All about cross training for cyclists

A few weeks ago I travelled back to New Zealand to take up another passion of mine, Alpine Tramping so on my return I thought it would be a good idea to cover off my thoughts on cross training for cyclists. This article covers off some of the things to take into consideration when thinking about cross training.

We are fortunate here in Australia that the weather is good enough to train, ride and race most if not all year round. We follow the European racing season so our road racing is during the winter and track cycling in the summer while in Europe it’s the other way around. In Australia and New Zealand Summer is also when the criterium season runs. Here in Melbourne we are lucky to have many criterium races to choose from once daylight savings starts and many road races to choose from during the winter.

This brings about a dilemma. In your training you have the option to race all year round and do ok, or specialise in a few races and try do really well at in them. This is where I’m going to lead into cross training.

As a kid growing up I read about the European cyclists doing cross country skiing off season but we never had an off season as such. We had racing all year round. So why do cross training? When it is a good time to do it and what sort of training should you do?

So what are some of the important benefits of cross training?

• Cross training mentally refreshes you. You use it as a tool to help to break up your season or the routine of your normal training program to do something different. It is said that a change is a good as a holiday.
• Cross training helps build strength and fitness in other areas of your body than what you would not normally use when cycling. This can help you reduce the chance of injury as well as rebalance your body.
• Cross training allows you to exercise when the environmental conditions may not be suitable for cycling.
• Cross training can be used off season as a way to keep a base level of fitness while enjoying doing something different.

Firstly, it’s important to make the decision as to whether you have a racing season or just race all year round.

The classic periodised training involves building a base, then a build, then a specialisation, peak and taper then race. This enables you to perform at your best for the events that you really want to do well at. Races leading up to your main event are important but become part of your overall training program. In this type of program you would generally focus almost entirely on your cross training off season then gradually taper it out as you progressed through your specialisation, peak and taper then race phases. Remember that by doing cross training off season you’ll keep a level of fitness but you will still need to build back up your cycling fitness after returning to your cycling season.

If you are racing all year round you can still incorporate cross training into your program and get benefits from it but it you might want to consider doing it once every two weeks or once a week depending on your circumstances. In the lead up to important races I would recommend that you focus your training entirely on cycling. In a way you’ll be loosely following a periodised program. Also you’ll want to generally focus on cross training sessions that you can do at a lower intensity as a recovery session. That is with the exception of weight training.

There are many types of things you can do to cross train. Here are just some of them:

• Strength training at the gym,
• Pilates,
• Swimming
• MTB riding
• Running – in moderation
• Walking

Anything that you can do as a recovery session is ideal as a cross training session and these can be included into the training phases of your program. It really comes down to what you like doing and what access you have to sporting facilities.

I enjoyed my time away in NZ. It was fantastic to be out in the big national Parks that NZ has to offer. It was also great to spend time with my brother and give my body something else to do other than riding a bike. I feel recharged and rebalanced. This is what off season cross training is about. Now I’m building my fitness for a great summer of cycling.