Bicycling Land is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this page we may earn an affiliate commission, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
The group rides are getting shorter and the light is going early. For a lot of us, that makes mid-October a good time to pick up a barbell.
Here are 12 lifts that match what your legs and hips do on the bike. Most are single-leg or hip-hinge moves, plus a few for your core and hip flexors. I’d skip the bench press and overhead press for cycling. They’re fine lifts, but they won’t change your pedal stroke much.
How to fit strength training into your cycling
Off-season: two or three sessions a week
In the off-season, I’d lift two or three times a week with heavy loads. On the big lifts, that means 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 6 reps, with 2 to 3 minutes of rest between sets. ACSM’s guidance for maximal strength points to the same 1 to 6 rep range with long rests.
The research backs heavy lifting. Rønnestad and colleagues had well-trained cyclists add lower-body lifting twice a week for 12 weeks, at 3 sets of 4 to 10 reps. Their mean power in a 5-minute all-out effort after 185 minutes of riding went up. Riders who only rode saw no change. In an 8-week study of competitive cyclists, heavy half squats also improved cycling economy by about 5%.
In-season: one session a week to hold your gains
Once your events start, drop to one session a week. In another Rønnestad study, elite road cyclists who kept lifting once a week through the season held on to their strength. Riders who stopped lifting lost it. Their lifts were half squats, one-leg leg presses, one-legged hip flexion and ankle plantar flexion (calf work).
I’d keep the weights heavy and cut to about 2 sets of each lift. For more calf options, see our calf exercises for cyclists.
Riding and lifting on the same day
If you have to do both in one day, ride first and lift at least six hours later. In a study of rugby players, lifting and endurance work six hours apart produced bigger squat gains than doing both in one session. An easy-spin day or a rest day is better still. And skip heavy leg work the day before a hard interval session.
New to lifting: learn the moves first
If you’ve never lifted, spend the first 4 to 6 weeks on 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps with light loads. Get the movements smooth. Then work down toward the 3 to 6 rep range. If your knees complain, start with these exercises to strengthen your knees. The top 9 exercises to avoid cycling injuries covers the wider picture.
Quads and glutes: squats, split squats and step-ups
1. Squats (including the half squat)
Muscles worked: quads, glutes, hamstrings and core.
Why it helps on the bike: The squat trains the same hip and knee extension that drives every pedal stroke. The half squat, where you stop with your knees bent about 90 degrees, lets you load more weight. It’s also the version most cycling research uses. Want more on how to build cyclist quads? That guide goes further.
How to do it: Set the bar across your upper back and stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Brace your core, sit down and back until your knees reach about 90 degrees, then drive up through your whole foot. A goblet squat with one dumbbell at your chest works if you don’t have a rack.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 with a light load. Advanced: 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 6 in the off-season, and 2 sets in-season.
Common mistakes: Knees caving in, heels lifting, a rounded lower back at the bottom, and adding weight before the form is solid.
2. Bulgarian split squats
Muscles worked: quads, glutes and adductors of the front leg, plus core for balance.
Why it helps on the bike: Pedaling is one leg pushing at a time. Split squats load one leg at a time and show you quickly which side is weaker.
How to do it: Rest the top of your back foot on a bench behind you. Step the front foot out about two feet. Lower straight down until your front thigh is near parallel, then push up through the front heel. Hold dumbbells at your sides when bodyweight gets easy.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 per leg, bodyweight or light dumbbells. Advanced: 3 sets of 5 to 6 per leg with heavy dumbbells.
Common mistakes: Standing too close to the bench, which shoves the knee forward. Also letting the torso collapse, and using a bench that’s too high.
3. Step-ups
Muscles worked: quads and glutes, with some help from the calves.
Why it helps on the bike: A step-up copies the downstroke with one working leg. It’s also easier on your lower back than a heavy barbell squat, so it’s a good pick when your back is tired.
How to do it: Use a box or bench at about knee height. Place your whole foot on top, drive through that heel, and stand tall. Lower slowly. Don’t push off the trailing foot.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 per leg, bodyweight. Advanced: 3 sets of 6 per leg with dumbbells.
Common mistakes: A box that’s too high, leaning far forward, bouncing off the back foot, and letting the knee drift inward.
4. Pistol squats (single-leg squats)
Muscles worked: quads, glutes, adductors and core, with a big demand on ankle and hip mobility.
Why it helps on the bike: Pistols work one leg at a time and expose a weak or stiff side fast. Balance and range of motion get trained along with strength.
How to do it: Start by squatting to a box or bench on one leg, with the other leg held out in front. Hold a doorframe, a pole or a TRX strap for support. Use less help over time, then lower the box height.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 5 to 8 per leg to a box, with support. Advanced: 3 sets of 5 to 6 per leg, unassisted or holding a weight at your chest.
Common mistakes: Knee caving inward, dropping fast, the heel lifting, and going deeper than your mobility allows.
Hinge lifts for hamstrings and glutes
5. Deadlifts
Muscles worked: glutes, hamstrings, lower back, grip and core.
Why it helps on the bike: The glutes and hamstrings power the downstroke, and a strong back keeps you steady in the drops or on a long climb. Our guide to deadlifts for cyclists goes deeper. If balance is an issue, try the single-leg variation.
How to do it: Stand with the bar over midfoot. Hinge at the hips, grip the bar, flatten your back, and push the floor away. Finish tall by squeezing your glutes, without leaning back.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 with a light barbell or dumbbells. Advanced: 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 5 in the off-season.
Common mistakes: A rounded back, the bar drifting away from your legs, hips shooting up before the chest, and leaning back at the top.
6. Single-leg Romanian deadlifts
Muscles worked: hamstrings, glutes, and the small hip stabilizers and core that keep you level.
Why it helps on the bike: It’s a hinge on one leg, so it builds hamstring and glute strength along with balance. It also shows any gap between your left and right sides.
How to do it: Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Stand on one leg with a soft knee. Push your hips back as your torso tips forward and the free leg extends behind you. Keep your back flat. Stop when your hamstring stretches, then stand up by squeezing your glute.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 per leg, bodyweight or light weights. Advanced: 3 sets of 6 to 8 per leg.
Common mistakes: Opening the hips to the side, rounding the spine, locking the knee, and going lower than you can control.
7. Hip thrusts and glute bridges
Muscles worked: glutes and hamstrings.
Why it helps on the bike: Hip extension is the biggest part of the downstroke. Thrusts train it with heavy loads and little stress on your back.
How to do it: Rest your upper back on a bench with a bar (or dumbbell) across your hips. Drive your hips up until your body is straight from shoulders to knees. Squeeze, then lower. No bench? Do a glute bridge from the floor.
Sets & reps: Beginner: glute bridges, 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 12. Advanced: barbell hip thrusts, 3 sets of 5 to 6.
Common mistakes: Arching the lower back at the top instead of extending the hips, placing the feet too far away, and tilting the chin up.
8. Kettlebell swings
Muscles worked: glutes, hamstrings, core and grip.
Why it helps on the bike: Swings train fast hip extension and give you some conditioning too. They’re the one lift on this list that gets your heart rate up.
How to do it: Hinge back, hike the kettlebell between your legs, then snap your hips forward to send it to chest height. Your arms just hold on. Let the bell fall back and hinge again.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 3 sets of 10 to 15 with a light bell. Advanced: 4 sets of 10 to 15 with a heavier bell.
Common mistakes: Squatting instead of hinging, lifting the bell with your arms, leaning back at the top, and rounding the lower back as the bell drops.
Core, back and hip flexors
9. Barbell rows
Muscles worked: lats, upper back, rear shoulders, biceps, grip and the muscles along your spine.
Why it helps on the bike: You pull on the bars when you stand to climb or sprint. A strong back also helps you hold your position on a long ride.
How to do it: Hinge until your torso is around 45 degrees. Keep your back flat. Row the bar toward your lower ribs, then lower it under control.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12, with a light bar or one-arm dumbbell rows. Advanced: 3 sets of 5 to 6.
Common mistakes: Jerking the weight with your hips, standing up as you pull, and rounding the lower back.
10. Planks
Muscles worked: abs, obliques, lower back and shoulders.
Why it helps on the bike: A stable trunk gives your legs something firm to push against. It also helps you hold a good riding posture on long days. For more ideas, try this 20-minute ab workout for cyclists.
How to do it: Rest on your forearms with elbows under your shoulders. Make a straight line from head to heels, squeeze your glutes, and breathe.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 3 sets of 20 to 30 seconds. Advanced: 3 sets of 45 to 60 seconds, or add a leg lift.
Common mistakes: Sagging hips, piking the hips up, holding your breath, and craning the neck.
11. Side planks
Muscles worked: obliques, glute medius and the deep muscles at the side of the spine.
Why it helps on the bike: They keep your pelvis steady on the saddle, so your hips aren’t rocking with every pedal stroke.
How to do it: Lie on your side with your elbow under your shoulder and feet stacked. Lift your hips until you’re straight from head to feet. For a harder option, try a Copenhagen plank, with your top leg resting on a bench.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 2 to 3 sets of 15 to 20 seconds per side. Advanced: 3 sets of 30 to 45 seconds per side.
Common mistakes: Letting the hips sag, rolling the chest forward or back, and shrugging into the supporting shoulder.
12. One-legged hip flexion
Muscles worked: hip flexors and core.
Why it helps on the bike: Your hip flexors help bring the leg up on the upstroke. This lift was one of four in the Rønnestad study of elite road cyclists.
How to do it: Stand tall with a loop band around your ankles or a light ankle weight on. Lift one knee toward your chest and pause. Lower slowly, then switch legs.
Sets & reps: Beginner: 3 sets of 10 to 12 per leg, bodyweight. Advanced: 3 sets of 8 to 10 per leg with a band or ankle weight.
Common mistakes: Swinging the leg with momentum, leaning back, and dropping the leg quickly.
Sample 2-day routine
Do Day A and Day B on non-consecutive days, such as Monday and Thursday. Warm up with a few easy squats and hinges first. In-season, pick one day, alternate A and B each week, and do 2 sets of each lift.
Day A
| Exercise | Off-season | Beginner |
|---|---|---|
| Squat | 3-4 x 3-6 | 2-3 x 8-12 |
| Bulgarian split squat | 3 x 5-6 per leg | 2-3 x 8-10 per leg |
| Single-leg Romanian deadlift | 3 x 6-8 per leg | 2-3 x 8-10 per leg |
| Barbell row | 3 x 5-6 | 2-3 x 8-12 |
| Plank | 3 x 45-60 sec | 3 x 20-30 sec |
| One-legged hip flexion | 3 x 8-10 per leg, band | 3 x 10-12 per leg |
Day B
| Exercise | Off-season | Beginner |
|---|---|---|
| Deadlift | 3-4 x 3-5 | 2-3 x 8-10 |
| Step-up | 3 x 6 per leg | 2-3 x 8-12 per leg |
| Hip thrust (glute bridge for beginners) | 3 x 5-6 | 2-3 x 10-12 |
| Kettlebell swing | 4 x 10-15 | 3 x 10-15 |
| Pistol squat to box | 3 x 5-6 per leg | 2-3 x 5-8 per leg, assisted |
| Side plank | 3 x 30-45 sec per side | 2-3 x 15-20 sec per side |
Home setup and no-gym version
Bicycling Land may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. A small home kit covers most of the list.
A pair of adjustable dumbbells handles split squats, step-ups, single-leg RDLs and rows. Our dumbbell exercises guide has more ways to use them.
One kettlebell covers swings, and it works for goblet squats and deadlifts too.
A loop band adds resistance to hip flexion and bridges.
A sturdy box or step platform gives you something to step up on.
No equipment at all? Swap in these:
- Squat: slow bodyweight squats (3 seconds down), or a backpack-loaded goblet squat.
- Deadlift and single-leg RDL: single-leg RDL with a loaded backpack.
- Hip thrust: single-leg glute bridge with your back on the couch.
- Kettlebell swing: band pull-throughs, with the band anchored low.
- Barbell row: band rows with the band anchored at a door.
- Step-up, Bulgarian split squat, pistol, planks, hip flexion: all work with bodyweight or a band.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is strength training good for cyclists?
Heavy lifting builds the muscles you pedal with. In studies, well-trained riders who added it improved cycling economy and held more power late in long efforts. A stronger core and hips also help you stay stable on the bike.
Do I need a gym to do strength training?
No. Planks, step-ups, split squats and single-leg moves work with bodyweight, a backpack or a band. A gym helps once you want to lift heavy for 3 to 6 reps.
How often should cyclists do strength training?
Two or three sessions a week in the off-season, with heavy sets of 3 to 6 reps. In-season, one session a week is enough to hold your strength.
What kind of exercises are best for cyclists?
Start with leg and hip lifts: squats, split squats, step-ups, deadlifts and hip thrusts. Add a row and core work such as planks and side planks. Single-leg versions suit cycling best.
Can I do strength training and ride my bike on the same day?
Yes. Ride first, then lift at least six hours later. Rest days or easy-spin days are better when you can manage it.
How do I start strength training if I’m new to it?
Spend 4 to 6 weeks on light loads, 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps, to learn the movements. Then move to heavier sets of 3 to 6 reps in the off-season.
