With the race season only a few short months away Outsider’s Ben Marchant picks the brains of a few seasoned pros to get advice on how to get to the start line in the best shape possible and what to do when you get there!
1. Lose fat
Athletes spend thousands on buying lighter equipment while ignoring the fact that they are carrying too much fat. Leaving fat loss until the season starts is too late due to the anaerobic nature of the standard distance race in the sport where the body’s supply of glycogen (carbohydrates) is used for the race rather than fat.
A very simple rule to burning fat and eating healthily is to avoid the ‘three white devils’ in your diet. Try to eliminate:
White sugars – get your sugars from fruit sources instead.
White flour – avoid products baked with white flour such as cakes, biscuit and white bread. Choose whole-grain products instead.
White shortening – don’t eat hydrogenated fats, such as in dairy spreads or much processed foods. Choose healthy fats found in fish oils, good meat cuts and olive oils.
Two other white substances that some would be better avoiding are:
White salt – which can lead to high blood pressure. Get used to eating your foods without it.
Dairy – many athletes have reported dropping the pounds when they gave up dairy products, especially milk on breakfast cereals and milk in cappuccinos and lattes.
- Adam Kelly (nutritionist – www.zest.ie)
2. Fuel for training
Your fuel for training should roughly of 50% complex carbohydrates which are non-processed and as natural as possible, followed by 30% protein gained from meats and fish, and the remainder from fats which are mainly found within the protein sources, but can also be found in olive and nut oils. Some traditional nutritionists who base their advice on the World Health Organisation’s food guidelines would disagree with these percentages, but they are not designing programmes for athletes.
- Adam Kelly (nutritionist – www.zest.ie)
3. Fuel for racing
Race day food tends to be higher in light carbohydrates which are easier on the stomach and digestives system. Most fuelling is done in the days leading up the event using the guidelines suggested above. Race food for events up to 2.5 hours generally tends to come from energy drinks and food bars. Any events longer than this will involve the introduction of some protein and fat into the mix.
- Adam Kelly (nutritionist – www.zest.ie)
4. Fuel for recovery
Food and water should be ingested immediately after a competition to take advantage of a window (about one hour), in which foods are more rapidly assimilated, leading to faster recovery time post-event. Protein is taken in higher quantities to help repair damaged muscle fibres, while mixed carbohydrates can be ingested along with plenty of fluids.
- Adam Kelly (nutritionist – www.zest.ie)
5. Hydration
On rides longer than two hours, it is really important to keep eating and drinking. Try to drink a bottle of sports drink for every 90 minutes of moving time and a small cereal bar every hour, and remember to eat something as soon as you finish your ride.
If you are in a race, always remember to drink: It is easy to race for 90 minutes and have two full bottles still on the bike as you were concentrated so much on racing. Try to have visual clues. For example, if there’s a fireroad on the course lap decide to always drink a few mouthful each time your reach this section.
- Ryan Sherlock (2008 Irish National Marathon Champion & International Irish XC racer)
6. Basic training
Ride 1-2 hours every other day on the road or the hills. Gradually increase time on the bike as the weeks go on. Most importantly, it’s quality over quantity. Too much will leave you tired so cut down on hours every fourth week so that your body recovers. After eight weeks, it will be time to add in some short and sharp hill-climb efforts. Read a training book to go from there as this is when it gets more complex!
- Richie Felle (Irish international XC racer)
7. Get some rest!
Rest is critical to becoming a better rider. Your muscles need time to recover following a gruelling training session and you will only actually improve once you have allowed your body to recover. As a rule take at least two rest days per week.
- Richie Felle (Irish international XC racer)
8. Do balance drills!
While this is a balance drill it can also help your focus.
This is a car park exercise! Find a kerb or very low wall about 4-6 inches wide, preferably raised out of the ground a few inches so you’ll come down off it if you lose your balance. Practice riding along this for a few metres. The width you ride will depend on your skill level (you will probably have seen north shore obstacles less than an inch wide). Focus on keeping your head up looking out along the kerb. This is tough to do as the tendency is to look to the sides all the time, which makes it hard to keep your balance. You can practice coming to a stop and start off again to make it more difficult. This is a worthwhile for general MTBing. While it may seem a bit daft, it is very valuable to help maintain focus and balance when riding tricky trails.
- Robin Seymour (15-time Irish Cross Country Champion & three-time Olympian)
9. Practise climbing
It’s worth focusing a bit on climbing steep inclines off road but with reasonable grip and nothing too tricky like roots and rock steps.
Find something that is about as steep as you can ride but don’t cheat and carry momentum into the hill. Start from a standstill and get going, putting your weight far enough back to get grip and finding the balance point between the front and back wheel. Too far back and the front wheel tends to rise. Too far forward and the rear wheel loses traction. The longer you can make this climb the better as it has a core workout element to it as well, maintaining the posture in the balance point. This can and should be practised, both in and out of the saddle, depending on your experience. Newcomers tend to find it easier to stay seated.
Like the balance drill, when you get proficient you can also stop halfway up the hill and try to get going again. It’s a handy for dealing with ‘first lap of a race’ type hold-ups. If this is too easy, then you need to find a steeper hill!
- Robin Seymour (15-time Irish Cross Country Champion & three-time Olympian)
10. Adjust your tyre pressure
My last suggestion is to adjust your tyre pressures as it’ll make the biggest difference to most people’s mountain bike riding. As a sweeping generalisation, being able to press your thumb half an inch into the centre of the tyre is a good place to start. For most people that would be in the region of 30-35 psi. This is very low compared to the pressure some people ride at. It adds a lot of grip and the tyre is more forgiving over roots and rocks. It is particularly important when it is muddy or slippy. You have to practice and see what works for you, so go out with a plan of reducing your tyre pressure by say 5psi on your regular trails and note the difference. Compare that to your previous set up and check on both climbs and descents. If it’s too low the tyre will deform when you corner so take care not to go below the manufacturers recommendations, but usually about 2bar~30psi.
It’s a myth that a tyre at 60psi rolls faster off road and that it offers more grip because the high pressure is pushing the knobbles out. Try it and see!
- Robin Seymour (15-time Irish Cross Country Champion & three-time Olympian)
11. Simulate the race
Find yourself a technical loop that you find very difficult to ride – say a 10 minute loop. Each week, try to complete three laps of the loop as fast as you can. Learn the best lines, know when to ride fast or when to take it easier – these lessons will greatly help your skills when racing.
Mountain bikers can always benefit from practising pedalling at higher cadences. In general, pedalling a higher cadence is more efficient and also teaches better pedalling mechanics. Practise pedalling for a minute as fast as you can without bobbing. Switch into a lower gear when doing this, it is all about spinning those legs. Do this a few times throughout the ride.
- Ryan Sherlock (2008 Irish National Marathon champion & International Irish XC racer)
12. How to get a good race start
Getting off to a good start is essential. You need to avoid bottlenecks and crashes going into the wooded sections so take some time to recce the course, especially the opening section. If the ground up ahead of the start line is flat, the start will be fast. To avoid being left behind, ensure you are in the large chainring on the front and the second or third at the rear. This will allow you to pedal away at full speed without having to carry out a messy front-ring gear change.
- Niall Davis ( International Irish XC & DH racer and co-owner of guiding company All Mountain experience and coaching company biking.ie)
13. Use your head
It’s very easy to get caught up in all the action when the red mist is down. Thinking ahead and using common sense will save you a lot of time in a mountain bike race. During your recce lap, break the course up into three or four sections. Aim to ride through these sections smoothly and most importantly with urgency. You can practice this by finding a 10-15 minute loop in your local forest. Time your laps and aim to be consistent.
- Niall Davis (International Irish XC & DH racer and co-owner of guiding company All Mountain experience and coaching company biking.ie
14. Race riding technique
Aim to ride your races as smoothly as possible and your speed will soon pick up. Replicate the conditions of racing in your training by riding up a climb at full speed and then straight into a technical section with turns, roots and rocks. If you can nail that you’ll make a lot of time on your rivals.
Thanks, this is some really useful info!
Great list, really detailed stuff.
Hopefully I can put this into practise now
Aanee xxx