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Power in
cycling comes from the legs but it cannot be transmitted into
the pedals unless you have a strong core platform to push off.
If the center of your body turns into a noodle after thirty
minutes of riding, power and endurance carefully
developed in your arms and legs cannot be used. Efficiency is a
big part of being fast when mountain biking. A strong core and
upper body is needed to drive your bike through technical
terrain without losing momentum. Ultra-endurance mountain bikers
need a huge reservoir of core and upper body strength to
maintain control of the bike for 12-24 hours of off-road
pounding.
Core strength
means hips, butt, lower back and abdominals. It means flexing
and extending the trunk as in back extensions and crunches but
also means stabilizing against a force such as gravity in
exercises such as bridging. Integration exercises that work the
abdominal, back, hip and butt muscles all at the same time are
the best core strengthening exercises.
Tips for all
core strengthening exercises:
1.
Contract your
abdominal muscles throughout all exercises. Think of keeping
your belly button pressed into your spine. This keeps you
muscles close to your spinal column and provides spinal support.
2.
During
exercises when both feet are up off the floor, keep your belly
button pressed into your spine and your spine pressed into the
floor to support your lumbar spine.
3.
During
exercises when both feet are on the floor, keep your hips and
spine in a neutral position.
4.
Move fluidly
without and throwing and jerking motions.
5.
Breathe
slowly and smoothly throughout exercises.
6.
Add lots of
variety into your core training routine.
7.
Target your
whole core by alternating abdominal, back and side exercises.
Use both mobility and stability exercises.
As with all
new exercises, start slowly and avoid any movement that causes
pain. If you are not confident with your technique, seek the
services of a certified personal trainer.
Pillar Ball
Twist
Get in the
push-up position with your feet flat (shoelaces to ball) on top
of a stability ball. Place your hands the same width apart they
are on the handlebars. Keep your body rigid with legs and feet
squeezed together. Rotate your torso to the left turning your
belly button to face the wall while rolling onto the side of
your left foot. Hold in place for a second and then rotate your
feet back to the shoelaces on the ball position with your belly
button pointing at floor. Hold for a second and then repeat
rotation to the right side. Any butt swinging or bending at the
hips or knees is cheating. Make your shoulders and torso do the
work. This is a killer exercise for mountain bikers. 10 reps to
each side should be tough.
Pull-Ups
Do
your pull ups palms facing away from the body (like you are
holding your handlebars).
Push-Ups
Face down, body held rigid in plank position, lower chest to
floor and raise up. If you need to, start out building push-up
strength on your knees and work up to toes.
Psoas Crunch
Kneel on all fours with one end of an elastic exercise-band
(swim cords work great here) tied to your right ankle and the
other end to an attachment point beyond your feet. Extend your
left arm and right leg out and then crunch them in bringing your
right elbow towards your left knee. Round your back, exhale and
pull your belly button hard up to your spine as you crunch in,
hold for two seconds and repeat.
 
Glute Bridge
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the
floor. Extend one leg and then raise your hips up using the
strength of the opposite hip only. Hold for 10 seconds and
lower. Repeat 10 times on each side. Keep the hips level and
inline with your torso. Weakness will show up by one hip jutting
out to the side or dipping lower than the other.
Crunches
Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on floor. Lift head and
shoulders off the floor and then lower. Keep your neck in
neutral and don’t pull on your head. Vary tempo. Increase
intensity by lifting feet off the floor.
Oblique
Crunches
Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on floor. As you lift
your head and shoulders, rotate your torso to the side bringing
the opposite knee and hip towards each other. Then lower. Keep
your neck in neutral and don’t pull on your head. Alternate
sides. Vary tempo.
Side Lifts
Lie on your side, legs straight, arms relaxed. Lift shoulders
and legs at same time then lower. Vary tempo.
Supermans
Lie on the floor face down with your arms extended overhead.
Using your core lift your arms, shoulders and legs off the floor
and fly like Superman then lower. Vary tempo.
Reverse
Crunch
Lie on back, press lower back into floor, lift legs with a 90
degree bend at the hips and knees. Curl tailbone off the floor
using lower abs then lower while maintaining the 90 degree bend
at hips and knees.
Standing
Trunk Twist
Hold a stick on your shoulders behind head (not on your neck).
Twist torso to one side then the other like a periscope. Keep
hips facing forward. No rotation in legs and knees.
Hanging Knee
Raise
Hang from pull up bar or dip station. Contract core muscles.
Lift knees as high as you can without throwing them. Control
the motion while you raise and lower. Vary tempo.
Seated Knee
Raise
Sit at the very end of a bench. Lean back slightly. Round your
lower back slightly. Lift both feet two inches off floor. Pull
one knee towards your chest then extend back to start.
Alternate legs. Keep your core contracted and do not let your
back arch.
Dumbbell Side
Bend
Stand with a dumbbell in your right hand. Lower dumbbell down
thigh as far as you can without leaning forward or back. Return
to upright.
Roll-Ups
Lie on your back with your legs straight and arms extended
overhead. Exhale as you begin to roll up. Lift your arms, then
head, then shoulders. Continue to roll up articulating your
spine one vertebrae at a time up and forward. Inhale as you
stretch forward keeping your belly button pressed to your
spine. Exhale and roll back down slowly with control, exhaling
throughout the whole movement. Stretch tall, inhale. Exhale
and roll back up. Think of curling yourself forward, stretching
then slowly uncurling back down to the mat. Move with a smooth
fluid motion at a constant speed. Avoid throwing your body up,
or allowing it to flop down. Keep your heels on the floor at
all times.
Roll-Over
Lie on your back with your arms by your sides and legs held up
towards the ceiling. Inhale to prepare. Exhale slowly, contract
your lower abs and peel your spine off the mat one vertebra at a
time from your tailbone. Inhale when you have lifted as far as
you can. Exhale as you lower to the starting position with your
legs straight up towards the ceiling. Control the movement
avoiding any throwing or jerking. Move fluidly. Do not roll
onto the back of the neck, balance on the shoulders instead.
Make sure you are lifting from the back of your hips and not
simply allowing the weight of your legs to pull you over. Move
with your exhale. Only curl your pelvis up as much as your
muscle strength will allow.
Roman Chair
Back Extensions
If you have access to a Roman chair, back extensions are great
to build strength. Bend all the way forward and when you lift
up, do so only to a neutral spine position. Avoid hyper
extending (bending back too much) your spine. Start with 3 X 10
and build up to 3 X 20. I don’t like adding weight to this
exercise but prefer adding various rotation movements. As you
lift turn your shoulders to the side or try figure of eight
rotations with your shoulders.
Swimming
Lie on stomach, completely outstretched. Reach your fingertips
for the wall on front of you. Hold your head in a neutral spin
position (don’t look up). Pull your belly button up in to your
spine to activate your transverse abdominis muscle and then
bring right arm and left leg up while simultaneously lifting
chest off the mat. Switch arms and legs while holding chest up
and transverse abdominis muscle tight (just keep your belly
button pulled into your spine to do this). Continue beating arms
and legs up and down in opposition while holding core strong and
stable. Imagine you are balancing on a rock in the water and
need to keep the movements controlled so you don’t slip off.
Complete 20 beats slowly, 20 beats quickly and another 20 beats
slowly with no rest.
Breaststroke
Lie on your front with your arms stretched out overhead. Pull
your abdominal muscles in towards your spine and keep them
locked in throughout the whole exercise. Lift your arms two
inches off the ground then arc them around to your sides in a
breaststroke fashion while lifting your chest and chin. Hold
here for a few seconds, then dive your head down and your arms
forward again in a breaststroke fashion back to the start.
Breathe as if in water. Inhale as you lift and stroke back and
exhale as you dive forward.
Heel-Beats
Lie on your front with your arms stretched out overhead. Pull
your abdominal muscles in towards your spine and keep them
locked in throughout the whole exercise. Straighten your arms
and legs and keep them straight throughout the whole exercise.
Raise your arms and legs two inches off the floor. Clap your
heels 20 times. Rest, stretch and repeat 4 -5 times.
Crawl
Lie on your front with your arms stretched out overhead. Pull
your abdominal muscles in towards your spine and keep them
locked in throughout the whole exercise. Raise your arms and
legs two inches off the floor. Hold your left arm and both legs
still. Drop only the fingertips of your right hand to the floor
and lightly drag them along the floor towards your right
shoulder. Raise your elbow up as high as you can towards the
ceiling as your arm comes in. Continue dragging your fingertips
along the floor and graze your thumb along your side until your
arm is straight. Pause here and feel the opposition stretch
with your left arm reaching forward and your right arm
stretching back. Reverse the finger drag making sure to keep
your elbow high. Repeat with left arm. Exhale as you stroke
back and inhale as you stroke forward. To reduce the intensity
keep your legs on the floor.
Front Pillar
or Front Plank Hold a push-up position for 30 - 60
seconds. Keep head in line with spine and don't sag or bend.
Side Pillar
or Side Plank Balance on your left side supporting
yourself with your left hand and both feet. Left arm is straight
without a locked elbow. Right foot is stacked on top of left
foot. Legs are straight. Keep hips pushed forward and don't sag
or bend. A straight line is formed from feet to neck. Hold for
30 - 60 seconds then switch sides. Only the side edge of your
bottom foot and your left hand should be in contact with the
floor.
Ball Pikes Start in push-up position with legs
together and shins resting on top of a physioball. Slowly raise
hips up to the ceiling rolling the ball towards your shoulders
then lower back to start position. Repeat ten times. Legs remain
straight and together throughout the movement.
Book
recommendations
·
“The Pilates
Body” by Brook Siller is an excellent book with clear pictures
and descriptions of many core exercises.
·
“Core
Performance” by Mark Verstegen is the best conditioning book you
will ever buy. It has clear photos and explain the benefits of
functional strength in performance.
If you have
any training questions, please ask them on my forum at
www.lwcoaching.com
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