Got to try this one>

http://www.jsftraining.us/?gclid=CLK0uIC5vJsCFSUSswodOxPoBQ

I noticed an add inserted to this blog and clicked the link. Talk about balance and deep core stability. As soon as I finish tearing up the carpet and putting down wood floors in the home I am going to see if I can do this. Doing squats on an 8 pound medicine ball is a piece of cake compared to the below.

Short on Time to Train?

Just cannot find time to get in a 90-minute ride or to ride at all. Don’t like to ride in the AM while it is dark. Parent’s do not allow you to ride alone on the streets or no way to get to some single track?

Can one supplement running/jogging for cycling time?

Yes:
But, you have to start early – build a base – develop a foundation and stick with it.

No:
Cannot do the above – purchase a stationary trainer.

You have to start slow and easy with 15 minute jogs 3 times a week. Work up to a 30-minute run/jog three times a week.

Does running for training slow down a cyclist?

Yes – if you train as a cyclist with 7 to 14 hour training weeks it does. But, if you have time to average 9-hour training weeks on your bike you do not need to supplement your training miles with running.

No – Running is the best bang for your buck aerobically if you have limited time to train. Not interested in arguing about this ….. A twenty minute jog is like a 45 minute easy to moderate bike ride. Yes, running/jogging throws off your cycling leg motion. At first yes it does. Big time! After two seasons of Xterra Triathlons I personally have adjusted.

How to do this – consistency. Keep running 3 times a week and keep riding. Once you graduate from a jog to actually being able to run throw in some 12 to 15 minute threshold training runs – all in a 30-minute time frame. Try that on a bike. This threshold training translates to fitness on the bike.

How to keep the cycling legs going in those nice circles of power. On your easy days do cadence drills and arrange to do a 20 to 40 minute bike session of a cadence of 90 rpm or higher. Do not jog/run within two days of a race. Figure the rest out for yourself….

Some people just can’t run without pain – If you just do not have the ability to get on the bike and running is an option give it three weeks and see how it goes for you.

Not responsible for injury, sore Achilles, strained calf muscles or bad attitudes. It’s up to you.

This is my explanation: So you only have time to ride the bike 5 hrs a week due to travel time to ride, darkness or not wanting to ride on the streets.

Incorporate running into your program. At the training level of 5 hrs a week or less on the bike the increased training you get from running is better than not riding your bike. Again if you are riding 9+ hours a week running is not going to help you unless you’re training for a triathlon or just a little crazy.

Remember if you are not consistent with running at least twice a week delete this information from your memory.

It Is A New Year - What Are Your Goals:

Keys To Athletic Success

Mindset:

You have to decide that you are an athlete and believe in yourself and your abilities. Staying focused and striving to accomplish your goals by avoiding outside influences and distractions can be a major challenge.

Set Goals:

The proper mind set begins with setting goals when it comes to staying motivated, and having a sense of progression in your training and preparation. Set realistic goals that are within your ability to achieve. This does not mean you have to win this or that race, because you never really know who is going to show up. Start prioritizing races into A, B, and C events. This will allow a more flexible training schedule and the ability to mentally accept training through C races and understanding the need to taper training for the A races.

Diet & Nutrition:

A proper nutritional program gives you the energy needed to train and perform as an athlete. It is also a good idea to take a daily multivitamin. Eating 4-6 meals a day, instead of the 3 large meals is also recommended. Not to list all the fades and diets that are available to research the below is recommended reading.

http://www.trainingbible.com/pdf/Paleo_for_Athletes_Cliff_Notes.pdf

Water:

Water - it's second only to oxygen. This does not include soft drinks, iced tea, etc? Other than sports drinks and fluid while riding if you are thirsty reach for water first.

Weight Training:

Everyone can benefit from weight training, not only athletes. They question is what type of weight training and when to do this training. A consistent and focused workout program is without question beneficial. Find a weight training program that works for you and stick with it. If you find or feel you are getting overly muscular study up on weight lifting. Lifting less weight with more repetitions builds lean muscle. In addition doing the exact same weight program week after week is not the best approach. Change it up to confuse the muscles by using them in a different way. And naturally as you approach an A race you want to taper down the weight training.


Rest:

Strive to get 8 hours of sleep a night. Rest is more than simply getting enough sleep every night. Rest, is having adequate rest time between workouts. Muscles grow during rest time not while you're training. Thus, sometimes planning your training around your family, work, and rest schedule is required.

Cardio:

The most important thing when it comes to cardio is to pick a time and intensity that fits your needs. Thus, study up and device a plane, get a coach or ask for help


Track Your Progress:

The most common way to track your progress is to keep a log. Record your log based on the goals that you have set. Anything to complicated or time consuming is likely to be abandoned in a short amount of time. A training log is a tool to motivate you and allow you to keep track or your training. It is also a reference for future training and allows you to avoid the mistake of doing the same thing over and over. If you don’t change your training how can you expect your performance to change over the years.

Mix Things Up:

Cross training. No athlete should only practice and compete solely in their sport year round year after year. Different sports and exercises work your muscles in different ways, and this is a key factor to athletic progression. Change exercises or the order you do them in every four weeks. Muscles have memory and will stop growing if they perform the same movements for an extended period of time. Changing the type of cardio you perform is also a good idea as well. Changing your workouts reduces boredom increases your, peeks you interest to learn new training methods, and helps prevent loss of motivation.

Never Stop Learning:

Study Up! You can watch videos or TV, read books, go to seminars, talk to other athletes, go to sporting events, and visit bulletin boards, while always trying to keep an open mind. There is more to learn.

This post will remain here for a short time then be summarized and moved to BCC Training Knowledge (link in the right margin).

WHY HIRE A COACH?

Do you ride with a purpose or simply ride? When fatigued and unmotivated, do you force yourself to ride? Do you respond to a poor race result with more frequent and harder workouts?

Answering “yes’’ to any of these questions would put you in a large group of competitive cyclists, most of them fumbling in the dark trying to find the light switch to illuminate the key to success. But you won’t find many of them consistently on podiums.

It also would indicate a need for guidance, a second voice to ask, “Do you want to train to be tired all the time or train to succeed?’’

This is what a qualified coach can provide. At TrainingBible Coaching, founder Joe Friel boiled down his philosophy simply:

“Do the least amount of the most effective training at the appropriate times.’’

Easier said than done by yourself, but with a coach designing your training plan, progress will occur in proper increments. Every ride with a purpose.

Probably the biggest benefit a coach can provide an athlete is monitoring intensity. Competitive cyclists are mostly Type-A personalities. If a little intensity is good, a lot is better, is the typical thinking. Intensity is no doubt important; it’s what hones your racing edge. It’s also quite stressful, and appropriate recovery time must be allowed.

A lot of athletes who train themselves don’t factor enough recovery. Training tears down your body; recovery rides and/or a day off is what allows for adaptation.

While monitoring and prescribing the right intensity at the right time is a key role for a coach, the creation of the annual training plan is the map an athlete will follow to race faster. You’ll build base fitness, consisting of long steady distance and focusing on improving economy, speed and force-generating skills. By the end of base training, threshold fitness develops. In the build phase, intensity increases and race fitness strengthens. This leads to a peak period where fitness should be at its zenith.

Every ride with a purpose.

If you’re ready to get serious about cycling, hiring a coach is the first step toward achieving your racing goals.

Dean Yobbi of TrainingBible Coaching is a Level III USA Cycling coach. He can be reached at http://dyotraining.blogspot.com/

Fundamental Strength Exercises Without Weights

Upper Body –

Push-ups: One set of 20 reps of a standard push-up, or there sets of 10 reps with hand at shoulder width, 10 at hands together with thumb and finger in a diamond and another10 with hands at shoulder width. Do them slow at a 1 second count down and one second count up.

Pull-ups: Three sets of 4, once this is easy test your maximum number and train at 50 to 60 percent of max.

Bench or Bar Dips: 20 reps with only the last five getting heavy. Or three sets of 12 as the same weight. No need to exceed 70 percent of you body weight. If you do not have a bar or no where to do bar dips do an extra set of push-ups after the pull-ups.

Legs –

Squats: 20 reps hand at ears or arms straight out. Keep the back straight.

Single Leg Squat: 5 reps each leg. Put your hand on a chair or use the wall for balance as needed. The goal is no support, which will also help core balance.

Lunges: 20 reps each leg. Keep back straight and with hands on hips step forward with one foot/leg till the other knee is one inch above floor. Come back up moderately slow with control.

Step-ups: 10 each leg. Using a Bench or sturdy chair. With one foot on the bench step up till the other foot is even with the bench and go back down with control. Switch legs.

Squat Jumps: one set of 12 to 15 - Jump up as high as you can - hold arms at side or raise them as you jump. Again, maintain control.

Squat Thrust: 10 to 15 reps - Squat with hands on floor and thrust legs back to push up position then come back up.


Core – start with one set three times a week and work up to 3 sets twice a week going into the race season. As racing starts do this once a week.

12 reps - ¾ crunches knees bent hands at side of head and left shoulders ¾ way to knees. Slow count each set up taking approximately 3 seconds.

12 reps – ¾ crunches with right ankle on front of left knee right arm in the air fist pointed at the ceiling. Left your right shoulder toward your left side pointing fist at corner of room and back down.

12 reps - ¾ crunches with left ankle on the front of right knee left arm in the air fist pointed at the ceiling. Lift left shoulder toward right side pointing fist at corner of room.

Platform Palate: Face down on your elbow with the palms down and the hands forward while on your toes holding your body straight and hips straight with you body. Hold it 20 seconds and slowly shift forward pivoting from the toes holding your hips level and body straight but at an angle down to your feet. Rock slowly back and forth from the balls of your feet after 20 seconds till it gets difficult.

Parallel Elbow Supported Twist: Start with 5 reps one set and move up to 10 reps on each side. On your right elbow and forearm pointed opposite of your body while sideways (right hip facing ceiling) with the side of your right foot on the floor and your left foot on top the right with a rigid straight body. Take left forearm and rotate it under right torso. Switch over to the other side. Left elbow forearm and rotate right side of body.


O.K. After a few weeks all this fundamental exercise gets rather mundane. So once you have your base core strength mix it up a little. Below are some illustrations of some balance and strength exercises that really test and refine your core strength. Have fun with it.

How many squats on an 8 pound medicine ball can you do?






How many can you do?




How long can you stay on the ball?

Good Dietary Habits Vol #1: By Namrita O'Dea

There are several pieces that need to come together to develop a well performing athlete.

- Physical training and fitness
- Mental training and focus
- Skills and technique
- Equipment and proper setup
- Nutrition

Unfortunately, nutrition usually falls by the wayside and is not always considered important for performance. Why? Some people don't associate what they put in their body with their performance. Others don't prioritize healthy nutrition because they feel they are "too busy" or it's "too expensive". Then, there are others that are on the "see food" diet, meaning they eat everything they see. To these people, only calories are important and they may not consider the type of calories they are actually using for fuel.

Let's consider our bodies as machines and calories as fuel to run our machines. Our machines need fuel in order to exercise, think clearly and maintain focus, have quick reaction time, build muscle, and to perform well. Does the type of fuel we use effect how our machines perform? ABSOLUTELY, YES!!

Many young athletes fall into the "see food" diet category. They are constantly fueling up but they may not always make the best food choices. Sugared drinks and processed snacks are easy to find and cheap to buy, but they aren't the best for maintaining a clean and efficient running machine. The best way to learn to fuel better is to 1) Eat a variety of foods and 2) Read nutrition labels to make sensible choices.

As an athlete, the main source of your energy should come from carbohydrates. There are a few different types of carbohydrates that we will discuss now:

Simple sugars: These are sources of quick energy but they are also quickly used up. This is not the type of fuel that will sustain you. Eating or drinking too much added sugar can cause dental cavities and keep you from eating more nutritious foods. When reading nutrition labels, you should pay attention to the amount of added sugar by looking for the following words on the ingredient list: fructose, high fructose corn syrup, sugar, sucrose, brown sugar, corn syrup, syrup, molasses, chocolate, honey, glucose, and maltose. Try to limit these types of food in your everyday diet. A better time to "treat" yourself to a sugared drink or snack would be during or after a workout, but it should never be your main source of energy.

Complex carbohydrates: These are also known as starches and they take longer to digest and give you energy for a longer period of time. Some examples of complex carbs are potatoes, pasta, whole grains, breads, cereals, and beans.

Milk, fruits, and vegetables also contain carbohydrates. So, as you make carbohydrates the main source of energy in your daily diet, make sure you include a variety of: grains (breads, cereals, pasta), beans, milk (yogurt, cheese, milk), fruits, and vegetables.

Tip: When you are reading nutrition labels, look for "whole wheat" or "whole grain" on your breads, cereals, and pasta. Choose lowfat milks and yogurts (2% or lower in fat).

Vitamins and minerals are also important to keep your hard working machine running efficiently. While vitamins and minerals don't have calories, these nutrients help you get more energy out of what you eat...that is a big deal when you are racing and training hard! Here are some tips to help you get enough vitamins and minerals:

Vitamin C and B vitamins are water soluble, which means they dissolve in water and we don't store them in our body. Once your body gets enough of them, it excretes them in your urine. So, make sure you are getting enough of these energy-boosting vitamins, but you don't need to overdo it!

B vitamins are found in milk, meat/poultry/fish, and enriched grains. Vitamin C is found in fruits and vegetables.

Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat soluble vitamins, which means they need a little bit of fat to absorb them and our body can store up a supply of them.

These vitamins are found in orange and dark green vegetables, milk, , nuts, oils and seeds.

Calcium is important to help your bones grow and stay healthy. Your bones are still growing and forming until you are 30 years old so now is the time to make sure they are built strong!

You can get enough calcium by eating 3 servings of milk (milk, yogurt, cheese) every day.

Iron is also important because it helps carry oxygen to your cells.

Iron is mostly found in meats but you can also get iron from fortified grains and cereals.

Enriched and fortified grains (breads and cereals), milk, fruits, vegetables, and meats all have essential vitamins and minerals so make sure you are getting a variety of foods every day. Try not to eat the same fruits and vegetables every day, the more colors you eat, the more nutrients you will get.

What about supplements? Ask your doctor before taking a supplement. If you are eating a well balanced diet, you may not need any vitamin or mineral supplements. Be careful when you see supplements that provide more than 100% of the RDI of vitamins and minerals because too much of a nutrient can be harmful or even poisonous.

It is hard to eat healthy all the time, but eating healthy most of the time is better than not at all! Here are some tips that can help you make better choices to fuel your machine for performance:

1. Never skip breakfast! Even if you have to eat on the run, try a Ziploc bag of cereal and nuts and a small bottle of orange juice. You can also pack a bagel with lowfat cream cheese and a banana and a yogurt or smoothie is an easy on-the-run food, as well.

2. Snack often. You don't want to go longer than 3 to 4 hours without eating. This means you might have to keep snacks on-hand. Granola bars, bananas, apples, and crackers are good to have around in case of a snack emergency. If you are at home, some good snack ideas are: cookies and milk, yogurt, fruit smoothie, popcorn, mini carrots, and peanut butter and crackers.

3. Choose grilled instead of fried: This goes for the school lunches, fast food, and post-ride meals. Grilled chicken and fish are much healthier than their fried counterparts.

4. Don't supersize it. This goes for soft drinks, fries, or pretty much anything at the fast food joint.

As you experiment with your diet, pay attention to how you feel during your workouts and races. It might take a little "getting used to" but listen to your body and feed it when it's hungry. With a little focus on making healthier food and drink choices you will be able to unleash more power, endurance, and speed. Try it for yourself and see the difference!


Namrita O'Dea is co-owner of 55nine Performance based in Atlanta, GA. She has a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering and is finishing up her Masters degree in Sports Nutrition at Georgia State University. She is also an elite ultra-endurance mountain bike racer and helps athletes of all types and levels to reach their nutrition and performance goals. 55nine Performance offers help with meal planning, nutrition and hydration strategy for training and competition, and more. Visit them at http://55nineperformance.com.

The Importance Of A Training Log:

A log helps the athlete stick to a fitness routine, which provides a better chance of achieving set goals. It is a place to record details of how you felt and a reference for planning future workouts.
What Type of Log
Individual athletes will want to choose and design their own type of log. The log can be very detailed and lengthy in information and/or use abbreviations of what type of ride it was - the location, weather conditions and who they rode with. Some polar heart rate programs or bike computers also have software providing a detailed logging system for each ride.
Free online training logs are also available. Just type Free Cycling Training Log in a search Engine.
What to record
The location, distance/time and effort. Also core workouts and any weight lifting or cross training sessions. Comment about how you felt during and after the ride, and mention such facts as the weather and your work schedule or amount of sleep you had if you had a bad day. Such information gives you a history of what types of factors affect your training, and can provide insight on how to improve or step up your training program from year to year. As an athlete continues training, but continues to conduct the same workouts at the same intensity how is one to improve. Record your efforts and each year build onto your training program for continued improvement. Periodically review your training log to determine why you are not improving or what lead up to reaching a good performance. That said, remember that there are 12 months in the year and it is ill advised to train at a high intensity for more than 6 months. Cross training is a good diversion and strengthens neglected areas as well as providing a mental break while you continue to maintain basic fitness.