Early season workout tips.

In my designing of pre-season workout plans I got to thinking about the people who don't have someone creating a detailed plan for them. I'd like to share some tips to help you avoid doing the wrong strength and body workouts. You ride a bicycle, so why on earth are you working on improving your bicep curl and bench max. Stay focused on the muscles that are involved with cycling. The most obvious muscles are your legs, but realize that means more than your quads and your claves. So don't forget your hamstrings and the muscles around your hips. After all, our hips are our best friends. For the upper body you don't need to go crazy. Work on the muscles that stabilize you, and keep you in control. Push ups are a great exercise that you can do almost anywhere and better yet they require no equipment. One of the most overlooked areas of fitness for cycling is your core. Cycling doesn't strengthen your core, but relies very heavily on it, especially for mountain biking. A strong core leads to better bike control, and less muscle fatigue. Exercises for the core go well beyond the age old crunch, and include a lot more muscles than the abs. Take some time and figure out where your core strength is and what exercises will work best for you to strengthen it up. One big problem with adding unneeded muscle is that your body must now deal with the added weight and the extra demand for energy and oxygen. I guarantee your legs would be much happier in the middle of a climb, sprint, or race with extra energy. Don't let your workouts get stagnant. Pre-season training is broken into different periods. In these periods there are changes in reps and weight amounts as well as movement speed. So keep this in mind when planning your weekly and monthly workouts. My biggest and most important tip. DO NOT overdo it early. People get all amped up and go to the gym with big ambitions. They end up lifting too heavy and can't move for a week. Keep it light in the early weeks to see how your body adapts to the changes. Take care, and lift safely. Strength come in time, not overnight.