Cardiosport Mountain bike Program

The following program is designed to assist those who follow it to realize there maximum genetic potential as a mountain biker. This program utilizes scientific principles as well as rider feedback in developing a systematic approach which if followed will help you to become the fastest rider you can be.

 The common training approach taken by the great majority of mountain bike races is to either try and follow the program developed specifically for their favorite professional or to have a haphazard approach and just ride hard with their friends. The problem with the first approach is that few if any of us have the time and resources to devote to training that a professional does. Their programs are generally developed from extensive laboratory and field testing on them. The proportions of intensities and volumes will rarely fit the needs of the average rider. In addition, most gifted riders are fast in spite of their training and would be fast no matter what type of training they did. Whether or not they are as fast as they could be is the question. The second approach of haphazard hard riding will only allow you to reach approximately 70% of your genetic potential. Generally speaking, you will tend to either undertrain or overtrain. In addition, your training will be very narrow in focus and not prepare you for all the situations you will be exposed to in mountain bike racing.

The objective then is to avoid the mistakes which can prevent you from being the best rider your given set of genetic capabilities will allow you to be. The challenge is not to gain a certain placing, it is to maximize your genetic potential and achieve results beyond the norm for your particular set of talents.

The aerobic system is the foundation on which this entire program rests. The aerobic system is the system that is continually replenishing the energy we use at all levels of activity. From sleeping to vigorous activity. The degree that this system is being called upon to produce energy is the critical issue. Generally speaking, as the duration of effort increases, the intensity must decrease and more energy must be provided during the task using aerobic metabolism.

Training the aerobic system has two important intensity levels. Aerobic conditioning and Max VO₂ training. Aerobic conditioning is not the same as increasing Max VO₂ . The bulk of your training in all phases will be for aerobic conditioning. This is low intensity training that will accomplish various physiological adaptations crucial for performance improvement. These adaptations are;

Max VO₂ training will occur in the Race Phase and be accomplished by hard efforts above the Anaerobic Threshold. Exercise at this level increases the amount of oxygen you can consume during all out efforts. The greater the amount of oxygen consumed, the greater work potential. An aerobic workout is not used specifically to increase maximal aerobic capacity. It is an aerobic workout because it is performed below the anaerobic threshold. The training purpose for this type of training is to get the athlete accustomed to exercising for extended periods of time.

 As a general rule, the longest of these workouts should be no more than 15 to 20 percent longer than the distance the athlete intends to compete at.

Anaerobic metabolism occurs when the level of muscular activity causes the demand for oxygen to exceed the body’s ability provide it. In the absents of oxygen, the body will produce energy but at a cost. The waste product of anaerobic metabolism is lactic acid. The more intense the exercise, the faster that lactic acid is accumulated in the muscles and blood. Anaerobic metabolism is responsible for the majority of energy production in all-out efforts lasting approximately 1 to 10 minutes. The point at which lactic acid begins to quickly accumulate in the blood is known as the Lactate Threshold.

 A critical point needs to be made regarding the lactate threshold. The closer you can get your anaerobic threshold to your Max VO2, the faster you will become. Simply having a high Max VO2 does not necessarily make you fast. Being able to sustain an efforts close to your Max VO2 is what will determine whether you are fast or not.

 Lactic acid interferes with the muscles ability to contract. The burning sensation experienced with the accumulation of lactic acid is the result of a change in muscular acidity. The ability to tolerate and buffer the effects of this changing acidic environment is what anaerobic training is all about. 

The anaerobic energy system is trained by two methods in this program. The first is to produce large quantities of lactic acid by performing high intensity efforts for relatively short periods of time. The second method involves slightly less intense efforts that last longer. This improves the ability to tolerate lactic acid for longer periods of time. Both methods are important in developing maximum mountain bike performance.

ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and CP (creatine phosphate) are the substances used for cellular activity in all tissues, including muscle. This is the energy stored in muscles and available immediately for use by the muscles in contraction and relaxation. A limited amount of ATP can be stored in muscles. When the intensity of effort is maximal, this energy source is depleted in 20-30 seconds. After this time, intensity must decline or the effort must stop. ATP must be continually replenished during physical activity. In mountain biking, this energy system would come into play with climbing a short, steep hill or sprinting. Training this energy system requires very short bouts of all-out effort (10-15 sec) with long and probably complete recovery between efforts. Care must be taken not to stimulate the anaerobic energy system with it’s production of lactic acid. The objective of training this system is to deplete the ATP and CP stores thus stimulating a supracompensatory increase in ATP and CP stores. Additional neuromuscular conditioning causes this system to respond quicker. There is some controversy surrounding the training of this energy system. Whether or not it is an increase in the efficiency of this system or strictly a neuromuscular adaptation is unclear. Whatever the mechanism of change, the smart mountain biker will spend some time training for speed.

Strength is the ability to generate force with your muscles. The ability to generate force via muscular activity is the essence behind any sport. In mountain biking, you must be able to generate that force efficiently and consistently in order to compete. This does not necessarily mean that you can lift great amounts of weight. This does mean that you can exert force over and over again without undo fatigue during the course of a race.

Since strength is such an important aspect in reaching your potential, what then is the best means of improving strength. Many of the so called authorities in cycling have traditionally advocated lifting light weights with high repetitions in the winter and riding large gears up-hill in summer. Both of these ideas need to be looked at under the microscope of scientific evidence.

In order to gain strength, you must place a muscle under a progressive overload in order to improve strength. This same principle applies to improving muscular endurance. The resistance must be heavy enough to cause sufficient stimulation for muscular adaptation.

In regard to seasonal lifting, research is clear that strength gains obtained from lifting weights are quickly lost upon cessation of specific strength training. This effect appears to be accelerated in the presence of endurance training. Therefore, if you lift in the winter and quit in the early spring, you are just filling your time rather than doing something that will help you go faster. The weight training program included in this program is not typical of periodized programs. It incorporates a cyclical program which seeks to improve strength year-round and not just prior to the competitive stage. The sets and reps are designed to emphasize muscular endurance and strength.

 Each workout uses one or more of the following zones. Staying within these zones will provide the control required to give proper short and long-term feedback on your training. Use our personal heart rate at anaerobic threshold to compute the following zones.

Zone 1: Active Recovery: (.65 to .75 LT) 

Purpose: This intensity is for recovery rides after high intensity workouts. Active recovery is always better than inactivity. Light activity baths your muscles in oxygen and carbohydrate rich blood while removing metabolic waste products from muscle. Riding in this range will makes recovery faster and more effective. There is no time allocated for this zone in this program. You are to utilize this zone as you see fit depending upon your recovery and feel after hard workouts.

Zone 2: Easy Distance: (.75 to .85 x LT) 

Purpose: This zone will provide you with basic aerobic conditioning. This is the place where you lay down your base from which all other training will build off from. You must have a solid base of aerobic conditioning to prepare your body for the higher intensity efforts in later phases. All Easy Distance rides need to be at least one hour in length. Any shorter and the training benefit will be greatly minimized. As mentioned earlier in this article, this pace serves to increase the number of capillaries in your working muscles, train your muscles to utilize fats for energy production, improve your oxygen utilization systems and in general, develop a feel for what it is like to be on the bike for an extended period of time. In this program, the greatest majority of training time is devoted to this zone. You will need to utilize your heart rate monitor to ensure you stay within your heart rate limits. Make sure you do not go above your zone when riding up hills or trying to keep up with friends.

 Zone 3: Endurance: (.85 to .90 x LT)

 Purpose: Zone 3 is intensity will cause general aerobic conditioning as Easy Distance does, however, Zone 3 will deplete your glycogen stores and lead to fatigue much faster than Easy Distance. This does cause your body to restore lost reserves and therefore provides a specific training effect. The problem, however, is that many cyclists spend too much time in this zone. Some even spend most of their time here. This leads to a significant deficiency in their training. If performed with additional high intensity efforts (such as intervals) and no recovery, overtraining can quickly develop. If all your workouts are performed in this zone, conditioning will lack the ability to sustain a competitive pace during racing or hard riding. Therefore, little time is spent in this zone in this program. The allotted time is best utilized for warm-up prior to interval workouts.

 Zone 4: Intervals: (.95 x LT to Vo2Max)

 Purpose: This zone provides the stimulation to allow you to raise your Lactate Threshold (10 minutes and over, below or right at lactate threshold), tolerate exercising in the presence of lactic acid (shorter intervals with little recovery), and raise your VO2Max (short, 2-5 minute intervals at or slightly below VO2Max). These are hard efforts that, if done correctly, will make you fast -- at a cost. The metabolic cost of exercising at this intensity is great and your body cannot tolerate an excessive amount of this type of effort. If too much time is spent riding in this zone, it will quickly lead to overreaching, overtraining and burnout. Proper training at this intensity will allow you to climb better, sustain a higher pace during a race or chase down the rider in front of you. You will be operating at a higher percentage of your maximum ability for a longer period of time. Zone 4 efforts typically last from 90 seconds to 15 minutes depending on the intensity. You can manipulate each of the four elements (reps, time, intensity HR, recovery HR) for the desired effect.

 Zone 5: Max Sprinting Effort (doesn't equate to a heart rate) 

Purpose: This zone does not equate specifically to any heart rate range. It is for very short duration (10 - 30 second) efforts at absolute maximum intensity (120% of VO2Max utilizing your ATP-PC system). Your body only stores enough energy in the muscles themselves to sustain this type of effort for about 30 seconds. After 30 seconds you must slow down if you have performed the sprint properly. Hard efforts such as these will be performed primarily when peaking and getting into racing form. Some Sprint efforts will be performed year-round, however, in order to maintain neuromuscular condition and keep riders accustomed to hard efforts. Zone 5 efforts demand that maximum recovery (at least LT -80, or at least 3-5 minutes between reps) follow each rep in order for your body to replace the spent glycogen within your muscles. Warm-ups and cool-downs before and after these sprints are essential to perform at maximum ability and avoid injury.

Easy Distance rides are to be performed for a minimum of 1 hour in order to have the desired effect. At this intensity, increases in volume is the only way to achieve training effects so they must be performed in some systematically built up manner. In the BASE and BUILD periods, these rides can be done in the top half of the Easy Distance heart rate zone. In the RACE period, however, they are really a maintenance and recovery function, and as such should be done in the lower half of the Easy Distance heart rate zone. Riders may find this training somewhat boring, yet the accumulation of these long rides will produce some of the most significant physiological effects. Your metabolism and body fat can be transformed through the systematic use of these long, easy rides.

 Zone 3 Rides

Zone 3 training is where most riders spend most of their time. This training will produce cardiovascular adaptations but at a greater cost than Easy Distance. Zone 3 rides deplete muscle glycogen and carbohydrate stores where Easy Distance provides the opportunity for these sources to recover. Too much riding in Zone 3 will make you stale and if done the day after Interval or Pace workouts, will not provide your body with the rest and recovery it needs to improve. That is why there is not a lot of time allocated to Zone 3. It’s best purpose is as warm-up prior to intervals or other intense workouts. Generally speaking, any easy mountain bike ride will be done in Zone 3.

Pace Rides 

Pace is designed to expose your muscles to the type of hard sustained effort you experience in racing. It is very difficult to duplicate race pace efforts outside of competition, however, some group rides can reach race pace as we are all aware. Due to the inconsistent nature of off road riding, it is necessary to perform some of your pace work on the road. This will allow you to attain a consistent effort and more effective training. Time trials and Long Intervals are excellent means of performing Pace work while also giving you feedback on conditioning progress. Use of your heart rate monitor will be critical when pace work is performed on the road and helpful when done off-road. It is very important to ride on different trails and courses that demand different bike handling skills and cardiovascular capabilities. This will give you the variety in terrain to help you become a well rounded rider.

There are three types of intervals that will be performed in this program. The first is Lactate Threshold Stimulation, the second is VO2 Max Stimulation and the third is ATP_PC Stimulation. The latter is essentially Sprinting and will be covered in the Sprinting Section.

 Lactate Threshold Stimulation (Long) intervals will be performed during the late Base through the Race stage. These are the intervals that help raise your lactate threshold. Consequently they are performed slightly (1-5 beats) below or at Lactate Threshold.

 Long Intervals are communicated as 2, 3 or 4. This is the number of 15 minute intervals to be performed during a specific week. These intervals are to be done on the road and may be incorporated into a longer ride. Time for these intervals comes from your allocation for Pace time. 

VO2 Max Stimulation (Short) intervals are performed during the Late Build and Race stages of this program. These intervals help increase your VO2 Max while also conditioning your muscles to tolerate contracting in the presence of lactic acid. Consequently these intervals are very stressful.

 Short Intervals are communicated using the following nomenclature:: 5 min. LT -5/LT -50" (as an example). This means repeats of five minutes at a heart rate of LT minus five beats, with recovery to LT minus 50 beats. In the example, if your LT is 160, you would do five minute intervals at a heart rate of 155 (give or take a beat) with the next interval starting when your heart rate reaches 110. Hit your countdown/stop timer when your heart rate reaches the target rate. Take special care not to go over the heart rate goal, learn to raise your heart rate under control and concentrate on form, your heart rate and your speed.  

All intervals can be performed on the wind trainer when necessary, on the road or on the trail. You pick the venue based on how you feel and your weekly schedule. As the Racing season approaches, stick to performing your Short Intervals off road and up hill.

 Other tips: 

Never try to perform intervals unless you have the energy to perform them properly. If you are tired or haven’t recovered yet, skip the workout or schedule it later in the week. Trying to perform high intensity workouts when tired will not benefit you and can cause overreaching.

When Intervals are always done on the same stretch of road or trail, for that day, in the same direction. The goal is to adhere strictly to heart rate goals on every interval, and to make each a carbon copy of the other. If you fall off the pace and cannot maintain speed without raising your heart rate --STOP. Going beyond that will hurt your body. You need to stress your body for training effect, but if you overstress yourself, you will lower the improvement curve.

When performing your hill repeats, choose a hill of appropriate length for your prescribed intervals and, if possible, includes some sections that may be too steep for you at this time. This will help you develop both your anaerobic system and your riding technique. It is important to concentrate on maintaining proper technique while performing these intervals or climbing any hill. When you are at the limit of your strength and your thighs are burning, concentrate on pedaling in circles. This involves pushing your foot forward into the first part of the pedal stroke and pulling up from the bottom of the stroke. Only pushing on the down stroke will cause you to loose traction or your balance. In addition, keep your upper body still. Pulling very hard on the handlebars is another way to lose balance on steep climbs.

Always do a warm-up (15 - 30 minutes of Zone 1 or Easy Distance. You should perform 2 or 3 hard jumps to raise your heart rate to within 5 beats of your interval target heart rate followed by complete recovery. Cool down should be in Zone 1 or Easy Distance for at least 20 min.

Sprint Training 

Speed relates to your muscular ability to spin the cranks (cadence), or foot speed. Leg speed is very important at the start of a race. Getting maximum leg turnover combines with strength to give you rocket speed out of the blocks. Speed is determined mainly by the ratio of fast twitch muscle fibers in the main movers (gluteus, quads, hams. Sprinting capability is a combination of the neuromuscular and ATP-PC chemical system in your muscles. Sprinting is therefore best trained by doing repeated, maximal (that means absolute, total) efforts of 10 to 30 seconds followed by total recovery (at least three minutes of extremely light or no activity. "Spinervals" can be done during any ride by either riding above the comfortable cadence zone and concentrating on form, or by doing repeated uphill starts in a smaller than normal gear with total recovery between spinervals. Do one sprint for every five minutes of time allocated for sprint work. Each sprint should last 10 - 15 seconds with the remainder of the five minutes being used for recovery. Concentrate on form and keeping your butt "quiet" on the seat with no bouncing.

Weight Training 

 Selection of exercises is very important. Exercises should be as sport specific or "functional" as possible. This means doing squats or leg press exercises instead of leg extension exercises. Bench press instead of preacher curls. Generally speaking the exercises you do should be multiple muscle movements as opposed to isolation type lifts. Free weights are also superior to machines in that free weights help train your muscular balance and coordination.

The weight program included with this program is designed to allow an endurance athlete to realize strength gains all year round. It does not follow the traditional periodized approach because research shows us that strength gains made are quickly lost when training ceases. Therefore, lifting for strength and power during the Base and Build phases will not allow to adequately maintain those gains during the Race season by performing high reps with low weight. The key thing about weight lifting for the endurance athlete is to make it as enjoyable as possible since most of us do not really like lifting weights to begin with. The following 4 week sequence is what I recommend. 3X5, 5X8, 10/8/6/4, 12/10/8/6. Increase weight each 4 week cycle as you are able. Hardcore lifters can modify this program to 3X3, 5X5, 8/6/4/2, 10/8/6/4. Don’t try this heavier program without proper technique or safety equipment to lift with.

 Measuring how you are doing is important to maintaining your focus. If you're unsure about progress, you will loose direction.

This program includes a regularly scheduled time trial. Pick a section of road that is flat and with little traffic. Pick a start spot on the road and perform a 30 minute time trial. Perform the time trial at LT -5. The farther you are able to go, the fitter you are becoming. Repeat this time trial as scheduled. If available Interval time is not available, use some Pace time. This time trial also serves as a good Pace workout.

 Subjective measures of improvement are also valid, if you are honest. Such things as your sprints against riding buddies, general feeling of power and stamina, ability to use bigger gears when climbing familiar hills can help gauge your progress.

 Strengths and Weaknesses

 You should also evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Specific skill areas such as long, steep climbs; fast/open descents; single-track descents; very technical descents; long race endurance; recovery after race; recovery during race; running sections; dismounting-remounting; and handling unexpected obstacles are all areas you should evaluate your skill level. Write them down and rank each from 1 to 5. Those items rated as 1 or 2 should be worked on. Areas ranked 4 or 5 should be your known strength that you can exploit during a race. Anything rated a 3 means you are average in this area.