Women's Cycling Clinic

I attended a women's cycling clinic last weekend at Tribe Multi-Sport in Scottsdale.  It was hosted by the Tribe Women's Racing Team and the information that they shared with us was unending!!  I was so impressed by the quality of the information that I wanted to share it with your ladies.  It would be impossible to blog on every subject they covered in one post so I'll be blogging over several days in order to share this helpful information. 

The clinic was Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 to 4:00 both days.  There was a questionnaire to fill out when I registered, asking how long you had been riding, how many days and miles per week you ride, your age etc.  This would place you in the appropriate riding group for Saturday's ride.  We did the normal Saturday morning Tribe ride which is challenging but very doable.  I ended up riding with a faster group that they had originally placed me, but that was fine by them.  It was a hard group to keep up with but you know what they say, "If you wanna get faster, ride with faster people".  I can't say that I want to be necessarily faster but I do want to be a stronger rider and stronger translated to faster...

After lunch, Michael Sasek, owner of "Motivate Fitness Refined" shared information on the importance of resistance training for cyclists, which I have found over the last several months t be incredibly helpful in my stamina.  Resistance training also plays a very important role in injury prevention.  Just some leg press and a few squats or lunges every week will give you a little extra strength to tap into when you're power starts running low.  Motivate Fitness Refined offers sport specific personal training and kettle ball classes.  You can find these at www.azmotivate.com.

One of the other points I found particularly helpful was the stretching class.  Cyclists use the hamstrings, calves and hip flexors more than any other muscles.  Stretching each of these muscles after ever ride will help reduce soreness and fatigue.  After cycling and working out for an entire year with little to no post ride stretching I only wish I had been given this information early on in my training.  I would have gladly lived without the soreness and hobbling around for several days after an intense ride.  STRETCH GIRLS!!  It's well worth the few minutes that it takes...

On day two we did a pedal stroke analysis, a bone density test, a "bioimpedance" analysis, (body mass index, basal metabolic rate, lean body mass/fat mass, etc.), a nutrition class, worked on riding in a pace line and a rotating pace line, a core strengthening class and basic and advanced bike maintenance.  So much to share...