Coach Tim Brazier

I had this exact conversation with an athlete last week.

“Tim, do I really need to lift? I’d rather just ride more.”

I get it. When you’ve only got so many hours, swapping a gym session for another bike ride feels like the obvious move. More bike, better cyclist. Right?

Not quite.

This is one of my favourite studies to point athletes at.

Rønnestad took 23 well-trained cyclists and split them in two for 12 weeks. Both groups rode the same. One group also lifted twice a week. Heavy. Half squat, single-leg press, hip flexion, toe raise. 3x4–10RM. The other group skipped the gym and added 1.5 hours of riding instead.

After 3 hours in Zone 2, here’s what happened to the lifters:

→ 7% more power in a 5-min TT (the endurance-only group? 0%)
→ Heart rate 7% lower at the same effort
→ 14% less blood lactate
→ Lower oxygen cost

Translation. At hour 3 of your race, when everyone else is unravelling, you’re still riding strong. That’s durability. And durability is what wins long-course racing.

This is why every athlete I coach lifts in the prep phase. Not to get bigger. Not to look a certain way. To stay strong when it matters. Hour 3, 4, 5 of your race when the wheels usually fall off.

Two sessions a week. That’s the whole ask.

The athletes who do it race like a different person in the back half. Every time.

📚 Rønnestad et al. 2011