# Ideal "biker body" - genetically speaking??



## rsosborn (May 19, 2008)

I was just watching Phelps win (again). They documented his genetic advantages:
huge feet, huge torso, huge hands, short legs.

It seems a think guy is desirable for road racing. What else puts people over 
the edge? 

I heard Greg LeMond holds a liter more air than the average man in 
his lungs, and Lance's lactic acid threshold is enormous.


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## Jdkane527 (May 14, 2008)

Lance's heart is also bigger than the majority and he has more oxygen in his blood than most trained professional athletes.


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## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

Genetics will always play a role in any sport when you get to the elite levels...though you will see some variation in body types when looking at the pro petoton, though not as much as you would see in a typical group ride.

Pro cyclists tend to have long legs, long arms and a short torso. There also seems to be some correlation between femur length and lower leg length...which also helps play a role in separating climbers and sprinters.

Then factor in things like muscle fiber type, ability to transport oxygen through the system, heart size and other intangibles like work ethic, "Heart", desire, etc.

Being thin is part of it, but the amount they are riding that for the most part comes with the territory. If anybody rode their bike like they don 15-30 hours a week, they would be thin....but the ability to be small and light, but put out a lot of power is something we don't all have.


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## MR_GRUMPY (Aug 21, 2002)

It depends....Are you talking about a Pro GC guy, a Pro Sprinter, a track guy, or a typical Crit rider??????


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## Damitletsride! (Oct 19, 2007)

I think work ethics plays a big part. I don't like using the word talent, that seems to get thrown around a lot.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

not mine.


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

MR_GRUMPY said:


> It depends....Are you talking about a Pro GC guy, a Pro Sprinter, a track guy, or a typical Crit rider??????


Exactly, there isn't an ideal cycling body type because there are several niches a rider can fit into and still have success at an elite level.

It would be like asking what is the ideal body type for running? Clearly this differs greatly between a sprinter and endurance runner.

Same in cycling, in addition the nature of cycling removes a good bit of the negative impact of body mass so that even "big" riders can make it to the elite level.


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## Cervelo-er (Apr 10, 2004)

Ability to maintain a medical "program".


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## DM_ARCH (Feb 23, 2007)

Well, I'm gonna go with 'genetics' plays a huge part in it.

For example, I have been told I have the perfect cycling body. But I struggle to keep up with my training buddy who is a lot larger than me.

I'm 5'-6" 122lb give or take a few. I'm a fairly strong rider, but don't train nearly as much as I should. He is 6'-0" 185lb. We train a similar amount but he is so strong. Of course, when the roads turn steep I have the advantage, but not by as much as you might think.

Another buddy of mine is 6'-4" 198lb and destroys both of us. Except uphill. He can't climb for nothing, but he's an incredible sprinter.


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## rogger (Aug 19, 2005)

Damitletsride! said:


> I think work ethics plays a big part. I don't like using the word talent, that seems to get thrown around a lot.


Talent is what people called genetics before genetics were invented and yes, you need to have the right genetics to make a great athlete. You'd need work ethic as well, but even that may wel be down to genetics as well.


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## david462 (Jan 3, 2008)

Hate to say it, but whoever told you that you have the perfect frame for cycling is a bit off. 122 lbs is way to small.


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## DM_ARCH (Feb 23, 2007)

Well, I when I started riding iI was more like 132lb and have since lost weight. I am about as light as I could be. 

I hope to work on some strength buildin gover this winter.

When I was in High school I was in power lifting and at my peak I was weighing 135lb and bench pressing 225 and squating 315 and deadlifiting around 365. ISince, I 've lost a lot of strength, and even then I yhave to consider that's completely different than cycyling 

I think I'm somewhat naturally strong, and if I could only develop that for cycling I'd have a great power to weight ratio. Of course that wouldn't help me going downhill...

I don't know...who cares, I just ride bikes cause I like it. But getting stronger is fun too.

Maybe someone can offer me tips.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

*Long thighs.*

In his 1980s training book, Hinault writes about femur-to-tibia ratio, with the norm being 1.11 in European men. Hinault claims that almost all champions had longer-than-normal femurs and thus rode with a genetic advantage. He lists Coppi (1.18), Merckx (1.16) and himself (1.20) as examples. I have no idea if this theory holds water or not.


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

wim said:


> In his 1980s training book, Hinault writes about femur-to-tibia ratio, with the norm being 1.11 in European men. Hinault claims that almost all champions had longer-than-normal femurs and thus rode with a genetic advantage. He lists Coppi (1.18), Merckx (1.16) and himself (1.20) as examples. I have no idea if this theory holds water or not.


I seem to recall reading that it doesn't. I didn't (and probably still don't) have a good enough understanding of biomechanics to understand the reason why though.


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## phoehn9111 (May 11, 2005)

In my case, the ideal body would have involved being born with no mouth
such that I would not be able to open it.
There are individuals who have a greater concentration of muscle mass in the lower body, and individuals who are much less susceptible to high altitude sickness. I would think they would be genetically predisposed to excelling as cyclists.


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## rsosborn (May 19, 2008)

phoehn9111 said:


> In my case, the ideal body would have involved being born with no mouth
> such that I would not be able to open it.
> There are individuals who have a greater concentration of muscle mass in the lower body, and individuals who are much less susceptible to high altitude sickness. I would think they would be genetically predisposed to excelling as cyclists.



is there any advantage to being taller? (like swimmers, with their armspan) or shorter? (like lightweight horse jockeys) or stocky? (like powerful weight lifters) or thinner, with less weight to pull?


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## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

rsosborn said:


> is there any advantage to being taller? (like swimmers, with their armspan) or shorter? (like lightweight horse jockeys) or stocky? (like powerful weight lifters) or thinner, with less weight to pull?



Short and thin with the power of the big stocky guys


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## btinder (Aug 25, 2007)

As everyone else has said, it varies based on the type of riding. An ideal climber is going to look much different than the ideal time trialist. I'm lucky to have long legs, long arms, and a short torso, but I don't have the best genetics in the world. At the end of the day, training hard is all you need to worry about.


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