Strength training is a critical component of fitness and health, but ultimately we’re interested in being faster and stronger on the bike itself. One of the key aspects of better bike fitness is energy management, whether within a day, training cycle, or through a big multi-day event.
They don’t come much stronger than Wout
While we most often cover strength training in my Toolbox segment, what many do not know about me is that I’m a USA Cycling Certified Level 1 (expert level) coach with over 16 years of experience on the cycling side of things. I’ve helped take beginner from their first race to the National Championships, as well as helped masters athletes from finishing mid-pack, to winning multi-stage international tours.
While Strength Training has played a key role in these results, as I’ve firmly believed in strength training for cyclists to stay strong, powerful, and to recovery + adapt more quickly, the on-bike fitness has always been a constant in-focus part of the equation.
Pairing these two seemingly conflicting segments of training has undoubtedly been integral in helping those I coach to more closely reach their full potential, but what we’re about to discuss here is the true linchpin to every single rider or athletes success whom I’ve worked with
Energy Management
We are not just talking about “riding smarter,” letting others do the work until you absolutely must execute and go hard. We are talking about LIFE. What you do the other 22+ hours each day that you’re not training.
Many of us are constantly juggling numerous items throughout each day, each taking a portion of our already limited energy and focus. Add on top of these the modern world reality of constantly being bombarded by text messages, emails, social media notifications, and apps for everything from parking to ordering your groceries, and it’s a wonder we can get through a single morning without having our energy or focus being pulled away from our task at hand.
If we take a step back to look at our total daily energy and focus as a single, filled cup, we can begin the process of beginning to better manage these limited resources for far better results – in sport and out.
Mixing family time and racing
Pick 3
Our lives can be boiled down into 5 basic “bins”
- Exercise/Health/Fitness
- Sleep
- Family
- Work
- Social
If we want to see progression in our lives, we must choose 3 foci at a time, and commit to only these three for 8-12 weeks at a time. Sure, you can choose to shuffle things a little more frequently, but it comes at the expense of significant gains which are primarily made through the longer term focuses via compounding results.
Fitness, and success in anything in life, do not come from “transactions” that you put in the work for a single day or workout, and “voila!” the next time up you see the results. Rather, it takes time and consistent effort to build success in these endeavors. The same for having a thriving social life, or great family life.
It takes consistency and regular actions to build the life or results which you are seeking. This consistency is unrelenting, requiring your regular energy to be able to keep “rolling uphill” towards your next mile marker or goalpost. But as an endurance athlete our chosen sports, by definition, require us to make a commitment to show up regularly and consistently, thus pulling away our ability to tend to other areas.
This is where the choice of 3 comes in to play, to help you be a better you.
Putting it into action
Choosing 3 of these items to focus and put your energy into may look simple, but it is not easy. Sacrifices will need to be made, and the other two items will still need enough attention and focus to keep these proverbial plates spinning. Such is the art of a life well-lived and achievements accomplished. It’s a constant, ever-evolving dance which challenges you to be on the ball, balancing, moving, and adjusting for the changing circumstances.
Train better
As you dial down your focus, it is important to keep one core tenet in full view:
More is not better, better is better.
You may enjoy riding far more than strength training, but for many their time and efforts reap far better returns when they put that extra hour each week into a strength for performance program instead of another hour on the bike. For others, their greater return will come from an extra hour of sleep in the morning instead of heading out early for another hour of riding. And for yet others, their greatest return is on giving that fully-present hour to their family or loved ones so they can deepen their connection and have more shared experiences with those they love.
The choice is yours, choose wisely for where you are now, and what your priorities need to be – for yourself, your health, and for those you care for and love.
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