Revel, whos been cycling for about 10 years, is responsible for the tness of

200 soldiers in training and he competes in triathlons and road races. He also
commutes by bike to all his BMF classes and feels that the workouts can have
a positive impact on any cyclists training regime.

To demonstrate how, he outlines six steps to ghting yourself t

1 Plyometric squat jump

Plyometric squat jump: plyometric squat jump

This exercise places an overload of weight on your thighs, the main source of
power for any cyclist. This helps them gain strength and power, needed for
better endurance and speed. Its imperative that you keep your back straight
during this exercise. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and squat
down as if you were sitting on a chair. As you do so, raise your arms level
with the ground. When your thighs are parallel to the ground, jump up as high
as you can throwing your arms up in the air. Go for height during this
exercise. On landing, return to a seated squat in slow motion. Repeat for one
minute and rest for 20 seconds. Complete three sets.

2 The bridge

The bridge: the bridge

This is a core stability strengthener. It also works your gluteus maximus and
hamstrings, helping them to gain increased strength and power necessary for
high pedalling cadence. Lie at on your back with the soles of your feet rmly
on the ground. Thrust your hips up, trying to get them as high as you can.
Keep your hands palms down beside your body. To increase the intensity you
can raise one leg off the ground and extend it straight. Hold for 30 seconds,
release for 10 seconds. Repeat three sets.

3 The Plank

The plank: the plank

This helps strengthen your core, which is an important factor in any cyclists
tness regime. A strong core provides a stable pedalling platform and helps
maintain good posture, lessening the risk of back pain. To carry out the plank
you need to get yourself down into the press-up position. However, instead of
placing the palms of your hands on the ground, place your forearms on the
ground. Its important to keep your backside down and your body straight. A
trick to this is to look up, as then youll naturally drop your backside. Hold the
plank by tightening your stomach muscles, until you cant hold it any more.
Complete three sets with a 30-second rest between each set. To make the
plank harder you can extend one arm in front of you.

4 Step-up

Step-up: step-up

Find a kerb or a step. Stand front on to it and step up, leading with your left
foot, so both feet are fully on the step, including the heel, then step down.
Now step up leading with your right foot and step down. Complete three 90second sets as fast as you can. As a cyclist its essential to have a strong and
healthy heart and lungs, and because this is a good cardiovascular workout it
strengthens both, as well as providing further training for your thighs. Its
important to complete the entire step-up as many people tend to hop from
foot to foot.

Ski jumps

Ski jumps: ski jumps

This is another exercise to overload your thighs, especially as plyometric

training has been proven to signicantly strengthen leg muscles. The starting
position is to stand as if you were in a lunge walk, rear knee just off the
ground, front knee bent and again your back must be straight and body
upright. Your ngers should be resting on your temples and your elbows
hanging naturally by your sides. From this position jump in the air, going for
height and at the same time swapping your legs over so the rear leg
becomes the front leg and vice versa when you land. Complete three sets,
continuing until you have to stop, with a 30-second rest between sets.

6 Pairs resistance running

Paris resistance running: paris resistance running

For this exercise youll require a partner of roughly the same size as yourself.
Face your partner and place your hands on his or her shoulders. They should
then start running, pushing you backwards as you provide resistance to
increase their workload. Your partner needs to be driving forward with arms
and legs. For the rst rep cover 50m, for the second rep 60m and for the third
rep 70m. This should give a good burn to their thighs, strengthening the quad
muscles, and strengthens your arms, which can be neglected in cycling. A
straight back is important. Swap positions and repeat the exercise.

Other ways to fight yourself fit

Boxercise: A Boxercise class will improve cardiovascular tness as well as
strength, speed and reaction times, making it perfect for a cyclist who needs
to be constantly aware of their surroundings. Boxercise will complement any
cross-training due to the different energy systems used, so to add variety to a
cyclists programme or as something different during the off-season it can be
really benecial. Fran Checkley, senior instructor for Boxercise Ltd.

Fencing: Fencers have very strong, well-developed quads, which are

obviously key muscles for cyclists. They get these from frequent lunging and
because the fencing stance and footwork require both knees to be bent all
the time so the legs work constantly with no relaxation phase. Furthermore,
exibility of the hips and shoulders is important for fencing so fencers stretch

these joints regularly in their warm-ups and often the hips after training or
competing. The wide range of joint movement involved in fencing would be
benecial for cyclists in maintaining exibility. Dr Clare Halsted, medical ofcer
for British Fencing.
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