Training Tips – February

So there you are on the start line of your first race of the season and you’re saying to yourself “If only I had done a bit more winter training”.

Well the only thing for sure is that it is definitely too late to do anything as you sit there with the starter saying its 5min to the start!

The problem is that as this article is being written its only just above freezing and the grass outside my window has been covered in frost for the best part of three days. This does not exactly encourage anyone to get out there on any sort of ride let alone one the traditionalists will tell you that you need in winter. You know the sort that say “you need to be doing 200 miles a week at this time of year” etc etc.

Well it just so happens that I don’t believe in slogging around the countryside on cold, wet days just to clock up the miles either. But read on and you might find something of interest wether you’re a high mileage rider or not.

Firstly if you are still reading I have a few questions:

1. How many of you belong to a gym?

2. How many of you go regularly, at least once ideally three times a week?

3. When you go do you have a purpose, an aim?

4. How many of you like turbo work?

No answers on postcards or emails please, I can answer the questions for you.

Probably quite a few of you belong to gyms, but very few of you go regularly. When you do go you use the pieces of equipment you are familiar with, but you don’t have a target or take away any useful information. Finally the vast majority hate turbo work because it’s supposed to be boring.

So what I am about to outline as this months training tip will probably make the majority of you wince and groan. However if you bear with me you might just discover a good quality workout which combines the turbo trainer with a series of exercises. It should take you around 45mins to complete and has the added appeal that a) you can stay in and b) constitutes more bang for your bucks in terms of developing aerobic capacity and all round strength. Moreover it can be done in the gym or at home if you prefer.

Step 1

You will need a turbo trainer set up with a medium resistance. So that you can achieve the same set up next time, set the turbo up climb aboard, engage 42/17 gear or nearest equivalent and pedal up to 80 rpm (count 20 full revolutions for 15secs to give you an idea of the right speed). Stop pedalling and time how long it takes for the back wheel to stop rotating. I suggest about 6 secs as a starting point.

Other items of equipment required if you are at home are:

A chair
A wooden box or something equally sturdy, about 450mm high to step up onto.

Circuit 1

1. 10 min warm up on the turbo. Start at 60rpm and increase by 5rpm per minute

2. Take 1 minutes recovery

3. 2 min on the bike as fast as you can sustain for that period of time. In    terms of effort 10/10

4  4 Chin ups (use the back of a door!)

5. 15 Burpees (Squat thrust with a jump)

6. 30 Sit ups (only about a quarter of the way up)

7. 15 Press ups

8. 24 Body fast weight squats

9. 2 mins on the bike at maximum effort

10. 10 Step ups on each leg

11. 30 Lower back extensions (Lie face down with your hands and arms by your side, now lift  your upper body off the floor from the waist about 150-200mm)

12. 10 Press ups with your feet elevated about 200mm

13. 20 lunges on each leg. (Stand with feet together, then take a large step forward with one  leg until the upper leg is almost parallel to the ground. Bend the other foot from the toes.

14 24 Bench dips. (Sit on the edge of the chair with your hands on the front corners of the chair. Now walk forward until you are clear of the chair and your body weight is supported  by your arms and partially by your legs. Lower yourself down and back up. That’s one dip

15 2min back on the bike pedalling as fast as you can sustain for the two minutes.

Circuit 2

Repeat steps 4-15 and finish with 10 mins slow pedalling on the bike as a cool down.

Now stretch.

Importantly record your HR as follows:

Before warm up,
At the end of the warm up,
At the completion of each circuit
At the end of the cool down.

What is the difference between your HR at the start and after completion. The closer the better. If you have a HR monitor you may well be able to record the Max HR in the session and the average HR. This indicates how hard you have worked.

Record the information in a training log and compare yourself over time.

Ideally this circuit should be done twice a week, or as part of a weekly schedule complimenting other training.

Have fun! Oh and remember when doing the exercises its about quality not speed. So make sure you do them properly and no cheating!