- This might be the only gym video on YouTube
that's not about getting buff, ripped, shredded and hench.
Instead, it's about getting stronger.
Hopefully.
(smooth music)
(energetic techno music)
- Cyclists are not renowned
as being a particularly muscled and buff crowd,
even if you wouldn't get that impression
from the two you see before you now.
There is a good reason for cyclists
to have such slender upper bodies, and that is because arms
don't really make you go any faster.
In fact, these rippling, bulging biceps
would just be slowing Ollie down.
- Yeah, that's why I'm so slow.
- Exactly.
However, there are times
where even we have to admit that being weedy
is something of a hindrance even on the bike,
and you can also get strong without adding bulk.
- One thousand and one,
one thousand and two.
So, coming up are five essential exercises
that will hopefully make you stronger on the bike.
Instructing us today is Carl Constanza of Stanza Fitness.
Carl understands the needs of cyclists,
as before he became a fitness coach,
Carl raced as a top level downhill mountain biker,
racing nationally and abroad.
We'll give you example repetitions,
and sets for each exercise, but before we do,
it's important to stress
that to provide maximum benefit and avoid injury,
the key thing is correct technique,
and getting the movement right.
Only go up in load or weight
when you can perform an exercise confidently and correctly.
(smooth music)
- First of all, what we're going to do
is start off with a Bulgarian split squat.
- Okay.
- The reason we're going to do that is it's good exercise.
It works your legs unilaterally,
and also is good for your balance and stability.
What I would like you to do
is step out into the middle of the platform.
- Yep.
- Put one leg up onto the box, or the bench,
raise your left arm up into the air, lock it out.
- Okay.
- Then, travel down, keeping your weight on the heel,
and the middle of your foot, and then drive straight up.
Lovely. - Okay.
How's that?
- That's not bad.
Let's get five reps.
- Five? - Yeah, five.
- What's that dumbbell, like 20 kilos?
- I'm pretty sure it's one.
- Okay.
- Good, one more.
Excellent, and rest.
Lovely.
Okay?
Not bad.
Good? - Yeah.
Oh, it's five.
It's five kilos.
(smooth music)
- So, the next exercise is a step up,
and what that's predominately working is your quads,
your hamstrings, and your glutes.
So, what I'd like you to do
is if you'd just take yourself in front of the box.
There we go.
Okay.
Put your leg up onto the box, your leading leg.
That's correct.
Lean into it ever so slightly to load up your front leg,
keep your chest up, and then drive off the center
to the the heel of your foot.
Okay, touch your foot down,
which will help with your balance,
tip forwards ever so slightly to load up the front leg,
and then slowly down.
Okay, if you'd go slower, it'll help with your stability.
Just falling down into it as well
will jar the right leg that's coming down,
so lean into it, put the weight on the heel,
and the middle of your foot, pick your chest up,
which will also help give you a neutral spine.
Okay, and then drive up off the front leg.
That's better.
Touch the right leg down.
Again, keep the chest up, slowly down, find the floor.
That's better, much better control.
Lean into it, load up.
Good, and then slowly back down.
Excellent.
(smooth music)
Next exercise we're going to do is going to be a dumbbell row.
This is predominately working your upper body.
We're going to be aiming for your lats,
also it's going to work part of your biceps,
and then also your core, which is from there to there,
all the way around 360.
- Okay.
- What I need you to do is you're just going to take up
a parallel stance with the bench.
- Yep.
- Hinge forward, put your hand down, pick your chest up,
and maintain a neutral spine.
So, if you could just do that for me first.
- All right.
- Once you're in this position, that's correct,
what you want to do is pick your chest up.
That will then allow you to get a nice neutral spine, okay?
You don't want to have a curvature in your back,
so if you then hold your chest up,
and then now what you want to do
is put a slight bend in your knees, drop down a little bit.
That's right.
Then, holding on to the dumbbell,
what you'll do is grab the dumbbell for me,
have it slightly out in front of you,
and then lead with your elbow up to your hip.
So, five reps for me.
Good, slowly down, not too fast.
Excellent.
If you sort of sat down quite a lot in sedentary positions,
whether that's for a job,
or even when you're sitting down a lot with cycling,
there's not any kind of resistance there.
So, by doing this, it's creating resistance,
which will then build up muscles in those areas,
but it's only as good as how good you're doing the exercise.
You want to do it with efficient movement patterns,
and perfect execution.
And rest.
Cool, good.
(smooth music)
Next exercise.
So, we're going to do an inverted row,
which is predominately working your upper body,
your back and also your grip strength.
So, what I would like you to do is go underneath the bar
with your feet facing out this way, slowly down.
Watch your head.
So, what you need to aim for is bringing your body down,
and your chest in line with the bar.
Okay?
Hold on to the bar, shoulder width apart,
and you can look for the smooth part and the rough part,
and that typically will be where the rough part is.
The grip that I want you to do is reverse grip, okay?
So, that's it.
Just underhand, underhand.
Good, okay.
Now, we want to go vertically up,
so pull your chest directly up towards the bar,
and then look to squeeze your shoulder blades together.
Good, very nice.
Go slowly down, that's it, and then back up.
Three.
Four.
Good, one more.
Excellent, good, and then rest on the bottom.
So, when you're doing it,
it's important to come down nice and steadily as well,
because then the muscle is under tension.
If you come down too quickly,
the muscle isn't under tension for long enough,
so just up, nice and explosively,
and then slowly on the way down.
All right?
(energetic music)
Next exercise is going to be the walking lunges.
What we'll do is we'll use a kettlebell,
unilaterally on one side of your body,
just to challenge your stability and balance.
The areas this is working is your glutes,
your hamstrings and your quads.
- Okay.
- Then, also your core as well,
as you've got the kettlebell,
which is going to be offset for stability.
- Okay.
- Lovely.
So, kettlebell just up to the top,
keep your elbow up, and the kettlebell close to your body.
That's correct.
Chest up as always with the other exercises,
and then steadily forwards.
That's good.
Excellent.
One more step.
Then, just change arms,
and to make it a bit more difficult for you,
'cause you look like you've got control of that,
what I want you to do
is opposed to going foot together, like so,
I just want you to step into the next step, all right?
So, you just go straight forward like so.
That's it, and then straight up into the next one.
You can still move fairly slowly with it,
so you've got control.
That's right, and big drive up off that front leg,
nice and explosive.
Good, one more.
I think that was probably cheating.
(chuckling)
- So, there you have it.
Five essential exercises to help weedy cyclists
become slightly less weedy,
and improve that strength on the bike.
- Thanks, Carl. - Absolutely, yeah.
Not a problem at all.
Definitely those exercises will help
with your performance on the bike,
and also, hopefully avoid injury.
- If you found this video useful, and you've enjoyed it,
then please give it a thumbs up,
and for more cycling fitness content,
you can click on my guns.
(laughing)