6 WAYS TO TEST (AND IMPROVE) YOUR RIDING SHAPE

1.            Lower-body flexibility test

Benefit
Good flexibility can keep you from getting hurt when you’re forced to bail.

Warm up and do some preliminary stretching for 5 minutes.  Stand with your legs straight, feet shoulder-width apart (don’t lock your knees).  Slowly bend forward at the waist and reach for the floor (keep knees straight and don’t bounce).  Note how far your hands get to the floor.

Score

Score Higher - Bend Better

Standing Hang:
Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart.  Bend from the waist and let your arms hang (like you were touching your toes).  Hold 20 to 30 seconds, letting the weight of your upper body stretch your hamstrings and lower back.  Repeat twice.

Step Hamstring Stretch:
Place your right heel on a step or low bench placed in front of you.  Hold onto your left leg for support and lower your body and lean forward from the hips until your feel the stretch.  Hold 20 to 30 seconds.  Repeat with other leg.

2.        1-minute sit-up test

Benefit
Your abs support and stabilize your body and help you control and manoeuvre your bike.

Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor, fingers laced behind your head.  Have someone hold your feet down or secure them under a piece of furniture.  Set a timer or have someone time you for 1 minute while you do as many sit-ups as you can.  (Full sit-up = bring your elbows up to touch your knees and lower back down so your shoulders touch the floor.)  Keep your arms loose.  Do not pull on the back of your head or neck.  Your head should stay straight in line with your back.

Score

 Score Higher - Toughen Your Core

Trunk Lifts and Rotations:
Sit on the floor, hands crossed over your chest, knees bent and feet secured under a support (like a sturdy piece of furniture).  Lean back and hold your torso at a 45-degree angle from the floor.  Rotate to the right, lean back toward the floor, rotate back to centre, then to the left as you raise up (facing left).  Repeat the motion in the opposite direction.  Do two sets of 10 to 15.

 3.        Upper-body push-up test

 Benefit
You need upper-body strength and endurance to hang onto your bike as you bomb down a boulder field.

Get in the standard push-up position, supporting your weight with just your hands and your toes, your body in a straight line from your head to your feet.  (Because women are built with less upper-body mass than men, they can do a “modified push-up”, bending their legs and pushing up from the knees.)  Keeping your back straight, lower your chest to about three 3 inches (the size of a fist) off the floor.  Push back up.  That’s one push-up.  Set a timer or have someone time you and do as many push-ups as you can in 1 minute.  (You can rest between reps if you need to, but only in the up position, not on the floor.)

 Score

 Score Higher - Build Your Upper-Body

Push-ups (works triceps, chest, shoulders, wrists, upper back):

You just did them.  Now do some more.  Seriously, if you performed below average, doing push-ups regularly will boost your upper-body power.  If you did well, but still want to increase upper-body strength, make the exercise harder by putting your hands on blocks (or two evenly sized props, like phone books).  Do 2 sets of 10 to 20 reps 2 to 3 days a week.

  4.       Resting heart rate test

 Benefit
Your heart gets stronger when you get fit.  Here’s how to judge.  

Do this first thing in the morning, before any daily stresses can affect your heart rate.  Place two fingers on your neck, just to the side of your larynx.  Press gently until you feel a pulse (pressing too hard can throw off the results).  Count the number of beats for 60 seconds, or for 30 seconds and then multiply by two.  Note:  For the most accurate results, test yourself three mornings in a row and take the average.

 Score

 Score Higher - Train Your Heart

Wanna make your heart stronger?  It’s easy.  It takes just 30 to 60 minutes of exercise 3 or 4 times a week to condition your heart, according to the gurus of the Heart Foundation.  Of course that means riding your bike more than just Saturday or Sunday morning.  But you were going to do that anyway, right?

  5.     One-leg balance test

 Benefit
Balance and mountain biking go together like Cow and Chicken; one isn’t much good without the other.

Shift your weight to one leg.  Then bend the knee of the other leg to raise it off the ground, and soften your supporting leg slightly for balance.  Keep your arms down by your side (holding them out a’la Karate Kid is cheating).  Time how long you can balance without dabbing your other foot or sticking your arms out.  To make it more challenging:  Straighten your raised leg out in front of you and single-leg squat down about 45 degrees on your balancing leg, then see how long you can keep your balance.

 Score

 Score Higher - Improve Your Balance

Advanced warrior:  Stand with feet together, heels slightly apart, chest high and shoulders back.  Put your hands on your hips and step back with your right foot, using just your toes to balance you as you put all of your weight on your left foot.  Lean forward, so your right foot comes off the ground and eventually forms a straight line from your right heel to your head, balancing the length of your body on your left leg.  (Your body should form a T.)  Keep your hands on your hips.  Hold pose.  Return to start.  Then switch legs.  Start by holding the pose 10 seconds, working up to one minute.

6.     Tuesday evening trail test

Benefit
This is mountain biking, isn’t it?

Pick a clear day with good trail conditions and a time of day when few users are on the mountain.  Fuel up as you normally would before a fast, hard ride.  Check that your bike is in top working order.  Then ride your local loop at race pace.  (Obviously, all the rules of the trail still apply here, hammerheads.  The -I was racing!- excuse will come off pretty lame if you run some unsuspecting hiker off the trail.)

Score

Score Higher - Ride Faster, Stronger

The best way to improve your riding performance here?  Ride your bike!  Long rides, short rides, hard rides, easy rides.  Just get out!!