If you want to improve as a mountain biker the first thing you should do, the thing that will have the biggest impact, is essentially to get really fit. To build up your mountain biking stamina. This will help you ride more and more often, you will be able to do more laps on your favorite trail in the same amount of time. You will also have more energy when riding, won’t feel tired so you will be more aggressive and focused going downhill. So if you are not a complete beginner, then training is the best thing you can do to get better. If you are a complete beginner then what is even more effective is to take some lessons. Now, the best thing about training your body for mountain biking is that you can do it at home:
Start With Exercise Bikes
Mountain biking is one of the best ways to exercise or work out in nature. And the best way to get ready and fit for mountain biking is to…well, go mountain biking:)! However, you can’t always go out and ride. Bad weather and especially winter time, when the weather is really bad, the days are short, it is cold, the trails are frozen… this is the time when most of the mountain bikers don’t ride at all. A few months can pass before the temperatures rise and weather get better.
Instead of loosing all the fitness that you acquired while riding in the summer and autumn do something better. Get an exercise bikes and build up on that. Come into the next season even more fit and ready to ride. Improve you strength and endurance when it comes to doing this intense cardio exercise.
Here are the advantages of training for mountain biking with exercise bikes:
- It strengthens your core and upper body in preparation for a real mountain climbing adventure.
- It helps strengthen your hips, legs, glutes, and legs.
- It’s a gentle workout for the back, knees, hips, and ankles.
- If you are a complete beginner exercise bikes can even give you some feel for the bike so you will feel natural riding one when you go outdoors.
Your Mountain Biking Training Plan
Make a plan and stick to it. It can be challenging to keep up with training schedules; if you don’t have the time for long training hours, you can increase the training intensity to reach your goal. Make a realistic plan and stick to it!
When indoors, remember that a 60-minute indoor ride is roughly equal to 90 to 100 minutes of outdoor biking. It’s because you’re constantly applying pedal pressure, and there’s no stopping, no coasting etc… So, you may be doing more work when biking indoors. To build your endurance at home using an indoor bike, ride 4 to 5 times a week, at low intensity for 20 to 40 minutes per session. This way, you can easily adapt to mountain biking when you’re outdoors.
Training Methods
Lactate threshold refers to the highest intensity a cyclist can maintain for an hour. It’s important to stay within this threshold because the body starts producing lactic acid quickly beyond this point. Using a fixed bike or indoor bike trainer can help you train and raise your lactate threshold. How do you train to raise it?
By doing a lactate threshold workout. This type of workout involves using a higher/more difficult gear until you reach 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. Whether you’re a beginner or seasoned biker, make sure to do a 10- to 15-minute warm-up before this workout. Then start with a 5-minute lactate threshold workout (hard bicycling using higher gear), with a 95 to 100 cadence (cadence is pedaling rate, the number of revolutions of the crank per minute), and follow this with a 5-minute easier recovery pedaling.
Perform your lactate threshold training on an indoor trainer. Always remember that you need a high cadence or pedaling rate and higher gearing to exercise your cardiovascular and musculoskeletal system.
Conclusion
Riding indoors is a great preparation for mountain biking. It helps you determine where your lactate threshold is, it helps you raise it, and it boosts your strength and endurance. Get an indoor exercise bike and try it. When the outdoor mountain biking season starts you will be more ready than ever.