Build Power, Save Time with this Double-Header Workout
By Chris Carmichael

Everyone knows the wintertime training lays the foundation for a successful summer season, but there’s still plenty of debate about the specifics – particularly when it comes to the idea of gaining power on the bike by heading into the gym to lift weights. I first heard the idea more than 30 years ago as a junior, and experts are still trying to decide if resistance training in the winter really improves cycling performance. You want to know the answer? For the vast majority of cyclists, resistance training won’t make you faster.

To make significant gains in on-bike strength and power, you need to be in the gym a minimum of three hours a week. That doesn’t sound so bad until you realize that, based on my observation of several thousand CTS-coached athletes, the average cyclist with a full-time job and a life can only squeeze out about 8-10 hours of total training time each week, if they really work at it. So why use 30 to 40 percent of that time doing something that may or may not make you faster when you know that more time on the bike will absolutely make you faster? Besides, there’s a way cyclists can effectively build explosive on-bike power without really cutting into your riding time: plyometrics.

Plyometrics are exercises that use explosive movements to bridge the gap between strength and power – and improve both. Most are jumping exercises targeted at making your muscles exert maximum force faster. Why is this more important for cyclists than pure strength? With strength you can push a big gear; with power you can push the same gear faster, which means you go faster. I also like plyometrics for cyclists because the exercises target large muscle groups, help them work together with greater synchronicity, and enhance balance and coordination – things you don’t get from traditional, muscle-isolating weight lifting.

The Double Header Workout
What I’ve found to be most effective in boosting power fast is combining a plyometrics session with high-intensity on-bike intervals in the same day. The jumps recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers in your legs, hips, and buttocks, which means they’re primed for action when you get on your bike. Try the following workout twice a week through the end of March. Do the plyos right before you get on your bike or within a few hours before your ride. Before you throw yourself right into jumping exercises, warm up with a simple 5-10 minutes of brisk walking and 2-3 trips up and down a flight of stairs.

Squat and Jump: About 5 minutes
Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart (in sneakers or bare feet, not cycling shoes!). With your arms at your sides, squat until your hips reach knee level, keeping your weight back and your knees even with or behind your toes. Then explode straight up and jump as high as you can, swinging your arms upward to generate momentum and more height. As you land, bend your knees to absorb impact. Immediately return to a standing position and repeat. Beginners should do two sets of 10 jumps, intermediates three sets of 10, and advanced riders two sets of 15-20 jumps. Rest 1 minute between sets.

Training ride with CTS PowerIntervals: total time 60 minutes
PowerIntervals are short, hard efforts designed to boost your top-end power, but also to improve performance at any speed, so they’re worth doing even if you don’t intend to sprint for a single finish line this year. Warm up for 15 minutes. 4 x 1 minute at max effort (as fast as you can sustain), with 1 minute easy spinning recovery between each. These are very hard, and the time between intervals is purposely too short to provide full recovery. Beginners should do one set, intermediate riders two sets, and advanced riders three sets. Take 8 minutes of easy spinning between sets. When you’re done with the intervals, enjoy the rest of your ride.

Bonus Plyometric Exercises:

Two-Legged Cone Hops
Though it sounds counterintuitive, jumping can actually help prevent knee soreness. Cycling strengthens some of the muscles and connective tissue that stabilize your knee, but not all of them, which can lead to misalignment and knee pain. To eliminate the imbalance, try double-legged cone hops: Put a cone, soda can, or anything that’s about 6-inches high, on the ground. Stand next to it, bend at the knees, and then jump up and sideways over it, swinging your arms for momentum. As you land, bend at the knees again and jump back to the starting position. Continue jumping for 20 seconds without stopping. Rest 45 seconds, and repeat for a total of three sets. Once you’re comfortable with the motion, progress to one-legged hops.  

Two-Legged Box Jumps:
Like the squat jumps, these build explosive strength, but with an added twist. To nail a box jump, you’re going to jumping onto a platform that’s roughly knee- to thigh-high (if you don’t have a sturdy box, jumping two to three steps up a staircase works too). So in addition to bounding off the floor to get airborne, you’re going to have to immediately fire your hip flexors and abdominal muscles to pull you feet up and under you so you can land on top of the box. But the real benefit to box jumps? The jump down: Your muscles have to contract eccentrically (as they lengthen) to absorb shock, and this is actually the type of muscle use that helps prevent injury in your joints and muscles since it’s sparking the neural systems that help you react to sudden stress. So don’t just step off the box, jump off the box. Start with 10 working your way up to 20 jumping up and down as quickly as you can.

Last Updated: 2/4/2008