[Closed] food/fuel for gym squats/your legs?

Proteins for recovery. Nothing will specifically target areas of your body for particular exercises though.

I was always recommended scrambled egg and milk when I was doing lots of weights.

Ohh and I think I was told I had to have it within about 30 minutes of the exercise finishing.

Are squats good for cycle training?

I've started doing them at the gym and can certainly get them aching for a few days after.

Squats would be good for strength (climbing) but not endurance. I used the gym loads when I first started riding but I was crap at first - only got strong through riding/running.

Now I do nothing.

Ohh and back to the OP - no single food would be good for both - you need the right food at the right time - complex carbs for fuel (pasta, bananas) and protein for recovery.

And sugars for an emergeny hit (Haribo).

All my purely unscientific opinion though 🙂

I already commute 100 miles a week plus the squats. Not really felt any benifit from them yet... Though get pretty tired by the end of the week.

sounds like squats makes you tired then....

Sounds like you need one day off commuting to aid recovery otherwise you'll grind yourself down.
the ache is lactic acid/not stretching afterwards.

Squats do work. They 'help' your lungs. I have girlie legs and previously I found squatting with the missus on my shoulders or multiple flights of stairs with 60kg in a backpack gave me evergreen legs (not fast just the power was there and effortless on climbs).

Laugh but it works. My lungs/fitness is there- my legs need extra help. Pro cyclists do cross-training no?

Hora - cross training definitely good.

A few years ago,i went to Thailand for a fortnight and had the squats the whole time i was there 🙄

I was going to suggest that each time hora goes to the little boys room he could do one leg squats to lower and raise himself from the loo seat. No idea about protein sources in such situations, I guess he'd just have to see what came to hand.

Is squats thai for ianmunro's favourite ladyboys? 😮

Your all wrong TJ will be along soon to put you right. 🙄 😉

Sorry Mark but

or multiple flights of stairs with 60kg

I lift weights a minimum of twice a week to help with running and cycling. As an aside, running will give you strong legs for cycling, although it won't help you improve at cycling - ime anyway.

If you need help with recovery, look at pre and post training eating. As with M_F I have scrambled eggs on toast if I can. Compression tights, massage, stretching and taking good quality cherry juice are also a must for me.

you need a food that's nominatively programmed to help, or as close as possible

I'd suggest squash (plus, you can drink orange squash while rehydrating too)
or maybe kumquats

actually, if you made kumquat squash ....

mark admit it this is just so you can eat more without the guilt.

I'm a bodbuilder who has recently got into mtbing.
As far as post workout recovery goes,the best plan is a whey protein drink as soon as you can after the workout as this is the fastest digested protein there is..... Also take in a small carb bar,this will help in replacing the glycogen that you've just burned. Within 1.5 hours you should then have a proper meal...I would have 2 chicken breasts and rice, but if you weigh only 10 stone say then 1 chicken breast will do.
This is the same plan that I follow after every decent ride as well as I'm always worried about losing muscle size that has taken me years to build!
Every time you ride,train with weights, intensely,you're breaking down muscle tissue that needs to be repaired.....If you don't take in a protein source pretty quickly,your body will cannaibalize your own muscle tissue and use IT for repair!
Mastiles was on the right track tho'.

Well I was never a bodybuilder - just a keen gymboi.

I used to use the same weight room as a track cyclist for squats - he could squat serious weight for a slim-ish bloke. It's clearly going to help with the brutal sprinting needed on the track, for mountain biking I doubt it would add anything special you wouldn't get from just riding.

It's one of the best lifts in the book for all round strength though, so I'd just do them for that reason and not worry about the cycling angle.

They certainly toast the legs - a session of heavy squats and you'll be crawling up the hills the next day.

gixerboy - Member

I'm a bodbuilder who has recently got into mtbing.
As far as post workout recovery goes,the best plan is a whey protein drink as soon as you can after the workout as this is the fastest digested protein there is..... Also take in a small carb bar,this will help in replacing the glycogen that you've just burned. Within 1.5 hours you should then have a proper meal...I would have 2 chicken breasts and rice, but if you weigh only 10 stone say then 1 chicken breast will do.
This is the same plan that I follow after every decent ride as well as I'm always worried about losing muscle size that has taken me years to build!
Every time you ride,train with weights, intensely,you're breaking down muscle tissue that needs to be repaired.....If you don't take in a protein source pretty quickly,your body will cannaibalize your own muscle tissue and use IT for repair!
Mastiles was on the right track tho'.

been gyming it most of my life,protein protein protein!
whey is the way to go.

if i have scrambled eggs,its only the egg whites i use,get rid of the yoke,

viamnin c tablet with protein shake staright after a workout or ride.

Oops 60lb not 60kg. Rucksack was complaining at 60lbs let alone more and mrshora didn't like me using her on my shoulders as it scared her.

Gary I've lost a stone since begining of december- I want to keep it off!

Squats do help general cycling let alone the track- why not? Its called cross training and helps support stamina IMO. Try it. After a few sessions you'll feel stronger.

My issue is...as I told the gym instructor yesterday 'I hate the gym with a passion'

just ride your bike till you puke and leave the gym to the bunnies

Squats will increase your explosive power. So should help with a sprint up a short climb. Big muscle exercises like squats will also be the most beneficial for your fat loss goals.

If you're not a body builder you don't need to overload on protein, you probably get much of what you need in your current diet. Personally I don't bother splitting my yolks from my whites and all that faff.

Pint of semi-skimmed - about 18g of protein.
Slice of decent brown bread 10g.
An egg approx 12g
Handfull of nuts another 10g or so.
Meat, fish, cheese you quite quickly get to eat all the protein you need unless you want to pack on size.

Garry_Lager - Member
I used to use the same weight room as a track cyclist for squats - he could squat serious weight for a slim-ish bloke. It's clearly going to help with the brutal sprinting needed on the track, for mountain biking I doubt it would add anything special you wouldn't get from just riding.

Always nice to have a good sprint though, you would be very glad of the gym work if you were side by side with the race leader 100m from the finish line. Also it would be quite useful in flat criterium races.

Iain

My issue is...as I told the gym instructor yesterday 'I hate the gym with a passion'

I've been thinking about weight training for my road riding. I used to weight train fairly heavy - 140kg squats for 12 reps - but I weighed over 93kg which ain't good for getting up the hills. These days I'm 71kg and haven't weight trained for years, but am curious to know if my legs were as strong as they used to be would I be a better climber? Don't need a particularly strong upper body, so don't need that weight, but I'd still weigh 80kg or so I imagine with my old legs; that'd be too much right?

Try it.

Medium weight for you and 30 fast reps? That's what I've started. I'll do it partly because the weathers foul plus there's a Jacuzzi in there and argument aplenty in the sauna (boy it sounds like a sausage-fest!)

That's a good weight.
Im 88kg and am doing 4x10 of 90kg followed by the same reps with 120kg for calf raises (on a smith machine as haven't got the balance for a free bar just yet!)
That was my 3rd week doing it. Quads still hurt a bit for the next couple of days but no where near as bad as they first did. Calfs were fine.
Hopefully I will hurt less soon and feel the benifits.
On the plus side my quads fill the assos nicely and feel like concrete 🙂

You should feel some difference now? My legs react after two hard sessions (with 2-3 day rest).

Not amazing just my lungs don't feel like they are panting/working as hard.

I guess I don't get enough rest as I ride everyday except Saturday!

I'm sure I will notice the difference on the road bike. That only comes out in the dry though... And I have forgotten what that's like!

After a gym session you need a break- work harder on your legs then drive the next day. Even I know your legs need to rebuild 😉