Girly gym thoughts

[pixychick]

hey chicks -

Now that summer is over , I've just started going back to the gym, and I have the feeling my worlout may be a little stale or dated. All the girls in the gym are doing different stuff. I have no idea what they are up to, and they don't seem to do anything outside like mountain biking. I seem to be doing what the guys are doing. Just curious if there are any excersises you feel really work well for mountain biking???

One of my favorites is good mornings, because it strengthens and stretches my back, and after having back surgery, I like to keep my back and core pain free and functional.

What are your favorite excersises? Do you use a personal trainer, or just wing it on yur own?

Ellen

 

[PlayAllDay]

I do lots of snowboarding, weights at home, lunges, squats...don't go to the gym though and use my exercise bike...treadmill. I have to keep up om my leg exercises since I've had 2 acl surgeries. now, i'm just waiting for it to snow!

 

[bonefishjake]

hey pixy-
i know i'm 'crossing over' here, but this is something i know a thing or two about. the fact that you are doing good mornings is, in a word, AWESOME. it's one of the best exercises you can do...provided you are doing it correctly. if not, all that work could be doing more harm than good. i'll assume your technique is solid and just give you my advice. along with the good mornings, i would concentrate on full body exercises, by that i mean multi-muscle, core strength exercises: squats, power cleans, dead lifts and bench. none of them are very popular with anyone (except for bench), let alone women, but they are by far the best exercises you can do. when i was going to the gym only, i was there four days a week for a hour max. it was when i made the biggest gains. it's the intensity of your workouts that really count. if you want more specific info, post up or shoot me a PM with your goals and i'll see what i can come up with. FWIW, i was a trainer at one point, not that they are all good, but i was.

jake

 

[NJ Jess]

What he said

i agree with Jake about doing multi muscle movement exercises. They are far better for over all body strength, balance, coordination, and reflexes. However, If you are like me. Just getting back to the gym after cycling all season, then one needs to do a hypertrophy phase of minium of 3 weeks (3 days a week) to Prepare the muscles and joints for all body movements.

I currently do Squats, deadlifts, upright rows, calf raises, Laterial raises for my shoulders, leg curls, and numerous core exercises for my gut that won't go away. (What do you mean, No Beer after workouts,...I'm German, darnit)

Then one must also REST to recover properly to actually build the muscle,....therefore I will leave you now so I can go to bed. 1040 already,..hummmm

 

[bonefishjake]

i agree with Jake about doing multi muscle movement exercises. They are far better for over all body strength, balance, coordination, and reflexes. However, If you are like me. Just getting back to the gym after cycling all season, then one needs to do a hypertrophy phase of minium of 3 weeks (3 days a week) to Prepare the muscles and joints for all body movements.

I currently do Squats, deadlifts, upright rows, calf raises, Laterial raises for my shoulders, leg curls, and numerous core exercises for my gut that won't go away. (What do you mean, No Beer after workouts,...I'm German, darnit)

Then one must also REST to recover properly to actually build the muscle,....therefore I will leave you now so I can go to bed. 1040 already,..hummmm

that's pretty solid jess. i'm impressed. no real "wasted" exercises in there at all. fantastic that you're doing squats and deads...and again, with all core multi-muscle exercises, i can't stress enough how important technique is. trust me on that. the only thing that i would add is a upper body push-pull and not a lot since for riding, being too top heavy isn't a good thing. just a couple quick sets, even a super-set, just to round it out.

 

[rocknrollgirl]

just chiming in...

Hi Guys,
Glad to see you all are lifting. I have read some much info that is contradictory about to lift or not to lift for mt biking. I lift twice a week all year round for several reasons:
1. I am over 40 and need to maintain muscle
2. I do multisport races along with mt biking and need overal strength

I must admit that this summer, I did not do a lot of leg work because we were training so much I felt it was hindering my recovery.

So I would be very interested bonefishjake if you would post a list of exercises that you think are appropriate for mt biking/off road racing.

Thanks in advance...
Ruth

 

[pixychick]

I do lots of snowboarding, weights at home, lunges, squats...don't go to the gym though and use my exercise bike...treadmill. I have to keep up om my leg exercises since I've had 2 acl surgeries. now, i'm just waiting for it to snow!

This weather has been so warm, that we may have to wait a bit for snow or snowmaking. So, since it's warm, keep mountain biking! We plan to do a big ride at Waway on Thanksgiving morning, if you are around. 8:30 at boat launch. Crital mass numbers sometimes.

El

 

[pixychick]

This is all good to hear what everyone does. Ruth, I too can not fit leg workout in with biking. I have stopped it completely. No time to recover when I'm on the bike 3-4 times a week in off season. Plus I did seven laps on a ss at Hidden Valley and I thought that was my get out of jail ticket for leg workouts this winter.

Besides abs and good mornings, I do bench press, lateral raises, lat pull downs, rows, flys, curls and shoulder press.

So Jake and Jess, am I missing alot by not doing deadlifts? Not sure of the form on those. Plus I too am way over 40 and try to keep flexibilty and core strength as a priority.

pixy

 

[bonefishjake]

just about any leg exercise is good for mt. biking, but personally, i prefer core and free weights with one exception: calves.

there is really no need AT ALL to hammer your legs constantly with weights in season or out. honestly. if you do ONE exercise that is core/leg focused and one secondary exercise at least once a week you can make gains. i know this sounds wacky and completely contrary to everything you've probably ever read, but trust me, this works. like anything, the keys to success are intensity, focus and technique. if you go to the gym, focus on what you need to do, this workout can be done, start to finish in 45 minutes tops.

i would define lower body core focused exercises as any free weight movement that combines the use of multiple muscle groups, including stabilizer muscles and secondary muscle groups. dead lifts, power cleans, squats. these are the three exercises that i focused on. i worked things a little different b/c i was looking purely for strength gain as opposed to aerobic strength gain, but the philosophy would be the same. 4-8 sets depending on your existing conditioning, each set in the 8-12 range. less than 8 reps and you're building more mass than maybe you want.

the only thing i would caution against with these exercises is just jumping into them. for these multi-muscle movements, NOTHING beats experience. i can tell you from my experience, that despite spending the better part of 10 years in a gym, the last three focusing on this type of workout, my techniques are very good, but still not perfect. basically, find someone that you've seen doing these and ask them. then get a second opinion. it is a very different type of person that acutally does these types of exercises. the reason why? because they are DIFFICULT...and they HURT even when you do them right. BUT the gains you can make from them are leaps and bounds above the typical four sets each of leg extensions, leg curls, leg press, smith machine squats, calves, etc.

 

[NJ Jess]

Besides abs and good mornings, I do bench press, lateral raises, lat pull downs, rows, flys, curls and shoulder press.

So Jake and Jess, am I missing alot by not doing deadlifts? Not sure of the form on those. Plus I too am way over 40 and try to keep flexibilty and core strength as a priority.

pixy

As long as you are doing Good Mornings, you are getting most of the muscle group. However, incorporating Deadlifts into anyone's workout routine is of great benefit.
As we get older, we lose muscle mass and strength. This doesn't make itself know until you try to lift your weekend groceries, rake the yard of leaves in the fall, shovel the winter snow, start planting in the spring. We notice losses in strength during Big Projects. Heck, even cleaning the house and preparing Thanksgiving dinner for all your relatives.
Deadlifts will allow you to lift things from the floor up without that unexpected "pain" in the lower back, hamstrings, or calfs. It strengthens the hip joint that becomes brittle as we age. Everyone has heard of the "falls" that older adults have that really take a lot of time rehabing.
Perhaps you could try deadlifts for 4 weeks and see what I mean. They really make a difference.

 

[bonefishjake]

As long as you are doing Good Mornings, you are getting most of the muscle group. However, incorporating Deadlifts into anyone's workout routine is of great benefit.
As we get older, we lose muscle mass and strength. This doesn't make itself know until you try to lift your weekend groceries, rake the yard of leaves in the fall, shovel the winter snow, start planting in the spring. We notice losses in strength during Big Projects. Heck, even cleaning the house and preparing Thanksgiving dinner for all your relatives.
Deadlifts will allow you to lift things from the floor up without that unexpected "pain" in the lower back, hamstrings, or calfs. It strengthens the hip joint that becomes brittle as we age. Everyone has heard of the "falls" that older adults have that really take a lot of time rehabing.
Perhaps you could try deadlifts for 4 weeks and see what I mean. They really make a difference.

jess is right on. but again, technique, technique, technique.

 

[rocknrollgirl]

Thanks for the input and discussion guys. Pixy, I am glad somebody else has leg recovery issues with riding and lifting. Hell, I have leg recovery issues period....

Anyway, I think from what I have read here I am pretty much on track, with the exceptions of good mornings.....

I do think I probably need to lift heavier weights. Good time to get started on that.

Ruth

 

[bonefishjake]

Thanks for the input and discussion guys. Pixy, I am glad somebody else has leg recovery issues with riding and lifting. Hell, I have leg recovery issues period....

Anyway, I think from what I have read here I am pretty much on track, with the exceptions of good mornings.....

I do think I probably need to lift heavier weights. Good time to get started on that.

Ruth

becareful with going to heavy with the good mornings. if you go to heavy with a deadlift, you just don't get the weight off the floor. go to heavy with a good morning...well...you end up there. plus, unless you're doing something that really requires you to do low rep sets of good mornings, a weight that you can manage for 8-12 reps is just right. good luck with it ruth.

jake

 

[Shaggz]

sorry to bump in ladies and Jake (i know how comfortable you are with the whole transgender thing). jake - there is a piece of equipment where your body stays at a 45 degree angle and you bend at the waste - supposed to be for the lower back, and i've seen people do obliques on it as well. any thoughts on this as an alternative to good mornings?

 

[bonefishjake]

sorry to bump in ladies and Jake (i know how comfortable you are with the whole transgender thing). jake - there is a piece of equipment where your body stays at a 45 degree angle and you bend at the waste - supposed to be for the lower back, and i've seen people do obliques on it as well. any thoughts on this as an alternative to good mornings?

i think the 'official' name of that thing is the roman chair. i think.

i don't think i ever really considered them to be a suitable option to not doing good mornings. i have done them with weight, and yes, they work well enough. i suppose for isloating a couple different muscle groups it could be a decent sub.

 

[rocknrollgirl]

I do not think I will do the good mornings...although they may be a great exercise....I think my chiropractor would argue against me doing them....bulging disc.

I do work those muscles as part of my core workout.

 

[bonefishjake]

I do not think I will do the good mornings...although they may be a great exercise....I think my chiropractor would argue against me doing them....bulging disc.

I do work those muscles as part of my core workout.

yep, check with the doc first before doing anything. don't (any of you) let some gym trainer tell you what's best for you. use them as guidance, but certainly not an end all be all. that goes for everything i've said in this thread as well.

 

[Norm]

Can I ignore everything you said and drink beer instead?

 

[bonefishjake]

Can I ignore everything you said and drink beer instead?

yes, as long as you are a doctor or stayed at a holiday inn express recently.

 

[NJ Jess]

Hyperextensions

i think the 'official' name of that thing is the roman chair. i think.

i don't think i ever really considered them to be a suitable option to not doing good mornings. i have done them with weight, and yes, they work well enough. i suppose for isloating a couple different muscle groups it could be a decent sub.

I do not believe it is a Roman Chair "really." Roman chair is similiar, but it is much lower and is used for situps while holding wt plates on your chest. The hyperextension "machine" is simply an apparratus to lock in your feet and still hold you upper body 90 degrees to your legs.

I have disk problems too. I reverse my position on the hyperextension apparatus, and then lift my legs up.... parallel to the floor. This allows for my lumber spine to stretch and then lift. Most chiropractors allow this in lower back rehab as it stretches and then strengthens the muscles surrounding the spinal column. Between this and doing Planks, I can get out of bed each morning. Hope it helps