Last week we introduced you to trainer Robb Beams. This week we get more in depth and in detail with training plans that can make you faster, stronger and better next year. Read on for info you can use, and visit Robb's www.completeracingsolutions.com site for even more training tips and videos. And click here to read part one of our interview from last week.
What about cross training for racers? Rowing, mountain bike, road bike, running?
For anyone who races, I believe that running is the worst form of cross training due to the additional impact that running places on a riders low back, hips, knees and ankles. There is no doubt that running will improve your strength and aerobic function, but here are a few limitations. First, the strength is specific to your lower body only (little core and upper body). Second, the residual fatigue and soreness is quite high (delaying the time before your next high quality workout).
The high quality cross training tools would be strength training on an Indo Board (indoboard.com); Concept 2 rowing for FULL BODY power, endurance and lactate tolerance; mountain biking for balance, eye-hand coordination, lower body power, upper body push-pull; swimming for enhanced aerobic function, flexibility and full body strength. These three cross training modalities have very little to no residual fatigue and soreness if executed with proper form. If you would like some cross training protocols within these various forms of training, please email me at robb3@earthlink.net.
Photo By: David Scearce
For the rough and tumble world of GNCC, Beams does not recommend running as training.
With our riders we avoid over training by evaluating (in a non-emotional way) how the body is responding to riding and cross training. For example, if our rider has an elevated morning heart rate of five or more and/or has a deviation in body weight by more than 4 pounds, the rider eats and goes back to sleep. The key to this form of evaluation is that it is completely non-emotional; the body's external signs are the only way that a rider knows if the body is ready to receive more workload. It may sound crazy, but when the top end of a bike begins to get tired and power is lost, you fix the problem. With the human body, the only way to fix the problem (i.e. fatigue, soreness, hungry, etc.) is to sleep and eat. Keep in mind, the human body ONLY gets stronger, faster and healthier when it is sleeping and eating. So if you want to avoid over training - focus on consistent eating of good quality food and sleeping a minimum of 8 hours a night. If a rider only does those two things, the rider will be faster by tomorrow morning. It is just like putting a fresh top end on the bike, the body will be fresh and will provide more power - guaranteed.
Let's get down to details. How do you prepare for 2-3 hours of woods racing? It has to be different than motocross because it would be crazy to go out and ride hard for three hours to practice.
A 2-3 hour race is a COMPLETELY different animal than motocross due to the excessive duration demands placed on the body and all of its energy systems (aerobic, anaerobic, muscular endurance, etc.). On top of these challenges, the rider has to cover the nutritional and hydration aspect to maintain proper blood sugar levels (for mental clarity, energy production and muscle contraction).
As mentioned earlier, not all riders have the opportunity to ride for 2-3 hours in a given day so we have to create a physical body that can go the distance on an abbreviated training schedule due to work and family obligations. Here is the key: train one to two times a week at an intensity level that is higher than what you plan on racing at on the weekend. The idea here is called the overload principle. If during the week I have you train at a higher level than what you want the body to race at during the weekend, when you back down the intensity level at the race (though it will still be faster than your buddies and other racers) your body perceives the speed/intensity to be "easy" and you will have the strength, endurance and nutritional program to complete the race without blowing up. When you train yourself to handle higher levels of intensity and speed, you force your body's various energy systems to learn how to process and produce the needed power, speed and endurance. If I can train your muscles to consume stored sugar (i.e. muscle glycogen) at a very fast rate (due to an elevated heart rate), when I bring the intensity down slightly, the body is able to deliver the necessary levels of sugar without taxing the system. To put it in the context of a motor, if you put an oversized carb (when bikes had carbs!) on a bike, the availability of fuel is high and the motor pulls hard - the same applies to how your body accommodates the demands you put it under. Please note, this does not mean that you should train hard every day. You should have some days dedicated to high intensity/high quality and others to active recovery days to allow your body a chance to recover and improve. If you would like a sample training 7 day training schedule similar to the one I have provided to Chris Bach, please email me directly at robb3@earthlink.net.
Photo By: David Scearce
Variety is key to training hard all season long.
With the season being so long, we avoid burn out, performance plateaus and injures by changing up the program every couple of months. If you stop having fun, you will lose sight of your goals. When you lose sight of your goals, the motivation is lost. Once the motivation is lost, the fire to win is lost and the reason for training on and off of the motorcycle is pushed aside for other non-productive distractions to sneak in.
Strength is a big issue in GNCC, because there are times when you're pulling your bike out of a mud hole, or pushing it up a hill, and that can totally ruin your energy. How do you incorporate that into a program?
Strength is the core to being able to push and pull a motorcycle at warp speeds over and around fast approaching obstacles. I have written several articles regarding strength as it applies to riding a motorcycle fast (I am happy to send it to anyone that is interested in them), but for the context of this article strength training "teaches" the secondary muscles to fire when the "primary" muscles fatigue and ultimately quit contracting. So a consistent and motorcycle specific strength program is imperative to the success of any racer (visit completeracingsolutions.com under Resources for a strength program example).
Here is a workout protocol that I use with all of my riders. WARNING: IT IS VERY DIFFICULT. PLEASE DON'T ATTEMPT TO COMPLETE THIS WITHOUT GETTING PERMISSION FROM YOUR PHYSICAN PRIOR TO BEGINNING)
Drop and Kick Drill:
-Warm up for 20 minutes; even tempo riding; stop and stretch from head to toe; re-hydrate
-Complete 15 minutes of a fast paced ride (85-90% effort); stop and kill the engine
- Stand beside the bike and slowly lean the bike over until the handle bars are touching (physically squat to get the bike to touch the ground) - Repeat this 10 times
- Jump on the bike - hold the kill switch and kick the bike 10 times with the kill switch suppressed
- After 10 kicks - release the kill switch, crank the bike up and complete 5 minutes at high level of speed (90-90%).
- Ride easy for 5 minutes; stop, stretch and re-hydrate
Repeat 2-4 times depending on age, physical conditioning level and race goal
The key to making this workout effective is focusing on your food and sleep every day. When you are rested, you will hit new levels of performance. When you are well fed, you will provide your body the building blocks to re-build torn down muscle tissue and you will grow stronger and faster!
What about arm pump?
Arm pump is all about body position on the bike. I have spoken extensively with Jeff Emig and he and I agree that arm pump arrives and worsens as the rider fatigues and falls out of optimum position. A rider can be told numerous times how to get into the correct position for turning, jumping, scrubbing, etc.; however, if the body is fatigued, or lacks the flexibility necessary to get into and maintain the proper position, the rider is actually fighting against himself and will begin to fatigue early. In addition to bad body position, the rider also begins to look down at the front fender or front wheel which causes the rider to ride tight and stiff (which leads to fatigue as well).
I am currently putting together a video series that outlines this subject in greater detail, so please email me if you would like a copy of this video.
Any diet tips?
To improve muscular endurance, to improve the development of lean muscle and burn unwanted body fat - avoid simple sugar and processed foods. I ask all of my riders to simply avoid anything that has a UPC bar code. If it has a label it has been processed at some level. As a rule of thumb, shop the perimeter of your grocery store and watch what happens to your body fat levels. As I say frequently, try to consume 1500 calories of fresh broccoli or squash. At every meal, strive to have a source of fresh fruit, vegetable and lean protein. Simplicity is always better: fresh high quality deli slices; hard boiled eggs, fresh nuts (all except peanuts); fresh fruit (anything in season). For high quality (poly-unsaturated) fat use extra virgin olive oil, eat fresh avocadoes, and fresh salmon. For proper hydration levels, strive to consume half of your body weight in ounces of filtered water - for example if you weigh 150 pounds, consumes 75 ounces of ice cold filtered water (the colder the water, the better the absorption). Nutrition doesn't need to be difficult; it just requires some pre-planning, preparation and making sure that it is readily available.
Thanks, Robb. Hope our racers learned from this.
Thanks, Jason.
(Don't forget Robb's site, www.completeracingsolutions.com for more training information. Good luck next season!)
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