Winter Strength Training for Lazy Cyclists Like Me

I used to have a well thought out weight workout that I was supposed to complete three times a week.  It was progressive, adjusted depending on the season, and even took into consideration the types of muscle groups trained when ordering the exercises.

And I never did it.

Ugh.  Admit it – strength training sucks.  When I belonged to a gym, I would rarely go, and when I did go I had to deal with lug-head guys hogging the weights who had never heard of the concept of “working in.”  When I began to spend all of my discretionary money on bikes, the gym membership was one of the first things to go, and I’ve never regretted it.

Still, I know strength training is important for cyclists: you can’t forget your upper-body when your main activity is all lower, bone density is important, and core strength will get you through longer mountain and road rides.

So how do I stick to something I hate so much?  Here is the simple plan – 


I take a bunch of exercises (grouped in upper, lower, and core), and then move through them for 30 minutes.  I do one set in a group, then move to the next group, and repeat.  I hardly ever do more than one set of a single exercise, and don’t waste time by resting between sets.  Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Note – I have no idea what any of the proper names for the exercises are…

Upper

• Balance ball bench press w/ dumbbells
• Push-ups
• Dips off the edge of a chair
• Curls w/dumbells
• Shoulder press w/ dumbells
• Triceps extensions
• Running arms with dumbells

Core

• Crunches on the balance ball
• Plank position
• Bridges on your back
• Superman (flat on floor, arms outstretched, lift arms/head/feet together)
• Twist Abs (balance on butt with knees bent and feet up a couple of inches, swing dumbbell from side-to-side)
• Backward Crunches (balance tummy on ball facing down, lift up to parallel with floor)
• Toe-touch abs or side bends
• Burpees

Lower

• Squats with dumbells
• Walking lunges
• Standing lunges
• Lateral jumps
• Squat jumps
• Hip flexor work (standing and lifting leg to the side, front, and back)

Very little equipment plus lots of variety will hopefully result in more strength training this winter than last…