Weight Train To Improve Performance

I’m quickly finding my feet in each aspect of my training and seeing some good signs as I approach my first recovery week. The last 2 weeks, I have been gradually building the volume as my body adapts.

My favourite workout, during that time, has been the weights session I performed this past Thursday. The previous week, I didn’t have enough time to do as many leg exercises as I wanted to. However, on Thursday, I decided to just do leg weights as my upper body was quite fatigued from the extra swimming I had done in the days prior.

My leg workout looked like this:-

Ø  Deadlifts – 4 sets. First 2 sets as warm-up and the next two as hard efforts for 10 reps. Strict form and focus on ensuring my glutes are highly engaged for maximum force.

Ø  Single-Leg Squats – 3 sets of just 6 reps each leg. Core stability is essential for balance and, again, focusing on the engagement of my glutes. I try to go as low as possible which is about 90 degrees at the knee bend.

Ø  Walking Lunges – 3 sets of 10 steps each leg. Holding a total of 25kg. This was my favourite exercise of the entire workout because I really felt the benefits of working in such a high range of movement. My glutes and quads worked particularly hard and I can tell how beneficial this exercise is going to be to developing my cycling and running.

Ø  Swiss Ball, Single-Leg Hamstring Curls – 2 sets of 20 reps per leg. Isolating my hamstrings and using my core and glutes/hips to stabilise my body while performing the movement.

Ø  Single-Leg Calf Raises – 2 sets of 20 reps per leg. Isolating the calves to strengthen those areas that get really hammered while running.

I had done weights on an irregular basis in the lead up to my races at Geelong and Shepparton last season but, without doing them properly and regularly, I didn’t get the full benefit. By doing these high quality weight sessions on a weekly basis, the effects will translate into greater power and endurance on the bike and run.

Over the next 2 months, I will gradually build my strength in these types of exercises before incorporating a greater explosive power element to the workouts during the final 2 months before the World Champs.

I have a history of weight training in the gym from my days as a personal trainer. From 2004-2007, I spent many hours doing weights for purposes of bodybuilding and strength. In that time, I gained approximately 10kg. Some of that muscle mass has stuck with me in my transfer to endurance sport and that gave me a good base to work from when I took up cycling. As I learn how to train better I am now starting to really take advantage of that strength.

I am 100% confident in seeing great improvements, particularly in my cycling, from doing regular and consistent weights, in conjunction with my other training. It will be that extra element in my program which was missing previously, that could be the difference between winning and not getting on the podium.

I hope you all do weights to complement your swimming, cycling and running. I’d love to hear what you do. Let me know in the comments section.