Cycling Strength Training: Lifting Heavy By RPE!? Interview With Matthew Bickford, Strength Coach #316

THIS WILL CHANGE MY POWER PHASE LIFTING. https://youtu.be/4FmPRQpkX2w

Check out how this all started in the Discord: https://discord.gg/ThTYry6kuE

Matt's contact info: bickfordssc@gmail.com

Yes, I don't ever call it the offseason. Fall and Winter are where I make huge aerobic and strength gains, and this year will be no different.

I have lifted heavy off basic rep schemes, and to be honest, when it got heavy, it felt like a LOT with all of the base miles.

I'm changing things up, and I highly recommend you check out this video if you are a cyclist in the gym.

Here are my questions for Matthew:

Tell the people about yourself? Who is Matt Bickford?

Strength and Conditioning coach in San Fran

What got you into lifting? And cycling?

Should we be lifting specifically for cycling, or to be a strong overall human? How specific do we need to get.

What does it take to get stronger? Is it as easy to say: damage the fibers and they will be rebuilt stronger?

Progression, what happens if you lift the same amount many times?

Sometimes I got to the gym, the weights felt heavy, but I’m thinking “i must lift more, or I’m doing it wrong”. Saying this sounds dumb, but how should an athlete approach this?

I realize that it's challenging to make recommendations for endurance athletes that are actionable because many of them don't have a good starting place. We’re not even cat 5 lifters…

Issues with GZCLP or Wendler 531 for endurance athletes. Let’s talk about this. Recommendation of 70-80% 1 Rep Max. When do we go over 80%?

Thoughts on low weight, high rep during the season?

Do we need to do plyometrics?

Stimulus to Fatigue Ratio

Unilateral vs Bilateral lifts

Lifting during the season

Lifting year round: Of course, you would taper your gym lifts about a week out from your A race, and train through everything else. What day during the week would you recommend someone lift…on endurance day (is that making that day too hard) or on an interval day (and maybe making the intervals not as hard?)

I would also suggest limiting incorporating new lifting variations in season or dramatically changing rep schemes as that would be more likely to lead to DOMs. Q: when should someone change up rep schemes? is 5x5 a bad idea?

Any changes in diet when lifting more consistently?

Supplements?

*Basics for home gym*

Big picture takeaway, so someone can leave here with more concise info: obviously the best idea is to get a strength coach, but if not, how should they approach lifting, starting in November, with racing starting in April.

LactiGo for Lifting! GAME CHANGER: www.lactigo.com/brendan

https://youtu.be/4FmPRQpkX2w