Why should cyclist strength train? For starters, these points below are some of the many benefits of strength training for cyclists, or any endurance athlete for that matter, it's not an exhaustive list.
For reference, when using the term strength, I am referring to muscular force. Cyclists tend to adopt the word ‘strong’ for someone who is generally a fast cyclist, just to make things a little confusing.
I appeared in a friends vlog a while ago discussing these very benefits, check it out here.
1. General Health - Bone Mineral Density & Posture
Ironically, most people cycle for fun and health reasons. Only a small proportion are focussed solely on competitive endeavours, which makes the concept that cycling can be detrimental to certain aspects of your health a little frustrating. Cycling is great for cardiovascular fitness, healthy heart, lungs, etc. But it is a non-weight bearing activity and provides relatively little resistance to the musculoskeletal system. Bones are like any other bodily system, responding and regenerating to meet the stresses placed on them. It has been shown that masters cyclists (aged 40-60) and professional cyclists have significantly lower bone mineral density than the average population (1, 2). The areas measured included femoral neck (hip joint), pelvis and lumbar spine, 3 areas of bigger concern as we age.
Cycling is fantastic, but it is also quite an unnatural position. A post about the importance of posture and muscle function could go into dissertation type depth, but it’s worth briefly addressing the importance of offsetting how we generally live in the modern age, mainly in a seated position. Driving, working, relaxing, cycling. We sit a lot, which has serious issues for the strength, mobility and stability of our bodies. Utilising strength training to work your muscles effectively is incredibly important to ensure you’re getting the most out of your riding.
Adding resistance exercise 2-3 times per week will help offset these issues and keep you riding stronger, longer and faster.
2. Lactate Threshold/Power at Lactate Threshold
The very term threshold offers a varying number of definitions, and can often be a confusing and contentious topic of discussion. I recently (pre-covid) attended a lecture which outlined that there are around 30 different definitions of what ‘threshold’ is.
The key question is how does strength training seemingly increase this threshold and the power we produce at threshold. Strength training has been shown to increase in 40min TT performance by 6-7% and higher power at 4mmol of blood lactate (3, 4). Both key markers of endurance capabilities. These increases can be attributed to increased rate of force development in the muscle resulting in a longer relaxation phase and greater bloodflow to the muscle, peak torque achieved earlier in the pedal stroke, conversion of fibres from Type IIx to type IIa (more fatigue resistant) and increased absolute strength resulting in lower relative load during each muscular contraction.
During the vlog I briefly discussed joint stability and its relevance in transferring force down the kinetic chain efficiently. Ankle stiffness, the ability of a muscle to resist an applied change in length, is essential in creating a greater rate of crank torque development (getting the power into the pedal faster) at higher intensities (5). This stiffness has also been shown to decrease when fatigued (6), so the more tired you get, the more power is lost in the mechanics of your movement. As the pedal stroke is constantly requiring a change in muscle length, increased stiffness will maximise the mechanical energy into the pedals. This is even more relevant during racing when intensity varies. Strength and plyometric training can help.
3. Cycling Economy
Cycling economy can be defined as the amount of oxygen required to maintain a defined power output. At a specific power output, an increased economy means the rider will require less energy to create that power aerobically, meaning the cyclist is less reliant on glycogen stores for producing the same power, saving this finite energy source for higher intensity efforts. Concurrent strength and endurance training has been shown to improve cycling economy in trained cyclists (4, 7) with elite level cyclists showing less improvements in economy, potentially due to already optimised capabilities due to higher training level and volumes.
The reasons for these increases can be attributed to a number of mechanisms; firstly, increases in the maximal strength of type I muscle fibres. These stronger fibres can produce more force, so applying the same power to the pedal at a lower percentage of maximum. Secondly, the stronger type I fibres delay the need for recruitment of more fatigable glycolytic type II fibres, delaying fatigue as type I fibres are more efficient at utilizing fat as fuel. Thirdly the conversion of type IIx muscle fibres to more fatigue resistant type IIa fibres. These are more oxidative, reducing the reliance on glycogen until higher intensities need to be performed.
4. Maximal Force Production and Peak Power
Not ignoring the obvious, the main benefit of strength training is strength in its purest form. Cycling is a highly aerobic sport, however the most decisive moments in races involve a large anaerobic contribution. Being able to produce a lot of power quickly can often determine the outcome of your race, whether chasing/making an attack or sprinting for the line.
Implementing strength training has been shown to increase peak power, mean 6sec sprint power, mean 20s power and rate of force development (1, 3, 11). The main benefit of increased maximal power is the ability to react, respond to breaks and ultimately have the strength at the end of the race to win that decisive sprint. The primary reason for these increases in performance are neuromuscular efficiency, increasing the number of motor units that can be utilised during muscular contraction allowing muscles to contract with more force.
As type IIx muscle fibres are converted to type IIa fibres through strength training, this means repeated high force movements are not solely reliant on IIx fibres, which fatigue very quickly and take a long time to regenerate energy stores. These more fatigue resistant fibres are still able to produce a high amount of force but can do this through both aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways, making this force output more repeatable.
5. Maintenance of strength, muscle mass and performance
Firstly, let’s be clear. Cycling does not burn muscle mass, or cause you to lose muscle mass by simply cycling. The main cause of loss of muscle mass is simply under-fuelling your cycling as it tends to be an activity that favours longer durations and higher calorie expenditure. If you find you’re losing muscle because of cycling, it’s because you’re not eating enough of the right macronutrients for your type of riding.
Anyway, aging is associated with a loss of muscle mass and strength at a rate of up to 5% per decade after the age of 30 (8, 9). Studies have shown loss of muscle mass is progressive but increases exponentially as we age, bringing with it weaker muscles and less mobility, increasing the risk of falls and fractures. This is through the loss of fibres and the reduction in fibre size. This adaptation we also see through aerobic training anyway, even without the natural changes. Adding resistance training has been shown to significantly slow the reduction in muscle mass and strength (10) and in turn, maintain cycling performance levels as we age, due to a number of the reasons previously listed in this article.
Interested in Coaching? Get in touch. Strength Coaching - https://www.rwperformance.net/winterstrengthprogrammes Cycle Coaching - https://www.rwperformance.net/cyclingcoaching
References:
1 - Campion, F & Nevill, Alan & Karlsson, Magnus & Lounana, J & Shabani, Mevludin & Fardellone, Patrice & Medelli, J. (2010). Bone Status in Professional Cyclists. International journal of sports medicine. 31. 511-5. 10.1055/s-0029-1243616.
2- Nichols, Jeanne F1; Rauh, Mitchell J1,2 Longitudinal Changes in Bone Mineral Density in Male Master Cyclists and Nonathletes, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: March 2011 - Volume 25 - Issue 3 - p 727-734 doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181c6a116
3 - Rønnestad BR, Hansen J, Hollan I, Ellefsen S. Strength training improves performance and pedaling characteristics in elite cyclists. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015 Feb;25(1):e89-98. doi: 10.1111/sms.12257. Epub 2014 May 27. PMID: 24862305.
4 - Vikmoen, Olav & Ellefsen, Stian & Trøen, Ø & Hollan, Ivana & Hanestadhaugen, Marita & Raastad, Truls & Rønnestad, Bent. (2015). Strength training improves cycling performance, fractional utilization of VO2max and cycling economy in female cyclists. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 26. 10.1111/sms.12468.
5 - WATSFORD, MARK1; DITROILO, MASSIMILIANO2,3; FERNÁNDEZ-PEÑA, ENEKO2; D'AMEN, GIANCARLO2; LUCERTINI, FRANCESCO2 Muscle Stiffness and Rate of Torque Development during Sprint Cycling, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: July 2010 - Volume 42 - Issue 7 - p 1324-1332
6 - Ditroilo, M., Watsford, M., Fernández-Peña, E., D'Amen, G., Lucertini, F., & De Vito, G. (2011). Effects of fatigue on muscle stiffness and intermittent sprinting during cycling. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 43(5), 837-845.
7 - Sunde, Arnstein1; Støren, Øyvind1,2; Bjerkaas, Marius1; Larsen, Morten H1; Hoff, Jan2,3; Helgerud, Jan2,4 Maximal Strength Training Improves Cycling Economy in Competitive Cyclists, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: August 2010 - Volume 24 - Issue 8 - p 2157-2165
8 - Melton LJ, III, Khosla S, Crowson CS, et al. Epidemiology of sarcopenia. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2000;48:625–630
9 - Lexell, J, Taylor, CC, and Sjostrom, M. What is the cause of the ageing atrophy? Total number, size and proportion of different fiber types studied in whole vastus lateralis muscle from 15- to 83-year-old men. J Neurol Sci 84: 275-294, 1988.
10 - Hagerman FC, Walsh SJ, Staron RS, et al. Effects of high-intensity resistance training on untrained older men. I. Strength, cardiovascular, and metabolic responses. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2000;55:B336–B346.
11 - Rønnestad BR, Hansen EA, and Raastad T. Effect of heavy strength training on thigh muscle cross-sectional area, performance determinants, and performance in welltrained cyclists. Eur J Appl Physiol 108: 965–975, 2010a.