You have got your strength back and are already feeling motivated? You can’t wait for the weather to get warmer so you can build up your riding hours? That’s a good sign, but there is still time left. L’Alsacienne 2025 is scheduled for the end of June, and limiting your training to the volume of kilometres alone is not necessarily wise.
What would you say to offering yourself regular physical training sessions? Put away your helmet and shoes, sit down on your living room carpet, and we will guide you!
Strength in your legs, but not only!
Body building involves increasing your strength.
It may target the muscles in the lower limbs, which are directly used in pedalling. On your bike, using very high gears, this is called the development of specific strength.
It can also be done in a specialised gym by using additional weights, provided you are guided by a trainer with an excellent knowledge of cycling. Otherwise, it is possible to use other means, even without weights, for example by combining isometric exercise known as “chair stepping” with dynamic movements such as rapid half squats.
Body building is also intended to strengthen the trunk. This is even the main aim and the basis of physical training in winter. The term “core training” means just that, as it targets the “core” which links the thorax to the pelvis. Its strength is vital, as it supports the only bone structure present, the spine.
Retrouvez aussi notre article sur la personnalisation de la pratique pour réussir votre saison cycliste !
Prevention through body building
Core training aims therefore to tone up your abdominal and back muscles. It is not about creating a six-pack, but preferring a more overall approach, by also using your deep muscles.
These help you to adopt the right posture on a daily basis and avoid excessive stress in the lumbar vertebrae. Furthermore, they facilitate breathing and digestion.
More efficient pedalling
Although it is hard to find a scientific study that shows a clear correlation between core training and cycling performance, we have all seen cyclists with jerky pedalling, waddling along on their bike without being very efficient.
You could invest in a rigid bike... but making an effort to stay in good shape is essential, and in any case cheaper and more profitable. It will also help you in your practice of cycling, in particular for the courses at L'Alsacienne, the Vosges cyclosportive.
The tone of your abdominal and back muscles play a key role in supporting the pelvis and transmitting the pedalling force with as little loss as possible.
Simple and varied core training exercises
Core training exercises can be both simple and effective. Try straightening yourself up, and then throwing yourself off balance. For example, on your knees, contract your abdominal muscles, lift up one knee and try to keep your balance (photo 1).
On all fours, straighten yourself up horizontally. Lift up your left hand and your right foot and knee. Hold the position for a few seconds without losing your balance, while taking a deep breath. Now do the same with the other side...
You can also keep both hands on the floor and lift up both knees (photo 2).
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
It is clear that core training sessions can take very varied forms, and the exercises proposed below are just a few examples. To be effective, they don’t need to be complicated... as you will see for yourself, simple does not necessarily mean easy!
Exercice 1
Position de départ :
En décubitus ventral (allongé sur le ventre), pieds à largeur de bassin, front posé sur les mains, mains posées au sol.
Consignes :
Décoller les coudes et les mains d’environ 5 centimètres et tenir la posture. Reposer. Décoller les genoux et tendre les jambes le plus loin possible en arrière et tenir la posture. Reposer. Enchaîner en alternant ainsi « décoller le haut/ relâcher/décoller le bas/ relâcher…
Variante possible :
Après avoir « décollé le haut », tendre les bras en « V ». Après avoir « décollé le bas », ouvrir les jambes en « V ».
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
Exercice 2
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
Position de départ :
Couché sur le flanc, tête posée sur un bras. Il est possible de s’équilibrer avec l’aide de la main libre.
Consignes :
Décoller les pieds et tendre les genoux le plus possible
Exercice 3
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
Position de départ :
Couché sur le dos, genoux repliés, jambes « en crochet », pieds posés à plat au sol.
Consignes :
Soulever le bassin et décoller le dos. Aligner genoux/bassin/épaules. Revenir en position initiale lentement en déroulant la colonne vertébrale sur le tapis, « vertèbre après vertèbre ».
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
Variantes possibles :
- En maintenant la posture, décoller alternativement d’un centimètre pied droit / pied gauche.
- En maintenant la posture, tendre un genou et amener une jambe dans le prolongement de la cuisse et du dos
Exercice 4
Photo Credit : Eric Géhin
Position de départ :
Allongé sur le dos, mains derrière la tête, cuisses à la verticale, jambes à l’équerre
Consignes :
Sur chaque expiration, décoller les épaules en contractant dans le même temps le périnée et les fessiers. Intention non pas d’enrouler le plus possible la tête, mais de décoller les épaules, et les omoplates, en appuyant légèrement la tête dans les mains.
Il est possible ici d’effectuer 2 ou 3 séries de 20 à 30 répétitions.
