Home Trainer Program - week 3 - Anaerobic Exercises
Confinement keeps going and we have reached week 3 of our home trainer workouts.
We did Endurance in week 1, Strenght & Core with efforts out of the saddle in week 2 and shall do Anaerobic Exercises this week.
Definition of Anaerobic exercise
Anaerobic exercise is any activity that breaks down glucose for energy without using oxygen. Generally, these activities are of short length with high intensity. The idea is that a lot of energy is released within a small period of time, and your oxygen demand surpasses the oxygen supply.
(source: https://www.healthline.com/)
The difference between aerobic and anaerobic exercise
Aerobic exercise produces energy using a continuous supply of oxygen to sustain the current level of activity without needing additional energy from another source. But anaerobic exercise prompts your body to demand more energy than your aerobic system can produce.
To produce more energy, your body uses its anaerobic system, which relies on energy sources stored in your muscles.
Slower-paced exercises like jogging or endurance cycling are examples of aerobic exercise. Fast-paced workouts like sprinting, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), jumping rope, and interval training take the more intense approach of anaerobic exercise.
One easy way to remember the difference between the two is the term "aerobic" means "with oxygen," while "anaerobic" means "without oxygen."
Anaerobic exercises work your heart at a high level and it is important that you are medically fit for it. Adapt the intensity of the exercises to your own level of fitness!!
As a reminder, the training sessions of this page are based on cadence and feeling of the gears; whilst Martin's training plans are based on Power, FTP, VO2 Max. We give you the links to Martin's workouts at the end fo this page.
Remember, before starting the training, get everything ready: the home trainer, the bike on it; have a bottle of water, wear your cycling gloves for comfort, have a towel as you may sweat, have a watch or your garmin or any other bike computer.
Week 3: Anaerobic Exercises
Anaerobic exercises: approx. 40 minutes
- 15 min. warm up. Take an easy gear and turn the legs at a cadence of approx. 80 rpm. Not too easy, you need to feel some pressure under the pedals.
- 3 small efforts to open your muscles: 3 gears heavier
3x10 sec @115-120 rpm
Recovery between efforts 1 min @85 rpm, 3 gears lighter - Recovery 5 min easy pedalling @80-85 rpm
- Efforts
5x30 sec 115-120 rpm
Recovery between efforts 1 min @85 rpm, 3 gears lighter - 15 min cool down; same cadence and rpm as for the warm up.
It is important to do the cool down at low rpm and low effort to finish the workout. Do not get carried away with high cadence.
Total time: approx. 40 min
If you find it hard (or too easy) don't hesitate to choose your number of efforts. Up to 7 max.
Also, adapt the intensity of the workout to your own fitness level. There is no point overdoing it as it will not be beneficial, actually it could even be contra productive. If you go too hard the first and second days, you may not do the third one as you may end up discouraged which is not the purpose of these training plans.
Recovery days: 20 minutes
Take an easy gear and turn the legs at a cadence of approx. 80-85 rpm. Not too easy, you need to feel some pressure under the pedals.
Perform anaerobic exercise workouts no more than two or three days per week, always allowing for at least one full day of recovery in-between
Take care or yourself and keep cycling..., should it be on the balcony...
I am looking forward to seeing you again next week.
Remember: Make the decision not to get infected by the virus and act accordingly.
Want to see/use Flora's five weeks home trainer programs? Here are the links:
- week 1-Endurance
- week 2-Strength & Core
- week 3-Anaerobic exercises
- week 4-Endurance
- week 5-Strength & Core
Want to see/use Martin's home trainer programs based on power? Below are the links:
- week 1-Endurance Training
- week 2-Threshold Training
- week 3-Anaerobic VO2 Max
- week 4-Endurance Training
- week 5-High Intensity Intervals
Submitted: 18/4/2020