Bytager the publication "Cycling, the sport that makes muscles... stupid (and us too)"
In the cycling world, there are two schools of thought: those who believe that the more you push, the more you push; and those who wonder if the body isn't actually a kind of Ferrari that needs...a direction, not just one of infinite mileageSpoiler alert: the peloton has been going full throttle for decades with a surprisingly simple, and not necessarily the most intelligent, answer.
By Jeff Tatard – Photos: DR
Where it hurts (and not just the thighs)
When you observe a cyclist away from their bike, lying on a sofa, standing in front of a fridge, or simply trying to touch their toes, one observation is immediately apparent: Many are extraordinarily good at spinning their legs, but absolutely mediocre at everything else.
Why? Because, historically, cycling has been elevated to the status of a metabolic art. We measure FTP as if it were the key to mastering life, we map training zones as vectors of salvation… and The richness of the body outside the saddle is unknown..
And that's where the myth takes root: The more I do it, the stronger I become.
A slogan that sounds very much like a prayer to justify a kilowatt-kilometer… even though scientific data calls this magic equation into question. There is no guarantee that High volume alone improves Davantagperformance depends on well-structured training.
When muscle becomes… one-dimensional
Imagine a cyclist who pedals 15,000 or 20,000 km a year but never lifts anything other than their water bottle. Their body might resemble a machine...exceptional endurancebut also to a neurological system stuck in a repetitive postural routine.
This is what some ironically call a beastly muscle He knows how to film, he knows how to rehearse, but He can no longer think outside of his single task.And this "shutdown" of the muscular system comes at a price: reduced mobility, stiff joint sequences, glutes that go numb, and posterior chains working in survival mode… exactly what was described ABD in his approach in the article « recon"Develop the athlete before the cyclist", when we met him for 3bikes last November.
This is not a caricature: it is a logical, mechanical consequence of a single-task training without diversityIn nature, a body that only moves in one plane eventually loses its adaptive beauty.
Volume, overtraining, and the lair of pain
Ah, the famous "more kilometers, more earnings" equation, which is deceptively similar to a recipe for:
- Chronic fatigue
- Muscle overexertion
- Performance platform
- Accidents and mental injuries as well as physical ones
Sports science has a term for this: overtraining, literally, too much training, not enough recovery. When you exceed what the body can handle, it...teste… and eventually reacts with a drop in performance.
And let's not kid ourselves: in amateur cycling, cyclists are often educated to drive for a long time, but we forget to teach him to prepare your body to withstand it This is long. As if learning to read a GPS map without ever learning to walk still constituted wisdom.
An invitation to think differently
So, rather than turning your program into a marathon of numbers and cumulative hours, perhaps the real question becomes: Is my training making my body smarter or just more tired?
And the answer begins with reconto be born only:
- Volume is never an end in itself, but a means.
- Strength, mobility, neuromuscular variability They are not accessories, but foundations.
- A runner can be metabolically sharp but mechanically infantilized.
Conclusion: smarter than just smarter
Cycling is a magnificent sport, a subtle alchemy of technique, endurance, effort, and strategy. But when this beauty turns into A culture of volume without reflectionThen the muscle becomes dull, performance plateaus, and the mind is exhausted.
If you want to come away from this paper with a new perspective, remember that Progress is not measured in accumulated kilometers, but in diversity, intelligent movement, and thoughtful recovery..
The body is not a machine that you fill with hours.
He's a living system that adaptsIt learns and… gets bored if it is no longer given anything to think about.
=> And if you want to learn more about the school of excellence in sports coaching, go to Aurélien Broussal-Derval's website
