In Season Cycling Weight Training.

I have started a new in season weight training program for cycling. With help from the Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Cycling by Robert G. Price, I have developed a routine I can do two days a week while cycling 3 to 4 days a week.

The idea is to build and maintain muscular endurance instead of muscle mass. I have nothing against muscle mass. I have definitely noticed an increase in my own since I began seriously training a year ago. My goals are different with this program though.

My cycling tends to be 45-90min. Distances can range from 8-25mi at a time. Especially when you get to the 12+mi range endurance becomes an issue. I am working on diet to help with some of the energy issues, but that can only get you so far. I am also looking into ways to increase my VO2 max or oxygen maximization. That comes mostly on the bike. I will post more on that later.

The chart below details the routine that I will be following. The differences compared a normal weight training program is the weight used and the number of reps. A good rule of thumb in normal weightlifting is to start with 80% of your one rep max. Then complete three sets of 8 reps. If you cannot do at least 6 reps the weight is too heavy. If 8 reps seems easy then the weight is too light. This muscle endurance training focus' on reps rather than weight. This compliments the cycling training.

My target for endurance will be 50-60% of my one rep max in 3 sets of 20. I have modified the recommended areas because the book suggests only one exercise per week for upper body. I also do this routine in a circuit training mode, which allows little overall rest, but allows individual muscles to recover a little. For example, they recommend dumbell bench presses one week and barbell bench presses for chest. That's it. I want to stay well rounded. Posted below is the chart:

(You can click to enlarge)

















I will post back later on my progress.

Spring has sprung!

Just a few family items worthy of updating:

• Robin had her knee surgery last week. Praise God thinks went well. She is slowly recovering. Patience is not one of her gifts so that might be tough on her.
• I am getting a chance to bike more often since the weather has broken. I purchased a used Schwinn Crisscross. It is a much lighter bike and I am learning more about biking and have increased my average speed quite a bit. 2mph may not seem like much, but over 45min that really adds up. I want to work up to 17mph avg by June. I am also getting the bug for a real road bike next summer.
• School starts in a few weeks for me. It will be kinda weird getting back into that, but I am looking forward to attending.
• Cort is working a lot. She is getting ready to take her driving test. She also has a busy summer planned.
• Nate, Madi, and Niki are all doing very well in school. Niki is beginning to potty rain more and more.
  

Fitness Update

Progress
Weighed in this morning at 219. I was as low as 211 in October, but this month has been sporadic for training and diet. My favorite diet tracking website www.nutritiondata.com changed the way that you can enter food tracking. Now it takes 5min to enter one meal. Way too much clicking for a 5 item entry. That has hurt me a little because the tracking is so critical to keeping my mind focused on how much and what I need to eat or not eat on a daily basis.

Morning Workouts
I have come to a conclusion with my morning workouts. Just Do It. I have a theory about the morning mind and the evening mind. The eveing mind is very rational, but just as lazy as the morning mind. Your evening mind rationalizes so many things that seem so important for you to get up early for and get done in the morning. When morning rolls around those things do not seem so important anymore. I have evidence now that I can use against myself for my morning workouts. I try to wake up by 4:30am so that I can be to the gym by 5am. That way I can get in 20min of stationary bike and 30-35min of circuit training weightlifting. I feel so much better when I do get a chance to workout in the mornings. I stand taller, have more energy, sleep better, etc.

Circuit Training
One of the most effective things to help me get in an effective weightlifing session is circuit training. Circuit training involves mixing sets of different muscle group workouts and cardio in the same session. I do my cardo workout first to help increase my metabolism and my heart rate to get ready to lift. The cardio workout varies from 10 to 30min with a 15min average. I then break into the different weightlifting sessions for the muscle groups I am working on. The circuit part comes into play when I finish one set of one exercise I switch to a different muscle group without taking anymore rest than it takes to get to the other machine. The following is an example of this mornings workout:

• Bike 20mi
• Sit ups 20 reps
  
• Incline Bench - 8 reps - 90lbs
• Sit ups 20 reps
• Incline Bench - 8 reps - 110lbs
• Sit ups 15 reps
• Incline Bench - 8 reps - 130lbs
• Side Bends - 9 reps - 110lbs.
• Triceps pull downs - 10 reps 90lbs
• Side Bends - 9 reps - 130lbs
• Triceps pull downs - 8 reps 110lbs
• Side Bends - 9 reps - 140lbs
• Triceps pull downs - 8 reps 120lbs
• Etc...

I also alternated ab crunch machine, chest fly machine and then finished off with iso bench. All done within 60 minutes from the start of the biking.

Early July Health Update

Time for a health update.

Good news first. Overall things are going very well. After taking a couple of weeks off exercising while my wife and daughter were in Honduras I started back to the weights and biking pretty smoothly. I actually lost two pounds even though I did not workout except for 1 ride while visiting my parents in Detroit. I had a great ride out to my in-law's house in Plainwell from Kalamazoo. The ride was 17.75miles and I had a total ride time of 69min!. That was good for a 15.5mph average. My best yet. the next day I weighed myself at the gym. I was down to 215!

Now the bad news. I have had some neck issues off and on for years. Mostly when I use electronic devices too much, such as Palm devices or BlackBerry's where my deck is craned downward for long periods of time. It is called "tech neck". After I finished biking I sat down at my in laws while I was still not cooled down yet. I proceeded to entertain myself with my BlackBerry while we waited for the fireworks to begin. Well after two days of tension and discomfort I decided to try to "workout" the tension at the gym. I used the neck flexor machine with a little weight on it to try to overcome the soreness. BAD IDEA! Now I have shooting pain down my arm. Similar to when you hit your "funny bone". I think it is from a herniated disk in my neck or at least a bulging one.

Begining of June Update

I thought I would give another update.

Weight:I really did not want to start tracking weight. I don't want to be one of those people that are obsessed with how much they weigh. I began to track it or at least check it just to see if i was making progress. I check this morning pre-workout and I was down to 224. Of course that can vary a couple of pounds either way based on food consumption, natural waste elimination, and attire. I am trying to keep it consistent on that part. I always weigh before I work out with t-shirt, shorts, sock and shoes on. Also I have 500ml water and have already urinated for the morning. So the bottom line is that should give me a pretty consistent number to go by. I am impressed with my progress considering I went on a trip to Dallas for work and ate filet mingon, steak etc on my trip. I guess keeping track of your diet and watching portion control 90% of the time pays off. You can still eat out as long as it is not a habit and as long as you don't really go nuts when you do.

Cycling:The weather has been sporatic around here lately so I have not been able to bike as frequently as I would like. I was able to hit the 20 mile mark the other day. I added a loop to my normal ride and neglected to check the route first. Boy did I pay for that one. The loop was quite hilly. Not a good add to a ride when you have not done that distance before. My average time suffered, but I was able to complete the ride and because of my recent conditioning I recovered pretty quickly. I also have been fighting a sinus infection so I was coughing and sneezing on the ride which I am sure did not help.

Streching:I cannot stress the importance of stretching enough. Before you workout at all you must stretch! I am still recovering from a muscle pull in my left latissimus dorsi. It is usually ok, but I did not strech it out enough this morning and tweaked it again while I was doing some lateral raises with dumbells. If you do not have time to stretch then do not bother even lifting or exercising. It's not worth it!

Health Update 4-22-08

Time for a health update.

I have instituted two new programs into my nutrition and exercise routine. The first is the web site www.nutritiondata.com. The second is an exercise/weightlifting program from BodyFortress.com.

Nutrition Data.com

I found this site two weeks ago while looking for information on a food (I don't remember which one). I was trying to keep a food log. This site has helped me immensely. It has an extensive database of common food items which you can add to your "Pantry". They even have some fast food places. You can create a recipe from ingredients and have the site "analyze" it for nutritional value. You can also enter your own custom food entries if you have the Nutrition Facts label available. The log can keep track of all of your calories, carbs, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals. You can let the site fill your daily values based on your weight, height, age and activity levels, or you can adjust your own. It even has a fullness factor, protein quality, nutrition wheel, glycemic index and inflammation estimator. I have been able to judge and rate my diet and note the areas I need to cut back on or areas I am lacking in nutrition. I use the site several times a day to help me plan my next meal ot snacks. I have been able to stay satisfied and still keep below 2000 calories a day along with increasing my protein, reducing my fat and sugar intake.

Body Fortress.com

I found this site as I was looking for additional nutrition data for my food log. The exercise routine they suggested is great. It allows me to lift four days a week, while giving each muscle group at least 3 days recovery in between lifting days. I use the following schedule:

Week 1

• Monday - Chest-Shoulders-Triceps
• Tuesday- Back-Biceps-Abs
• Thursday-Legs
• Friday- Chest-Shoulders-Triceps-Abs

Week 2

• Monday- Back-Biceps-Abs
• Tuesday- Chest-Shoulders-Triceps
• Thursday- Legs-Abs
• Friday- Back-Biceps

Every day that I lift I first hit the stationary bike for a 15-20min warm up at moderate effort. I then stretch the muscle groups I am going to be using that day.

On the weekends I have tried to include a short and long bike ride. My short rides usually last between 5 and 7 miles. I am currently going around 10miles for my longer rides. I would like to push that up to 20miles, but I need to get a different bike for that. I am using a $99 10yr old Schwinn mountain bike. I need to move up to a hybrid or road bike to really get a 20-30mile ride in.

I will continue to give updates occasionaly.