Your 4-Week Plan to Build a Strength Base

You’re probably familiar with base training for aerobic fitness: Those long, slow, steady rides may sometimes feel boring, but they’re critical for performance. The same truth lies in strength training. You may not want to do it—all cyclists want more time on the bike, right?—but hitting the weight room could level up your bike performance.

A strength base plan for cyclists should be quite simple, touching on a few major principles of strength training and specificity for the sport. Ahead, learn about some of the best strength training exercises for cyclists and how to structure a four-week plan to boost your performance.

Benefits of a Strength Base for Cyclists

While strength training is something cyclists should be doing throughout their riding/racing season, base strength training refers to a targeted approach with higher volume and intensity that’s done in the off-season. You may be biking less or not at all while building a strength base, allowing you to devote more time, energy, and physiological resources to building strength and muscle, which will pay dividends come riding season.

Allows for Progressive Overload

Progressive overload is a key principle in strength training. It refers to progressively loading (challenging) the muscle in order to continue eliciting adaptations like muscle growth and strength.

In season, it can be extremely difficult to progressively overload any muscle group because you have so much volume on the bike, leading to more fatigue and less energy for strength training. During the off season, you can devote more of your body’s physiological resources to strength training, allowing you to continually build.

Helps You Start the Season Strong

When you spend time building a strength base, you start your riding or racing season in a stronger position.

“It is crucial for cyclists to build a strength base, both to improve power and endurance and to prevent injury,” says Ellen Thompson, head personal trainer at Blink Fitness. “Strength training increases muscle efficiency, allowing cyclists to generate more power, which is especially beneficial during climbs and sprints.”

“Enhanced core strength also contributes to better stability and posture on the bike,” she adds, “which is really important so you don’t get fatigued on long rides.”

Indeed, research shows that strength training improves almost every performance metric in cycling: cycling economy and VO2 max, power output, and maximal intensity performance.

Reduces Injury Risk

Endurance sports come with a relatively high risk of injury due to their repetitive nature. Repetitive stress injuries, such as patellofemoral syndrome and tendonitis of the quadriceps, can occur when the soft tissues aren’t equipped to handle the load placed on them.

Strength training reduces injury risk by training the musculoskeletal system—tendons, ligaments, muscle tissue, cartilages, bones, and fascia—to handle increased strain and loads. Not only does this improve performance, but it makes it less likely that you’ll sustain an overuse injury.

How to Build a Strength Base

Progressively Overload

“Progressive overload is the key to continually challenging your muscles and promoting growth,” Thompson says. Without progressive overload, progress will eventually stall.

You can implement the principle of progressive overload by manipulating a number of factors, including:

• Increasing weight
• Increasing reps
• Adding sets
• Reducing the rest interval between sets
• Improving your range of motion for a given exercise (e.g., squatting deeper)
• Add a power element (e.g., jump squat versus air squat)
• Slow down your lift tempo (e.g., move slower on the squat descent)
• Add pauses (e.g., pause in the bottom of the squat)

The simplest way to progressively overload is to try to lift more weight for the same number of reps and sets each week. It’s simple, straightforward, and effective—exactly what cyclists need to build base strength without overcomplicating their routine. As you become more experienced with weight training, you can begin to manipulate additional variables.

Do Unilateral and Bilateral Moves

It’s important to program a workout plan to prevent muscular imbalances that could lead to injury. “Cyclists should include both bilateral and unilateral exercises to ensure even development of both sides of the body,” Thompson says.

Bilateral exercises work both sides of the body at the same time. Examples include squats, deadlifts, bench press, and overhead press. Unilateral exercises, conversely, work one side of the body at a time. Examples include lunges, Bulgarian split squats, and single-arm overhead press.

Train With Specificity

Specificity in training means training for the skills and strengths your sport requires. “Specificity ensures that you use exercises that target muscles used in cycling, such as the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves, and core,” Thompson says.

Training the upper body is important, too, especially the postural muscles (back, chest, and shoulders) to improve stamina for long rides and prevent lower back and neck pain.

Schedule Two to Three Workouts Per Week

The ideal strength training frequency depends on the individual’s availability.

During the off season, four days per week (two upper-body days and two lower-body days) is ideal, according to certified personal trainer, cycling coach, and master trainer for Schwinn, Helen Vanderburg. A three-day routine consisting of all full-body workouts can work, too, she notes.

Cyclists should aim for a minimum of two days per week of strength training during their riding or racing season, ideally doing full-body workouts for each session, she says.

Eat Enough to Fuel Growth

Don’t let all of your hard work go to waste by failing to fuel. Building muscle and strength requires eating sufficient calories and protein to replenish the trained muscles and build new tissue.

If you don’t fuel for the work required, you’ll wind up feeling overly fatigued, sore, and failing to see progress. Eat enough, and you’ll see gains and feel stronger.

What to Know About Building a Strength Base During the Riding Season

Ideally, you’ll start a base-phase strength training program and complete it in the off season, when you’re not riding as much. However, it’s still possible to build strength during riding season. Overall fatigue will be higher and it will be important to smartly schedule strength training days to interfere minimally with high-intensity training rides.

“It is important to look at the total volume and intensity of the cyclist training program and strategically schedule the strength training workouts,” Vanderburg says. “The strength training days should be after or before endurance training cycling days rather than power and speed training days.”

When strength training, muscles typically feel most fatigued around 24 to 72 hours postworkout, depending on the intensity or the workout, Vanderburg explains. “For this reason, it’s important to plan recovery days [as least one] after a strength workout so that the muscles can rebuild and strengthen,” she adds.

Vanderburg recommends scheduling easy (zone 1 or 2) rides the day of or after strength sessions, especially if you are doing two sessions per day.

Best Exercises for Cyclists to Build a Strength Base

There are virtually endless strength training exercises available to choose from. According to Vanderburg, cyclists should keep it simple and stick to proven, effective exercises.

For the lower body, which is the most important muscle group to train for cyclists, Vanderburg says the following exercises are essential:

• Squats
• Lunges
• Deadlifts
• Step-ups
• Glute bridge/hip thrust

“The lower body powers the pedaling in cycling; therefore, the stronger the lower body is, the more speed, endurance, and power a cyclist will have during a ride or race,” Vanderburg says. “Weight training exercises for the lower body will enhance performance.”

If time allows, Vanderburg also recommends including these lower-body exercises:

• Leg extension
• Hamstring curl
• Calf raises

Some of the best core exercises for cyclists include:

• Plank
• Side plank
• Back extension
• Superman

Core strength is important for cyclists because the core assists the lower body throughout the pedal stroke, Vanderburg explains. “Cyclists are in a hip hinge position on the bike, so strength training for the core will assist in decreasing low back discomfort, too.”

For the upper body, Vanderburg recommends that cyclists prioritize training the postural muscles in the back and shoulders. This will help increase stamina to maintain riding positions for longer, especially if you ride in aero.

• Shoulder press
• Reverse fly
• Bent-over row
• Lat pull-down/pull-ups

4-Week Strength Base Plan

The following base strength training plan is designed to be completed in the off season. It has four sessions per week: two for the lower body and two for the upper body, with core work in every session.

This plan is repeatable: If you have more than four weeks to build a base, you can restart the plan from week one and continue to progressively overload. After at least 12 weeks, it would be ideal to switch up some of the exercises to introduce variety, prevent boredom, and see additional progression.

You can structure your week however it works for you. Try not to do two lower-body sessions back-to-back or two upper-body sessions back-to-back. On rest days, you can stretch, walk, or go for easy rides.

How to use this list:

• Perform each movement on its own for the reps and sets listed. Don’t create supersets or do circuits. The goal is to push each exercise to a heavy effort.
• Intensity is measured in RPE (rating of perceived exertion). An RPE of 9, for instance, means you should lift to a 9-out-of-10 effort, or feel like you could only do one more rep.
• If you’re truly lifting to an RPE of 8 to 9, you’ll need a substantial rest period after each set. Resting 2 to 5 minutes between sets is normal and encouraged when in a base strength training phase.
• You’ll need dumbbells to complete this plan. It’s great to have a set of multiple dumbbells so you can adequately progress different lifts.
• To progress each week, increase the weight, the reps, or both, depending on how you feel. To build strength, it’s better to increase the weight and do fewer reps rather than continually add repetitions at the same weight.
• To progress box jumps, increase reps or increase the height of the box if possible.
• To progress isometric movements, increase the time held or add a weight.

Lower Body Day 1

Dumbbell Squat

1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, toes turned slightly out. Rack dumbbells at shoulders.
2. Send hips down and back to lower into a squat.
3. Drive through feet to stand back up.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Box Jump

1. Stand in front of a box or step.
2. Send hips down and back to lower into a shallow squat.
3. Explode upward and onto the box, landing softly with bent knees.
4. Stand up at the top, straightening hips and knees.
5. Step off the box one foot at a time.
6. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 7-8.

Bulgarian Split Squat

1. Stand in front of a chair, bench, or couch, facing away from it. Place right foot on top of chair behind you. Hold a dumbbell in each hand down by sides or vertically at chest. This is the starting position.
   
2. Bend left knee and lower toward floor. Keep left knee tracking over toes and lower as much as possible, aiming to get back knee to lightly tap floor.
3. Pause, then push through front foot to stand up and return to starting position.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 5-8 reps on each side. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Glute Bridge Hold

1. Lie faceup, knees bent and feet planted, hands down by sides.
2. Drive through feet to lift hips, engaging glutes, hamstrings, and core.
3. Hold here for 30-60 seconds. Do 3 sets.

Lower Body Day 2

Deadlift

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand down in front of thighs.
2. Hinge at hips by sending glutes straight back. Keep core engaged and back flat, and bend knees slightly.
3. Drive feet into floor and engage glutes to stand back up, extending hips.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Jump Lunge

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart.
2. Step right foot back and bend both knees 90 degrees to lower into a lunge, back right knee hovering just above the floor and front left knee tracking directly over toes.
3. Explode up, jumping off the floor and switching feet in the air.
4. Land softly and immediately lower into opposite lunge with left foot back and right foot forward.
5. Continue alternating. Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps of each leg. Aim for RPE 7-8.

Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift

1. Stand on right leg, slight bend in knee. Hold a dumbbell in each hand down in front of thighs.
2. Hinge at hips by sending glutes straight back, keeping core engaged and back flat. Lift left leg behind you and maintain slight bend in right knee.
3. Drive through right foot to stand back up, engaging glutes and extending hips.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 5-8 reps on each leg. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Superman Hold

1. Lie facedown. Arms and legs extended.
2. Lift arms, head, shoulders, and legs off floor, engaging back of body. Keep gaze toward floor.
3. Hold here for 30-60 seconds. Do 3 sets.

Upper Body Day 1

Overhead Press

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, dumbbells racked at shoulders.
2. Press weights straight up overhead, biceps by ears. Keep core engaged, back straight.
3. Slowly lower weights back to shoulders.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Lateral Raise

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, arms down by sides, holding a dumbbell in each hand.
2. Lift arms up and out to the sides, palms facing down, lifting to shoulder height. Keep core engaged, back straight.
3. Lower weights back down slowly.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 7-8.

Single-Arm Chest Press

1. Lie faceup, holding a dumbbell in right hand, elbow bent about 90 degrees so weight ist at shoulder and keep elbow about 45 degrees from torso. Place left hand on floor down by side. This is the starting position.
2. Press the dumbbell straight up, in line with shoulder.
3. Slowly lower back down to starting position.
4. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 5-8 reps on each side. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Side Plank

1. Lie on right side, forearm on floor with elbow directly under shoulder, feet, knees, hips, and shoulders stacked. Extend left arm toward ceiling.
2. Lift hips off floor and drive forearm into floor. Maintain straight line.
3. Hold here for 30-60 seconds. Repeat on other side. Do 3 sets.

Upper Body Day 2

Bent-Over Row

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding a weight in each hand.
2. With a soft bend in knees, hinge at hips, sending glutes straight back, and lowering torso toward the floor, so it’s almost parallel to ground. Keep back straight, core engaged. Pull shoulders down away from ears, and keep neck neutral by gazing down at floor in front of you. Arms should hang straight down with palms facing each other. This is the starting position.
3. Slowly pull elbows up and back and squeeze shoulder blades together, keeping elbows hugged into sides. Pause when the weights are just below chest, close to ribcage.
4. Slowly lower the weights to return to starting position.
5. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 8-9.

Reverse Fly

1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand.
2. Bend knees slightly and hinge forward at the hips by sending glutes straight back, lowering torso until it’s almost parallel with the floor. Keep core engaged, back flat. Arms should hang in front of you, palms facing each other. This is the starting position.
3. Keeping back flat and a slight bend in elbows, lift dumbbells out to the sides, about up to shoulder height. Squeeze shoulder blades together as you pull the dumbbells wide, stopping with arms in line with shoulders.
4. Slowly lower dumbbells back down, returning to starting position.
   
5. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Aim for RPE 7-8.

Single-Arm Upright Row

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart.
2. Place left hand on hip and hold a dumbbell with right hand down in front of you, palm facing body, in front of right thigh.
3. Pull dumbbell straight up and back to shoulder height, elbow bending and reaching up and back.
4. Straighten arm back down.
5. Repeat. Do 3 sets of 5-8 reps on each side. Aim for RPE 8-9
   

Plank

1. Place forearms on floor, directly under shoulders.
2. Step back, forming a straight line from head to heels. Keep core tight and belly button pulled up to spine.
3. Hold here for 30-60 seconds. Do 3 sets.

Amanda Capritto

Contributing Writer

Amanda is a content writer and journalist with extensive experience in the health, fitness, lifestyle, and nutrition niches. She is a certified personal trainer and sports nutrition coach, as well as a triathlete and lover of strength training. Amanda's work has appeared in several notable publications, including Health Magazine, Shape Magazine, Lonely Planet, Personal Trainer Pioneer, Garage Gym Reviews, Reader’s Digest, CNET, LIVESTRONG, Health Journal, CleanPlates, Verywell Fit, Verywell Mind, and more.