Fitness
Keep your body strong all through the season with this 20-minute workout specifically focused on mountain biking.
Once winter is over it may be tempting to stop doing strength exercises because, well, bike-riding season is back. Who has time to hit the gym when there are trails to be ridden and jumps to be sent? The problem is that bike riding – as good as it is – does tend to leave a few main muscle groups unattended, which can lead to imbalances and, in worst cases, injuries. Luckily this problem can be solved quite easy and doesn’t even involve you going to the gym.
This 20-minute workout put together by Sweden’s MTB Head Performance Coach Annie Söderberg engages all your vital muscle groups and can be done from the comfort of your own living room. Just make sure you keep doing them all through the season and you’ll come out stronger and more powerful than ever.
1. Jackknife with bar
WHAT: A strong core exercise that engages the whole body and tests flexibility.
HOW:
- Start on your back with arms and legs stretched out, the spine in neutral and core engaged. Hold the bar in your hands above the head.
- Keep your arms straight as you move the bar down towards the feet. At the same time, pull the legs in towards your chest.
- Thread the bar over the feet so that the bar is now under you.
- As you straighten the body back out again slide the bar up the legs towards the bum.
- Reverse the movement.
2. Jackknife Sit-up
WHAT: A strong core exercise that engages the whole body.
HOW:
- Start with arms over your head and legs stretched out as far as possible. Keep the spine in natural and the core engaged.
- Don’t let the lower back hinge (if it does bring the arms and legs up a little).
- Use the core to pull the legs and arms in towards each other while keeping them straight. Try to touch your hands with your toes.
- Reverse back down again.
3. Banded glute bridge
WHAT: An exercise that activates and strengthens the glutes, hamstrings and hips.
HOW:
- Put the resistance band just above the knees.
- Lie face up on your back with the knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Keep your arms on the side.
- Engage your core and legs by pushing into the resistance band and lift the hips of the ground until the knees, hips and shoulders form a straight line.
- Squeeze the glutes and keep the abs drawn in. Make sure you push up with the hips and don’t overextend the back.
- Hold it for a few breaths and then ease back down again.
4. Abs rotation with weight
WHAT: A strong and explosive core exercise with focus on obliques and rotational movement.
HOW:
- Sit down with your legs slightly bent and your heels touching the floor.
- Engage your core and lower your upper body as far as you can without tilting your lower back.
- Use a dumbbell, weighted ball or any other type of weight and rotate it from side to side using your obliques.
- The movement should be explosive – try doing it as quick as possible while keeping the core engaged and the hips level.
5. Single leg deadlifts on an unstable surface
WHAT: A strong balance exercise that strengthens hamstrings, core, glutes and calves. Also, as it is a one-sided exercise, it works both sides of the body equally (no overcompensation by the stronger side).
HOW:
- Stand on one leg with your foot firmly planted on the halfmoon ball.
- Hold the bar in front of your hips.
- Slowly hinge your hips back and your knee slightly forward until your back is flat and the moving leg is straight behind you.
- Push back up again using your hamstring, glutes and core.
- Swap legs.
TIPS: If you don’t have a halfmoon ball or any other kind of uneven surface, do the exercise standing on the floor. It will still be challenging – promise!
6. Peeing dog (on/off ball)
WHAT: An exercise that focuses on glute engagement and strength as well as hip stabilisation.
HOW:
- Stand on all fours: knees underneath your hips and hands underneath your shoulders.
- Lift one leg to the side by engaging the glutes and your core – don’t let your hips tilt (very important!). Keep the knee bent at a 90-degree angle.
- Straighten your leg out sideways.
- Bring back in and lower back down.
- Swap legs.
TIPS: If you have a Pilates ball at home you can make it even more challenging by doing the exercise on the ball (see picture below).
7. Sidekicks (on ball)
WHAT: A full-body exercise that focuses on core, glutes and hips.
HOW:
- Lean on all fours on a Pilates ball.
- Straighten one leg out behind you – squeeze the glutes and keep the core engaged.
- Move the leg to the side. Keep the leg straight and don’t let your hips hinge.
- Move the leg back in so that it is straight behind you again.
- Repeat 8-12 times and then swap legs.
TIPS: If you don’t have a Pilates ball at home, do the exercise on the floor. It will still engage and challenge all the right muscles.
8. Pull-ups
WHAT: Great upper body strength exercise that focuses on shoulders, the back and improves grip strength.
HOW:
- Stand in front of a horizontal bar that is above shoulder height.
- Grip the bar shoulder-width apart with your hands facing away from your body.
- Using arm and back muscles pull up until elbows are fully bent and the chin is above the bar.
- Lower back down using a slow, controlled motion.
TIPS: If you can’t do pull-ups either place your foot/knee in a resistance band that will take some weight off your arms, or do isometric pull-ups using a chair. Pull up with the help of your feet, once in position, move your feet off the chair and hang in position for as long as you can and then slowly lower yourself back down. Repeat.
Ready to get stronger? Here are a few more tips:
