

As posted above, most training will involve just spending more hours on the bike. Have you considered using the gym time to work on balancing up the rest of your muscles (core, arms, shoulders) and building up the leg strength on the bike instead?

dhope

TP: Gym tends to be 1 day legs, 1 day back/biceps, 1 day chest/triceps, with some core work thrown in with the other days. Legs early in the week recently, then the rest following that. I'm not a huge fan of the gym bikes really. Big squishy saddles and staring at a wall isn't much fun for me. Spin classes possibly but I'd guess they're more for fitness rather than cycle specific fitness.

tiny_pens

OK. Sounds like you are looking for cycling to compliment your other training. For me planning a routine in advance is key otherwise I find I tend to avoid doing hard stuff.

I'd suggest that using the commute as recovery days for the leg workouts and then skipping the Friday commute so you are fresh for a decent length ride at the weekend.

Not been to a spin class myself but the bikes are usually a lot better then the static bikes and some classes allow you to bring your own pedals and set the bike up for your own position. They strike me as being a cycling version of a bleep test. That said they are usually good honest training using the correct muscle groups for cycling and lots of amateur riders use the classes in the winter to maintain fitness.

king_jeffers

dhope wrote:

- Just cram everything in and planning be damned?

That is me!

I commute on the bike around 4 days per week and tend to go to the gym on those days. Going for a full body program at the moment, however I only have one killer day on the legs - goblet squats, lunges etc...ouch... Otherwise just light leg work. Anyway I just keep the cycling up regardless finds it helps ease my legs. Should point out I'm training to tone up rather than improve my cycling times. With the latter I find the weekend run out helps. Lost a couple of stone so far, 1 more and maybe a half to go!

First month I was wrecked but gets easier.

veronese68

I went to a gym once. The instructor said you have to be "totally dedicated" and that you shouldn't go to the gym then go to the pub.
I didn't go straight to the pub. But, within 15 minutes of leaving I was turning sausages over on the bbq with one hand, beer in the other and smoking declaring that i was totally dedicated and wouldn't be returning to the gym.
That was 23 years ago and I haven't been to a gym since. I take the ITB approach, but nowadays there is lots of other stuff that interferes with the drinking. House, kids, wife, etc. Commuting by bike is most of the exercise that I do.
Why am I even looking at this thread? I'll go now.

iPete

I don't do the gym at the minute due to Tri training but when I did I quickly scrapped all the isolation exercises as they take ages. Quickly became a big fan of rippetoe's starting strength routine, basically core strength and very quick to complete. I did have to cut out squats though, ruined my cycling.