| Build strength for… |
Recommended training… |
| Keeping up with the group you ride with or being able to ride with the leaders. |
Increase the distance of your average rides and add some hills towards the end
that will force you to work hard when your legs are tired. |
| Gaining all-around power. |
Do an out-and-back course that allows you to head out working hard against
a headwind. Push the pace as possible depending on your fitness. Then, turn around and warm-down using the tailwind to help you home. |
| Flattening hills. |
Find a loop with multiple short climbs. As you do the loop, ride each hill twice, trying to improve your time on the second leg. |
| Competing in triathlons, time trials or mountain-bike races where you need to maintain a steady hard pace. |
Do three to five intervals of 4 to 6 minutes climbing a 4- to 6-percent grade with 2 to 3 minutes of recovery between each effort. |
| Racing on the track in criteriums or improving your road sprint. |
Do five to eight 15- to 20-second all-out sprints up a short, steep incline. |
| Increasing your acceleration and speed. |
Warm-up for an hour then do a series of telephone-pole sprints. These are done
by sprinting all-out from one pole to the next, spinning easily and resting until the next pole and repeating. |
| Maintaining a steady hard pace. |
Do a warm-up that brings you the base of a long, gradual hill. You must be
thoroughly warmed up, sweating and loose. Staying seated and, using a gear that's hard to turn over, climb the hill several times.
Do not even consider this workout if you have knee problems. |