Question: what type of leg training should i do for mountain biking?
I ride mountain bike about 1 to 2 times a week on fairly technical terrain. I’d like to able to make climbs faster than what i do now and i’d like to be able to make longer technical sections. I was thinking of squating light weight, say 100lbs, for 50 rep sets. Maybe train more towards endurance than strength?
Answer:
Answer by Rob S.
I would say whatever you do, do not do the 100 lbs for 50 sets. It may seem like a light work out, depending on your strength, but doing anything for that amount will put a lot of wear and tear on your legs and can lead quickly to problems such as hip splinters. I know, because I did that to myself and they take months to heal, and become a weak point later on.
If you want to build strength and endurance a great system is to go for 5 sets of 6 reps. Pick a weight that is very heavy, that you will only be able to hit 6 at. At first you may only be able to do 3 to 4 sets, but build up to 5 sets and stick with that. Also when you start a work out do 1 warm up set of 10 of a very light weight.
Squats are a good work out that target several muscle groups, but you may one to do other exercises that target the individual muscle. Its hard to describe the exercises to do, but I suggest stopping by a book store and going through a work out book in the leg sections. Men’s Health makes some great books, and they pretty much all cover the same thing. Do 3 to 4 exercises every work out, several times a week and on days you are not biking.
Space out the work outs, remember your body needs time to recover.
You will want to build up your calves so if there is a Leg Press machine that’s perfects because it allows you to do 2 different exercises, a leg press and a calf raise. The leg press will target your thighs while the calf raise of course targets your calves. The Leg press and Calf Raise are two of my favorite exercises, though I do squats as well from time to time. Try to switch up doing different exercises every work out, or at least every week as it will help you build up muscle and endurance quicker. If you are interested in gyms I highly suggest a cross-fit gym. Its a new sort of work out that is directly aimed at building muscle and endurance. Hope this helps.
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