Mountain bike preparation: 1- The physical

Any cyclist who regularly practices in the plain, is used to the ribs and hilly circuits.

But the mountain is something else in terms of intensity and duration of effort.

Here are some tips for preparing you specifically for the mountains. A successful cyclo stay at the La Source chalet , deserves a few weeks of preparation!

Favor quality to quantity

The Dis RT base is the land : long outputs, a diet that limits the intake of fat and fast sugars. We already get a correct weight/power ratio to attack the specific preparation.

The specific mountain training: at least a month before the ascent of passes, we gradually attack from 2 to 4 sessions per week, leaving at least a day of recovery between two intensive sessions, and alternating the themes (force, threshold, Vélocity, change of rhythm). We always start the sessions with a warm -up, to finish with a calm recovery.

The work of force typically consists, on a hilly route, to set up all the bumps in the Surbraquet, at 45-60 RPM, without significantly increasing the heart rate (I2). We sit as much as possible to make the legs work only, and we focus on your pedaling technique.

Work on the threshold , aims to repel as much as possible the anaerobic threshold, threshold from which the organism produces more lactic acid than it can eliminate (this is why we also speak of lactic threshold). Typically, it will be the appearance of a time trial, intermediate between endurance and short effort: a sustained tempo with strong ventilation but under control. We work it by series in zone i4.

The work of velocity (ability to "mill") helps maintain good oxygenation of the muscles and elimination of lactic acid.

For example, we will repeat several times a small loop made up of several ribs, with a high rate (90 RPM or more) and in an I2 effort zone. As the objective is to keep up on the duration, we will rather work on "long velocity".

The change of rhythm ("short velocity") is worked thanks to the fractional exercises inspired by athletics. It is a question of alternating in the coast short phases in i1/i2 and accelerations in i4/i5, this in sitting position or by performing seated/dancer transitions.

These sessions are accompanied by technical exercises ascending as well as downhill.

To illustrate, here are some examples of sessions (see at the end of the article the definitions of the effort zones):

General physical preparation (PPG)

To optimize training on the bicycle, nothing like good PPG. The best bodybuilding exercises for the cyclist are as follows:

The sheathing exercises, to strengthen the back and the abs. A good sheathing avoids parasitic movements (shoulders that move, spinning pelvis, etc.) and improves pedaling yield.
⇒ Plate (ventral and lateral), chair, superman/woman, crunch, rower…

Exercises to strengthen the glutes, and thighs.
⇒ squats, slits, stairs, climbing on the calves ...

Plush exercises to work explosiveness, and are more comfortable in rhythm changes on the bike.
⇒ Squat Jumps, Jump box, sautéed slots

Chain these exercises in the form of workshops, type Circuit Training, with 30 seconds of exercise followed by 30 seconds of rest.

Monitoring tools to progress

Sensations alone can be misleading. By making it possible to relate personal sensations and objective data, monitoring learns to get to know each other better, measure your progress, and control your effort during an ascent.

CardioFrequencemeter is the basic tool, the heart rate being directly linked to muscle oxygenation.

increasingly popular power sensor

Byfish effort areas 

Good developments: adapt brackets to its level

Evaluate the developments you need for difficult ascents (slopes greater than 10%), by measuring the rate - and therefore the speed - which you can maintain, your "comfort zone".
For this, you must test yourself in a very regular bump.

In practice, to spend a 1: 1 report everywhere is a good guarantee (in the example above: 34x34). In any case, it is necessary to plan the margin to face the harsher passages.

For example, for a 34 -teeth / groove tray from 28 to 34, here are the speeds obtained for rates from 70 to 90 RPM (on standard wheel 700x25):

And now, good training, and go to the next article for the second part of the mountain bike preparation: technique ...

See you soon at the Chalet La Source!