Gym help

[tango_kid]

Hello all,
I recently bought a road bike as you probably know and i am currently doing about 10 mile rides most days.
Also, i plan to start doing some more running soon.
When school starts i plan to go to the school gym and i was just wondering what equipment would be good for sprint triathalon training other than the gym bike. Also, is there a more efficient way to train than the distances i am doing considering a race of now more than 10 miles cycling?
Cheers,
Mike

 

[Will1985]

Don't use the gym excessively - the key is to develop power without gaining bulk. Cardio work: treadmills, spin bikes (for when the weather is horrible), and ergo rowers. Use light freeweights with high frequency reps. Some leg presses shouldn't hurt either.

Remember to do lots of stretching and flexibility exercises as you use so many different muscle groups as a multisport athlete.

Interestingly I don't ever see much on Slowtwitch (or even TriTalk for that matter) about gym work, with their emphasis being on lots of training of the disciplines.

I've no idea about the swimming part, but you should incorporate at least 1 bike-run training session into the schedule....no use turning up to an event never having pieced all the parts together before! If you just want to focus on sprint triathlons, your base miles can be relatively short distances but which exceed race distance: cycling maybe up to 40km and running up to 8km.

As a final suggestion, keep a log of all your training to help build a picture of how you are improving.

 

[montage]

Best thing I find the gyms for is to keep muscle balances etc ..... and it is for this reason that I would mainly recommend doing leg work outs - doesnt have to be stupidly high weights, as will says, you want to keep weight low and increase your power output.

I would also recommend core excersizes .... but these can be done without a gym. High reps - build muscle endurance not bulk.

 

[jimboalee]

Training for Sprint tri. Do a lot of swimming, fast swimming. If you can get a good time through the swim phase without getting knackered, it sets you up mentally for the bike ride.

The gym bike is excellent for training. There are NO downhills on the gym bike.
Your first session is to assess which level gets you through the anaerobic / lactic threshold.
For example.. If you find level 18 out of 25 gets you Lactic, do a RANDOM 30 minute routine at level 22. The range of levels will be 14 – 22. That's how it works on the Gym bike I use.
Another method is to slowly increase the level until you are at your Theoretical MAX heartrate when riding SEATED.
Set the RANDOM to two levels higher. The random intervals are only ten seconds so the short exertion will get your HR over the Theoretical max for only a few seconds.

There will be some Honking ( standing up ) when the level goes to highest.
If they can, ask the gym to set you up a big fan in front of the bike.

 

[montage]

Training for Sprint tri. Do a lot of swimming, fast swimming. If you can get a good time through the swim phase without getting knackered, it sets you up mentally for the bike ride.

The gym bike is excellent for training. There are NO downhills on the gym bike.
Your first session is to assess which level gets you through the anaerobic / lactic threshold.
For example.. If you find level 18 out of 25 gets you Lactic, do a RANDOM 30 minute routine at level 22. The range of levels will be 14 – 22. That's how it works on the Gym bike I use.
Another method is to slowly increase the level until you are at your Theoretical MAX heartrate when riding SEATED.
Set the RANDOM to two levels higher. The random intervals are only ten seconds so the short exertion will get your HR over the Theoretical max for only a few seconds.

There will be some Honking ( standing up ) when the level goes to highest.
If they can, ask the gym to set you up a big fan in front of the bike.

Can never get the saddle height right on gym bikes they always seem to adjust in 10cm intervals

 

[jimboalee]

Can never get the saddle height right on gym bikes they always seem to adjust in 10cm intervals

It shouldn't matter.

Most of the time your arse should be off the saddle and your quadriceps burning like the firey furnaces of hell.

 

[jimboalee]

Can never get the saddle height right on gym bikes they always seem to adjust in 10cm intervals

The largest single adjustment ( smallest resolution ) I've seen on a gym bike is 20 mm.

 

[jimboalee]

PS on Gym bikes.

Those who do use gym bikes, have you noticed how slow the clock goes round when you are riding them at aerobic condition ?

Bloody slow.

Compare a 20 minute gym bike aerobic or 'fat burning' session with a 10 km ride out on your REAL bike.
The 20 minutes on the REAL bike flies by and you want to do more.

Gym bikes are there for you to do POWER work. You can simulate any hill in the world without taking your real bike in an airfreight box.

In forty five minutes on a gym bike with the resistance demanding an average of 350 Watts, you will have a session equivalent to climbing l'Alpe.

For stamina work, take your REAL bike on a 100 km trip to a cake shop somewhere you've never been before.

 

[tango_kid]

Cheers for the help, i will see what i can do. And its not really a sprint triathlon its like a kids triathlon type thing but really quite competative.
cheers,
mike

 

[OLDSHUNTER]

Good to see you are still on your bike, teething problem's almost sorted?
On seeking advice on training don't be scared to ask p.e teacher as they are highly qualified on subject and let them know how keen you are,also you might want to take that as a career choice sports/coaching health and fitness seen as you have the buzz for it

 

[jimboalee]

Good to see you are still on your bike, teething problem's almost sorted?
On seeking advice on training don't be scared to ask p.e teacher as they are highly qualified on subject and let them know how keen you are,also you might want to take that as a career choice sports/coaching health and fitness seen as you have the buzz for it

I've got a certificate in Fitness Instructing / Personal Training.

Sixteen candidates started the course.
Eight got to take the exam.
Six passed.
Two got job positions.

Hundreds of Tech' colleges in the country have these courses on their list, and there are very few full time positions.

The course I took cost £350 cus I was a mature student.
The advanced course, which you will need if you want to be a sports coach costed £3500 three years ago. You will need to find that cost yourself after the level II qualification.

Things may have changed in three years, so check out your local Technical college / Polytech.

 

[tango_kid]

Well it is my current aim to be a doctor mabye for one of the armed forces or for a sports team (football or rugby). But the fitness side of things realy does intrest me. Cheers for all the help,
Mike