Increase Your Strength & Power on the Bike (with Hill Repeats)
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- čas přidán 29. 06. 2024
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Whether you’re looking to improve your cycling speed, power, or strength on the bike, incorporating a high-intensity interval training session, such as hill repeats, should go a long way in taking your road cycling to another level. It's been one of the great cycling tips that took my performance to another level.
In this video today, I will explain what and how a hill repeats session should look like, all the way from a beginner to an advanced road cyclist. I will then explain the benefits of this training session and why you should make it King in your weekly training plan.
While I discuss power training here, if you don’t have a power meter, you could do this on perceived efforts, starting at a moderate effort and working towards hard repeated effort.
Previous video on this topic: • A Simple Way to Strong...
#cycling #training #tips - Sport
Just for those without a power meter, by just riding a hill in a lower gear, you will be reaching these upper-end zones. So don't stress if you don't have power. Just ride the hill and work from a 'moderate' repeated effort towards a 'hard' repeated effort. Good luck and be safe! Cam
Awesome video... Perhaps too much detail (for me anyways)
As I don't have a power meter so how would measure progress if HR isn't essential!!
Is the goal doing a number of climbs say 5 times for example with a consistent cadence in a low gear? Or do we need to increase the cadence and/or speed on each climb?
Apologies if this is a stupid question relatively new to cycling and really struggling on the climbs
@@Ashiquei the goal is to progress to around 15 hill repeats.
Ashiquei if you’re new to cycling then you are really best just getting out there and cycling. Hill repeats are a bit more advanced and would be used after building a base level of fitness.
@@louisgreenleaf235 I am just over into a year in cycling, have done 4k km this year, ave around 150km per week (3-4 short rides). Trying to get fit for 100km with 1k elevation.in flat, I am ok like most people but hills is where I am struggling.. So trying to work out how to get better on climbing so I not out of breath or out of gas..
Ashiquei like I said forget about hills for the time being. You need to build a base where you can cycling for 3-6 hours at zone 2. Your problem is you are doing short rides and not any long rides. 100k in all honesty isn’t very long so it’s an easily achievable goal. By building a base level of fitness this will build your endurance and raise your threshold once you can do this then start worrying about going faster up hills.
I'm 51 and this is my favorite training. I was able to get a podium by using this technique from you Cam
Awesome mate, thanks for sharing
Thanks - this is very well explained and quite timely for me. I fell of my bike a few weeks ago and bashed up my elbow. Couldn't ride for a bit, then could only piddle around the neighbourhood a bit. I still can't do my monster rides, but I can do shorter, more intense sessions. So, I've found a neat 3km loop that starts at my front door, climbs for 1 km, then has a nice 2 km easy descent back around to the beginning. It's a great workout, and I think I'll keep it in my toolkit even after I get back into doing my longer rides.
Good video. I’ve been doing hill repeats again and raised my vo2 max another point. Definitely useful training and its good to have some variation instead of the same old flat routes. I have also been doing a lot of weight training since COVID-19, and replaced some fat with muscle which also helps to improve my performance. Now I’m 49 years old and vo2 max is only 56 but I’m pleased with this improvement. I don’t race but just have personal goals and don’t really want to think about what my max would be. Just keep improving!
It’s 53 degrees here today with a heat index of 65; also, there are no hills in our corner of the Middle East. Very glad we’ve got indoor riding as an option
I have the perfect quiet hill to do this near me and I will give it a try for a few months. Nice explanation.
Excellent video and well explained.
Thank you so much Cam for sharing your knowledge!
Thanks for this man! I completely suck at hill climbing haha well I wouldn’t say it’s too bad but there’s always a nice gap between me and my friends when we climb. I will definitely try this!! 🙏🏽
I’ve been thinking about repeating a couple of nice hills near me. This video was great! Thanks.
Great advice mate, I’m onto this!
Hi Cam, really great piece off advice.... Thank you Andy UK.
A bloody excellent video Cam. Worth watching more than once.
Cheers mate
I do Hill Reps usually on a Monday/Wednesday and Friday. It's a 1km hill and has an average gradient of 5.3% with a max of around 9%. I normally do a 1 hour session which includes the uphill part, which used to take me 3mins + but am now down to 2:14-2:20 ish (KOM is 2:13) and a 3 minute section going around the block to start it all again. I normally manage 7 reps in an hour. And I normally riding in my anaerobic zones (180+BPM).
Thanks for sharing the knowledge and video.
what a great video!!
great tips cam, i hope i can ride hills when this quarantine ends
Im a begginer, cycling only since Oct 2019. Thank you, this was very helpful!
Nice I started a few months ago. Good luck bro
🗣i didn’t know this was a thing, i have been doing 6 miles of steep hills 5 days out the week. Rotating off the saddle to get winded when i near the top. I thought of hill sprints when i decided to do this at the beginning of the summer. weekly my climbs get easier and i add a hill to the route. great video now i can put some thought and pay attention to my form now.🏆✅
Thank you for the valuable information master.
Great resource thanks for sharing
Hi Cam, love the hill repeats, i'm 50 and just returning to cycling, thanks to covid! Been doing these for last 2-3 months. My FTP at the moment is making huge gains thanks to this technique. In the past id of just gone balls out at the bottom and maybe done 2-3 half decent reps before giving up. Being able to quantify and measure the effort out makes it psychologically so much easier to tackle.
Thanks again Cam, keep up the good work. 👍
Awesome Steve, thanks for sharing 👍
Good stuff as always Cam. 👍
Being locked down in bayside Melbourne means it’s harder to find good repeatable hills, of those durations, without venturing out of our “zone” so RE: the indoor trainer option, have you/would you consider uploading your videos of the two different hills to FulGaz? Then we could also pretend we’re enjoying QLD’s nice warm weather without upsetting Annastacia!😜
Can’t beat suffering through a hill reps session 💪
Hi Cam, what software that you use to get those analytic (heart rate, speed etc) tks
Great video!
Cam you're the man!
Thanks Cam, very helpful video, I'll follow this to make me use 80 gear inches at 90 rpm consistently, thats a good 35 kph. Happy if i can do that normally
Cam, excellent information. I've never really thought about hill repeats as something that I wanted to do (actually bad enough going up any hill, right! 😂). But now I see things a little bit more differently. Thanks, once again, for the wake up call.
Thanks mate, good luck with the training
English Translation: Go to a Hill and ride it up and down till you drop.
Not till you drop. Not effective
...wasn't this in english?
8:44 - fantastic chart, thank you for this!
Thank you very much 👍👍
It is just my opinion though, I have come across many coaching videos over the CZcams...I've been into road cycling for around 8 years, sort of weekend worriors.
The clarity of information, delivery of content, use of slides, live video footage, use of Overlays...has been the best I've come across.
Tempted to be coached by the creator of this video content😁😁😁😁😁😁
Which I will enroll down the line.
Thank you for sharing such a valuable content.
Thank you mate, really appreciate the kind words. Cam
Thank you!
Or an extra 2 gears with time, would never thought it was possible but after loads of climbing away, I returned home and was shocked at the improvement 🥳
I have a looonnng hill right near my house. More like 2 hills steep rise, mild and then another steep section. 6 months ago 1 time up was brutal. Yesterday I did 4 cycles and then went for a pleasure ride. Next goal is 6 cycles 2 months from now.
Have definitely noticed how well hill repeats help just from moving from a flat area to a hilly area
Nice one Abigail, thanks for sharing. Cam
Thanks Cam great video. Funny watching the video as you ride past my parents house then at the top of Lowry st my mum walks round the corner with my niece. 2nd hill Paldao rise is where my brother lives - small world. Hopefully I get a chance to practice on these hills when I get up there at Christmas. Fingers crossed the borders are still open.
Cheers 👍🙏
Classic stuff mate, what a small world. Hope you can get up here for Christmas!
Thank you for sharing this knowledge with the public, Cam! I’ll be implementing this on both ends of my work week and see how I improve over the next couple months.
Joined and looking forward to the training programme
Nice one Nigel, just typing you an email now. Stay tuned. Cam
Cam Nicholls I’m sweating just thinking about it. Haha
For some strange reason, I am actually better at climbing hills than anything else, maybe this workout will help me to improve in the other areas.
this helped me place 8th in an event I had 2 weeks to train for. so to anyone out there wondering how helpful this is here's the proof! Great vid Cam! although I have a question, my only training metric is heart rate, and I do most of my intervals on a 4% gradient hill, give or take, would that count as hill repeats or do I need to find another specific hill?
I love the video footage along with the training recommendations. What camera and software do you use to get such clear footage along with the ride info overlaid? Thanks!
Go pro 7 and Garmin Virb software
Good stuff! Where I live, I need to ride about 30 minutes to get to a hill, and then it's an avg 10% climb that takes me about 6 minutes... haven't done repeats on it yet as I dread the exhaustion on the ride back home
think of a nice Hill as having an affair (hahaaha)
good for all
Nice video 💪⚡
Cheers Edward. Cam
Nice vid Cam, I love in Yorkshire so every day is an hill repeat 😂
Haha
Im your big fan sir🙂
There been some recent studies that show lactate acid is not why our muscles are sore when we work out; however, many folks believe this to be a solid truth.
I find this interesting, but want to throw an individual circumstance to consider (Personal background: I am about to turn 52, and have been getting back into cycling over the past 3 years. This season was a significant jump in effort and mileage):
I do not own a power meter (though I would not mind one when I have the money), but I don’t really need one. For the most part you are correct about the HR being too slow to respond. But in my circumstance, I have what is called sinus arrhythmia/dysrhythmia. It is a normal heart rate variation, typically seen only in kids and young adults where the heart rate increases and decreases very quickly based upon requirements. Most adults (4/5 or more) grow out of it, but I didn’t. That means that my heart rate jumps fast, and typically runs high when I am working on the bike. So I personally work off of that HR data, because it is available, and this season has given me a lot of data to go off of.
Something to consider!
New saddle cam? SMP very comfortable had one for a long time but switch to power several years ago
Hi Cam, just discovered your channel and find it v informative. Having watched bike fitting video I have now no doubt I need to do it. Now researching that in London, UK where I am based. Could you say what computer r I using? Info displayed at the bottom of the screen is super clear.
Thanks for the support mate. I use a Wahoo Roam. A Bolt is also a good option.
I look forward to your weekly videos. Gonna be a long few weeks. Thanks for another great topic. One of the hill repeats I was taught was you start in your hardest gear going up. Turn around to recover down then go to the next easiest repeat this until you have gone through all of your gears until you are at the easiest. Then if you feel strong repeat except start in the easiest to finish in the hardest gear. My question is do you see any plus to this type of hill repeat. I really like your style so got me questioning the one I just explained.
Thanks mate, that sounds like an interesting strategy, and creates variation in the workout so sounds reasonable
Cam Nicholls if you ever decide to give it a try let me know what you think.
Great video, sorry for this question as it's probably obvious and already been mentioned 😂 so, when I do hill repeats, (found a nice hill near me that's around two mins long and of steady gradient) do I use a harder gear then I would normal to go up it, or an easier? And like every attempt around rpe 8-9?
F Im no where near that yet. thank for the video.
I used to do laps around a climb descent circuit back when I was living in the west coast, I've never been fitter than that 😭
Great training guidance. Thank you! I know the exact hill I'll try this on. My worry is the hill I'm thinking of is about 14 miles from my house. I ride this hill in the middle of a 33 miler I do twice a week. I suppose if I take it easy on the ride there I won't be overly spent to start the hill repeats?
Correct. You should be spent after a sessions after doing this for 6-8 weeks. Slowly build into it
Hey! Great video! What gps computer are you using to get your gradient/HR/ cadence etc etc...?
Thanks Chris. That’s a GoPro 7 using Garmin Virb for overlays
What app is this? I need this. Thanks in advance for answering.
I’ve noticed when I climbed this hill last summer-early winter of this year I’m a lot faster on flats but it’s been 90+ degrees the last week or so, haven’t been doing it
Thanks for sharing mate, Hill Repeats will certainly make you stronger on the flats! Hope you can keep it going. Cam
Cam Nicholls thanks!
Cam, I see in hills you say to ramp up slowly on the reps, but what percentage of FTP are you going up with 120 or 130% and are you standing or doing them seated?
Hi Cam love your videos, learning so much from them. I live in Melbourne the lock down capital of Australia, can I do these hill repeat exercise on Zwift.
Cheers mate, thanks for sharing. Yes although its hard to take the cadence lower than 70 on many trainers. See how you go.
@@CamNicholls thanks I will give them a go, it's been years since I have done hill repeats, if ok I'll can I let you how I go
Basic question for someone that has been riding for some time now but doesn't know the basics (silly me). What's more important? Controlling your weight or doing repeats to compensate for a slightly heavier rider (1,77M - 83kg)
Hey..im just curious about the power meter you are using. Did u use 3 second power or 10 second power?
You mentioned using an indoor trainer for the hill repeats...I have a roller trainer for my trike....I’ve always wondered how to simulate going up hills on that trainer...don’t have the money for the expensive smart trainer.
I do not know how to do it on a roller, but the wheel on helped me a lot in working myself in higher zones.
for hill repeats, are we trying to focus on a particular zone or just anything in zone 4 and above
Are you using a Selle SMP? I'm using a Dynamic and it's an awesome saddle. Sure it took a while to fiddle around with it but soon after, it's very comfortable.
Hey Stefan, yes I am! Just settling into it, and I am really liking it. Although it does look a little funny
Which one are you using?
My sqlab 612 should arrive tomorrow🤞
How do you feel about training indoors on a trainer vs outdoors on the road? I definitely prefer riding outdoors on the road, however I feel like many coaches prescribe mostly indoor sessions on a trainer because of the level of control. In your opinion is it possible to train as effectively outdoors as in?
Both is the perfect combination. For short stuff you can’t beat indoors. For long stuff you can’t beat outdoors!
I live in West Virginia.... what I'm looking for is how to NOT have to hill repeat =]
Can i do endurance training first then squeeze hill repeats in one day or once a week
Pity that the nearest hilly area is a 2 hour drive away from me and that my indoor trainer always attempts to make deaf.
How can I get better at going up gradients 20 plus longer than 10k with no rest?
Hey Cam, I noticed you talked about 1-2 minute efforts, I've heard of a similar session but with 4 minute efforts instead (but with only 3, building to 5 repeats). Would you expect a similar training benefit (but perhaps geared more towards aerobic systems) from this variation?
Thanks!
Hey mate, a four minute sessions you would be more so upper end threshold and V02 max, but a great effort length to work. Variability is key, so incorporating different lengths is a great thing. For general speed and strength! Good luck with the training, Cam
Hey Cam! I have a coach, but I listen to you as well. Your information is great! Almost get more from you in terms of one on one. I don't get much one on one from my current coach, but he is a well decorated cyclist. Curtis Tolson is his name. I would like at least 2 sessions of one one one a month, but I haven't gotten that yet. I've been with him for two months now. What would say if this continues. I basically feel like I'm just paying for the programs, but I'm basically the coach. I don't feel like this is proper.
Hi Cam - there's an 8% average gradient hill right outside my house that is 400m long - is that roughly the sort of distance and gradient that would work for these types of repeats or is it slightly too short?
It depends on the time you need. It should be around 1-2 minutes uphill riding
I have an 8 mile climb avg'ing 5.5% that is pretty steady. You feature a 1 min climb for repeats. With what I have available, do you still recommend 1 minute repeats in my case?
Depends on what you’re trying to work. 8 mile climb would be threshold or sweet spot work. Not Anaerobic. Too long
@@CamNicholls True however what length of time/distance do you recommend for the low cadence strength intervals you featured in your video with my having up to 1 hour & 8 miles of consistent climbing available?
how hard a gear are we talking? I did the big ring and halfway down the rear cassette, was hard for me, but still around 320 watts only at around 55 cadence...just keep going harder?
Cam, I live in an coastal Florida area with no hills. Best option is a bridge that is .4 in distance from bottom to peak with 70ft of climb and max grade of 5%. Can I get any gains from doing repeats on the bridge? Or should I rely on Zwift and smart trainer for this training. Goal ride is a 104 miler across 6 gaps with 11k ft of elevation gain.
Does it give you a 1min climb? If so go for it
@@CamNicholls thanks for the reply. I give it a go this weekend.
Just ride against the wind. The dutch riders are very strong hill climbers they win every race here in germany but they don't have a single hill in the netherlands so ask them what to do :D ;)
Can you talk a little more about doing hill repeats in regular/high cadence vs low cadence? How important is the low cadence aspect to what you are saying? I do lots of hill repeats and have gotten much stronger, but haven't incorporated low cadence. Really enjoyed your video. Thanks for your guidance and help!
Low cadence will build more cycling muscular strength. Higher cadence works more of the cardio system
This bike was really easy to assemble czcams.com/users/postUgkxMesz3KOGEmwmvyKQfLfrRSUXLFzfVHZA and required very few adjustments out of the box. The wheels did not require any truing/adjustments. The frame had some small scratches, but nothing major.I did replace the seat though - the seat it came with was very uncomfortable. The tires need to be re-inflated every 4-5 days, but this appears to be quite common for the narrow 700x25 tires.Overall, in my opinion, this bike looks and rides like a much more expensive bike.
For sure a session like this has its place in training, I would be afraid that if this is your go-to session and you're choosing to work multiple physiological systems in one training session, you're not going to be working any one system as well as you could if you were to focus on working just one system per session.
Wat are u using to show that digital screen in bottom of screen in the video
GARMIN VIRB editing software
Me: After listening for 12 minutes I thought ... you’ve got to be kidding me, that’s a lot of information!
Cam: I just dumped a lot of information on you. Go back and listen a few more times.
Good timing! Thanks for the tips, got the perfect hill picked out. Also glad you excused a lack of power meter at the end, still working on that. 😂
Nice one Larison, keep me posted on how you go! Cam
I wish i had a bike road bike
When I am sitting on the saddle in a low gear up a hill I am doing all my work through pushing the pedals and none through pulling up on the cleats. Is that normal? I only seem to engage the cleats when standing...
Hard to say without seeing. Watch the clear position in the channel with Neill, cleats may be too far forward,
Cam Nicholls cheers 👍🏻
What do you think about zwift racing to help with building fitness?
Hey Brian, Zwift racing is predominately working your threshold with a few random efforts in there, so assuming you're being smart about how you space out the sessions, they're good for building threshold fitness. But not great for aerobic fitness, and anaerobic fitness. Cam
Do you find low cadence work makes your knees sore? Is this normal?
If you’re fitted probably and you’ve slowly conditioned yourself into slow Candice this should not happen
7:52 parking on the cycling lines are illegal here in Germany, I think 🤔
I wish they were here Sonny.
i get that you do it for 2mins, but at what intensity?
Seems there are varying opinions on this.
Depends on your goal. I would be working V02 max and anaerobic. A bit of all out too.
Good timing, as I've been doing regular hill repeats sessions over the past month; however using longer hills which effectively replicate a 5 x 5 minute interval session (at lower cadence than a usual interval session). From what you've said, these longer hill repeats will be taxing different energy systems. Do you think it is worth mixing in some 1-2 min hill repeats into that session?
It can depend on what you've got available in your area. But if you've got different lengths and types of hills mix it up! You should also keep in mind your target event as to which type of hill you might prioritise, but for general speed and strength you want a bit of everything! Keep up the good work. Cam
Actually starts after 1:50.
How many times a week is optimal?
I’d do this once per week
Cam Nicholls Oh, thank god for that!!
Starts at 1:51
🚴🏽♂️👍🏾👍🏾
at 400 watts my HR is about 170 xD
Where is this circuit?
Coolum and Peregian Beach in Sunshine Coast Australia
@@CamNicholls thanks. Thought it was somewhere in Melbourne lol
Can I get a road bike？Please。
6.50 minutes-- "you'll see here I have no heart rate but that's not important" is it just me who thinks a heart rate is fairly important on account that you need one not to be dead
Physiologic explanation: Hill repeats trigger mitochondrial biogenesis. See Greg LeMond's "The Science of Fitness".
But I do wish I have power meter they’re so damn expensive
Maybe second hand! Plenty of people don't know how to use them so they sell them off! Cam
Cam Nicholls what u recommend? I’m running 9 speed sora groupset for my gravel bike, that’s the bike I ride most since I’ve invested the most money into it
@@GrayFox-xd9ww The iq square power (pedals) meter is new but cheaper option. I use favero assioma but they are more expensive. The odd time I see crank base power meters on sale fairly cheap also.
Matthew K thanks. Just looked up power iq pedals almost $400 for pair. 🥵 If I were to purchase it I can ditch trek duo trap speed and cadence meters??? Would they be good to use in wet and nasty weather or not really ideal? The thing is I feel like I should get power meters for a nice road or gravel bike. The bike I’m upgrading now it’s to prepare for my new future bike 😂🙂
But..I live in the netherlands:(
The dutch riders are very strong. They win every race in the spring here in germany even races with hills. Go to a club and ask the riders there what kind of training they do.
Ah and don't forget to tell me the result I want to know how they can be so strong on the hills without training on hills ;)
Someone mail me a road bike. Thx:)
Hey Cam, could you send me your email address in regards to the new training course. Regards Tom
Hey Thomas. Cam@camnicholls.com