Fall Training
The average training session of a professional cyclist lasts from 2 to 4 hours. Most of the time is spent on cycling. However, during the week, several hours are given to strength training, in which the emphasis is on the muscles of the legs. Cyclists are especially active in the gym during the off-season. The training schedule of a cyclist depends on his specialization.
Recall that a cyclist can be a strong sprinter, a flexible miner or an all-rounder. Also, the training process is influenced by the upcoming races in which the athlete is going to take part. It can be a one-day race or a multi-day race. It should also be noted that the athlete can receive the schedule of the training process from a personal trainer or his team.
Athletes devote the initial training periods to increasing aerobic performance, and long runs are used for this purpose at a heart rate of 60 percent of the maximum indicator. The choice is relatively light and stable, since the races can last almost all day and the athlete should not feel very tired. Thanks to such basic training, the foundations of physical fitness are laid.
In this mode, cyclists work for one or two months, after which they increase the intensity of training to 75-80 percent of the maximum heart rate. Also at this time, interval training is used, and the entire distance is divided into segments that the athlete passes with different intensity.
Immediately before the race, cyclists work at a high intensity of 95-100 percent of the maximum heart rate. Note that with increasing intensity, the duration of the distance segments they overcome decreases.
Athletes use a heart rate monitor as well as a power meter to monitor their heart rate during a class. However, experienced athletes are able to determine all the necessary parameters according to their condition and at the same time do not pay attention to the devices. During the off-season, athletes plan to rest, the duration of which is from one week to a month. But even at this time, they do not forget about training.
Speaking about how we train professional cyclists, it should be noted several of the commandments, which is followed by athletes:
Training should be moderate. any person has a limit to his physical abilities. you can not constantly force the body to work at the maximum. moreover, during training, the athlete must remain within certain limits of their own capabilities. Experienced coaches advise their wards to work on the training so that after its completion there is a feeling that it would be possible to do a little more. you can not bring your body to complete exhaustion in the classroom. The ability of muscles to contract has its limits and when the body runs out of glycogen reserves, you just need to stop and rest. If you ignore this recommendation and often overload the body, as a result, the recovery time will increase dramatically. The higher the level of training of a cyclist, the more noticeable should be the difference between heavy and light training.
classes should be consistent. our body is able to adapt to the monotonous work. Athletes make a training plan in which many aspects remain unchanged throughout the entire time. However, we can not say that all training is monotonous. if this is the case, then progress will slow down. Only because of the variety you can grow. At the same time, an untrained person at the sight of a professional cyclist’s training plan may not notice the differences. Every athlete understands that it is impossible to be at the peak of their form throughout the season. If you try to achieve this, then you will not get anything except overtraining. Professionals always train consistently and try not to work at the limit of their abilities.
Do not forget about the rest. You should remember that the body adapts to stress only during rest. only at this point can the athlete become stronger and more resilient. The higher the intensity of the training, the more time should be given to rest.
Try to train less often in a group. Group training has its advantages over individual classes. However, they can provoke you to drive fast at a time when it would be worth slowing down. Treat group activities with caution.
plan to peak your form. the training plan should be designed in such a way that the athlete reaches the peak of physical fitness immediately before an important race. all races that you plan to participate in during the season should be divided into three types — a, b, and c. races of type c should be considered from the point of view of training races. competitions of type b have a high priority, but you should not force your form when preparing for them. You only need to show what you can do in Type A races.
Food for professional cyclists
We have found out how professional cyclists train. But it is quite obvious that without proper nutrition, it is impossible to count on serious success. often during the day during the race, athletes are forced to overcome at least a hundred miles. Imagine how much energy the body needs to have in order for it to work normally all this time.
Cyclists consume a large amount of fruits, vegetables, rice, potatoes, pasta. All of these foods are excellent sources of carbohydrates. However, to recover from a race or workout, you need to provide the body with protein compounds. Athletes themselves often admit that they sometimes allow themselves even fast food, but this is due to necessity. The bulk of the food consumed by cyclists is healthy and healthy.
During the race, it is necessary to maintain a liquid balance, as well as replenish energy reserves. For this purpose, special bars and gels are used, which supply protein compounds and carbohydrates to the body. note that during the training, they do the same, because the duration of classes is not inferior to the race, and sometimes exceeds it.
On the bike, there must be a bottle of liquid to avoid dehydration. Athletes during competitions or training do not drink plain water, but special drinks containing a complex of electrolytes, and sometimes caffeine. Before the start of the race, each athlete receives a purse-musette, which contains energy bars, gels, small sandwiches and even cakes.
For one stage of a multi-day race, on average, cyclists burn about five thousand calories. At the same time, the indicator of the energy value of the daily diet is a maximum of three thousand. This suggests that athletes can consume any food and not worry about it. However, cyclists are known for their obsession with body weight.
Often, they weigh their portions to make it easier to stick to a given calorie intake. Also, they often stand on the scales after the race to determine the amount of food and water that needs to be consumed to restore body weight. During the off-season, the rider’s body weight can exceed the competition weight by a maximum of five kilos. But they rarely think about it, because after the start of the training process, everything will return to normal. To monitor their diet, professional cyclists seek the help of nutritionists.
A few words must also be said about the restoration. After a hard workout or race, this is extremely important. To do this, they perform light cycling, during which the body recovers faster, and blood flow is normalized. Athletes spend at least eight hours sleeping, and some try to find time to take a nap, even after training, if the schedule allows it.
After the end of the race or training, it is mandatory to use restorative sports cocktails, which include protein compounds and carbohydrates. After some time, a full meal follows to speed up the regenerative processes in the body. Each team has massage therapists who help you recover. It is known that thanks to massage, the processes of utilization of lactic acid are accelerated.
What is the lifestyle of professional cyclists?
the competitive stage in cycling lasts from january to october. Among all kinds of sports from cyclists the season is the longest. to stay in top shape all this time, professional cyclists need to stick to the set pace of life. They should not only show results, but also have time to recover.
During the season, athletes often have to travel, but they do not have time to appreciate the beauty of the places in which they find themselves. frequent flights are extremely tedious and after them you need to spend time on adaptation. During the off-season, many athletes travel with their families.
During the season, all the thoughts of athletes are focused on the result. they are required to participate in various promotional events, meet with the team’s sponsors. Often they have to give interviews for various media. before the start of the race, a team meeting is held, where the strategy is discussed. All these activities significantly reduce the amount of free time.