Strength Training - Help

[davelodwig]

Now the wedding event is over and I'm settling into married life I've resumed running again, I've run on and off for about 5 years now normally building up to reasonable 10k fitness then stopping and starting again a few weeks / months later.

I'm following the sofa to marathon plan in the latest trail running mag to which I am a subscriber and the running bits are straightforward enough, I have plenty of residual fitness from running and the cycling that getting back into the swing of things has been pretty easy. However once a week I'm supposed to do some strength training which involves some simple weights.

Here's the thing, during the week I live out of a suitcase, and commute by bike and train to work, up on a Monday, home on a Friday so there is no way I can carry weights with me. Anyone got any suggestions for what strength training exercises I can substitute with.

Cheers

D.

[L CC]

Bodyweight exercises are do-able anywhere.

Neila Rey does all sorts of workouts with pretty pictures you can download.

http://darebee.com/workout-cards.html

[mrcharly-YHT]

Therabands

Cheap from ebay, don't be tempted to go immediately for the really strong ones. Knot them into loops and with a bit of ingenuity you can use them instead of weights.

[davelodwig]

Bodyweight exercises are do-able anywhere.

Neila Rey does all sorts of workouts with pretty pictures you can download.

http://darebee.com/workout-cards.html

That looks just the ticket I can print it out and carry it in my bag.

Cheers

D.

[Ningishzidda]

Therabands

Cheap from ebay, don't be tempted to go immediately for the really strong ones. Knot them into loops and with a bit of ingenuity you can use them instead of weights.

This is what old innertubes are for.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Therabands

Cheap from ebay, don't be tempted to go immediately for the really strong ones. Knot them into loops and with a bit of ingenuity you can use them instead of weights.

This is what old innertubes are for.

You'd think so - but therabands are much, much better, believe me. Cost bobbins, too. A set of 6 cost me about the same as 1.5 inner tubes.

[Ningishzidda]

A cyclist who throws old innertubes in the bin is not using their head.

Tie some together in a big band and loop the big band underneath the feet and round the back of the neck. One can squat or deadlift.
As long as there is a warm sensation in the working muscles by fifteen reps and burning at twenty reps, they are doing the job.

For arm exercises, jamb a knot in a door so the knot pulls the door closed.

[mcshroom]

Lift the bike up and down a lot?

[L CC]

Lift the bike up and down a lot?

Works best with tandems.

[TonyJames]

If you're looking for real strength try variations of 'slow' pressups.

the real magic will happen when you go 5 seconds down, 5 seconds up. Do 8 of these x 3 sets. When that becomes easy do another 8 x 3 with your hands touching in front of your face. When that's easy do them elevated with your feet on the bed behind you.

For the bottom half look at doing super slow squats, 5 seconds down 5 seconds up to complete and utter failure. Crazy things start happening when your muscles reach that stopping point and you keep on pushing through. Plus, by doing it slow you'll soon know when your form goes so its great for injury prevention.

[campagman]

Try Simple fit.

[Ningishzidda]

For the bottom half look at doing super slow squats, 5 seconds down 5 seconds up to complete and utter failure. Crazy things start happening when your muscles reach that stopping point and you keep on pushing through. Plus, by doing it slow you'll soon know when your form goes so its great for injury prevention.

When a cyclist is pedalling 60 rpm up a steep hill, each leg is going up and down in 1 second, so I reckon this is the tempo one should use to shift at least one's bodyweight + a 25 lb bike.


"More Effective
You will benefit from weightlifting in either a slow or fast manner. Focus on doing slow reps if your goal is to build a muscular and aesthetically pleasing physique. If you are training strictly to add strength, concentrate on lifting with fast repetitions."

Livestrong.com

[TonyJames]

I wouldn't pay too much attention to Livestrong.com personally, knowing it's a money making content farm at its heart (the .org is something else)

Fast lifting is great if you want to get niggles turning into injuries really quick. To start with go deep and go slow, and make sure your alignment is correct the whole time.

[Ningishzidda]

‘Fast' lifting is one whole rep in one second. ‘Slow’ lifting is as you described earlier.
This means the flexure half of the movement takes place in half a second, which is equivalent to a 60 cadence on a bicycle. Folks who like to climb hills in a low gear at up to 80 cadence are operating faster than ‘Fast’. This is where niggles start.

You are indeed correct by suggesting going deep and slow. On a bicycle, this means climbing a hill off the saddle at a cadence down at 30 rpm where the flexure part of the quads and glutes movement is over 1 second.
In the gym on the Smiths machine, the equivalent is squatting 1 rep every two seconds.
Or one can use a Leg Press machine.

For building strength, load the machine one plate at a time until you ‘One rep to failure’. You should feel a slight burn in the muscles. Then go read the thread about Protein Shakes.

However, this doesn’t help a cyclist ultimately. Combining Leg Flexure and Hamstring Curls builds ultimate power for a cyclist so the rear upmoving pedal can be pulled up as the antagonist to the quads and glutes pushing the front pedal down.

Other machines a cyclist can gain benefit on are Donkey Calf Raise and Leg Extension. There are also the Dead Lift and Hyperextension stations to use to strengthen the spinal muscles.

[giropaul]

When I was living out of a case frequently in various towns, I used to use either the hotel gym, or negotiated a day by day deal with a local gym (council ones are often great).

I got the workout, but also had some human contact in the evenings, and spent much less time in restaurants trying to waste time by having all 3 courses - so multiple benefits.

I found many gyms very flexible and responsive, and friendly too.