Womens Bicycle Racing

We are very fortunate in Pittsburgh to have a building like the Cathedral of Learning with 36 flights of steps to workout on in the winter time.

I wanted to touch on some basic information that you may or may not know about stair workouts…this is primarly for those who have never done the cathedral stairs before, or are in their first season of bike riding/training for racing.

The steps are simply a PLACE to workout, as opposed to a specific workout in and of itself.  The steps add a component of gravity, therefor requiring more muscular force, then other places, like a track, treadmill or stairmaster.  Just as there are many different workouts you could run on a track or do on the treadmill, there are many different types of stair workouts you can do.

I see many new step enthusiasts try to emulate the stair workotu of seasoned veterans, and as a result become disillusioned or injured in the process.  Remember that the key to improving your fitness is consistency…and if you get hurt, you’ll miss your workouts and your ability to be consistant.  It’s far better to start low/go slow, then to go too hard/fast and become injured.  It’s better to be 95% trained for a race, than 105% trained and injured.

When doing your stair workout, or any workout, ask yourself what the purpose of hte workout is, and what benefit you hope to gain from it.

In cycling, the best way to become a better cyclist is to be on your bike riding (ride lots!).  Stair workouts are a convenient way to add a strength training workout indoors in the wintertime.  The best strength workouts for cycling are done on teh bicycle itself by riding hills, ridnig into the wind, or simply gearing up and riding hard.  So stairs are not a substitite for riding, but simply an alternative.

In the plan that I made for the team (I think I”m overdue on the 2nd month block…why didn’t anyone call me on that?  Who’s following the plan???) the stairs are a strength workout.

Imagine you go to the weight room adn do a few sets of squats, step ups or lunges.  A typical routine might be 2-4 sets of 8-20 repetitions with or without weights.  The whole thing probably takes no more than 15-20 minutes, less if you only count the time that you are pushing weights.

The stairs do not need to be any more than that to see benefit.  In otherwords, as a strength workout, I woudl suggest starting with ONE set of steps (36 flights ~ 400 feet) which will take you 10-15 minutes.  A perfectly adequate leg workout if you were doing it in the gym.

If you have done the steps in a previous season as part of your training, you might consider startnig with 2-3 sets on your first workout, but again, walking up at a conversational pace.  You shoudl be able to talk with a partner.

You will see people running up the steps, breathless and collapsing or puking at the top.  You will see people doing 8-10-12 or more sets.  You will see people jogging up taking the elevator down and immediately jogging up again.

This isn’t necessary for many people, especially if you are new to it, and will more likely result in injury if you have never done the steps before.  Be conservative at first, don’t give into peer pressure, keep your pace down adn dont be afraid to rest every few flights if you need to.

If you do the steps weekly, increase the number of sets by one each week.  Don’t consider trying to run the steps until you’ve given your body time to adapt to the new workout adn recover from yoru previous one…and more importantly, do it in a tmie of the training year where the stair running will show a direct benefit to your cycling season.  (i.e. probably not in the dead of winter)

If it helps, I have NEVER run up the steps.  Running pushes your heart rate up into an anaerobic level on the steps…while this can be a good training tool, it is not necessary for helping us reach our CURRENT cycling goals- to build basic leg strength that will hopefully transition to the bike….those anaerobic intervals are BEST done on the bicycle which is where you’ll need them in a race!  Save your anerobic workouts for the bike later in the season.

On the other hand, if you have done the steps in the past, feel like an experienced step person and want to push yourself then go ahead, but be conervative and do less than you think you should initially.  Don’t for get the undertrained vs. hurt rule.  (95% vs 105%)

OK…conservative coach/doctor speech over…go have fun!