# core exercises on rest days?



## orblivious (Sep 19, 2008)

what are your thoughts on doing the core exercises on rest days? i read somewhere recently that rest days should be just that, and not have any type of strength training or core work done. 

i'm getting back into cycling after a 10 year break, and working on building my aerobic base. currently i have monday and friday as "off" days. i use the indoor trainer on tuesday thru thursday, and do fast group rides on the weekend. with my schedule it would be easiest for me to do my core workouts on mon/wed/fri. 

just wondering what everyone thought. thanks for any input.:thumbsup:


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## rellimreeb (Jul 29, 2007)

orblivious said:


> what are your thoughts on doing the core exercises on rest days? i read somewhere recently that rest days should be just that, and not have any type of strength training or core work done.
> 
> i'm getting back into cycling after a 10 year break, and working on building my aerobic base. currently i have monday and friday as "off" days. i use the indoor trainer on tuesday thru thursday, and do fast group rides on the weekend. with my schedule it would be easiest for me to do my core workouts on mon/wed/fri.
> 
> just wondering what everyone thought. thanks for any input.:thumbsup:


I have enough trouble scheduling riding/running. I try to get three core workouts in a week, rest day or not. 

I would not strength train my legs on rest days, but I don't have any issue training core/upper body.


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

Your day off should be an entire day off- no exercise. 
However, during the off season, spend a couple of days in the weight room doing some leg strengthening exercises (squats, deadlifts, lunges, leg press, etc) as well as some abdominal & low back exercises like good mornings, weighted situps & rotations/ab machines. 
Don't think of your "core" muscles as being any different than the other muscles in your body- there is no need of excessive repetitions (keep it in the range 4-5 sets of 6-12 reps each, using enough weight that the last couple of reps are very hard). Train them like you would any other muscle group. 

As for upper body- throw in a 4-5 supersets that combine pushing/pulling exercise like bench press and machine row. They aren't quite as important as the leg exercise.

Since it's the off-season, you should not worry too much about how your strength training affects your riding.


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## BetterThanAliens (Nov 4, 2007)

Andrea138 said:


> Don't think of your "core" muscles as being any different than the other muscles in your body- there is no need of excessive repetitions (keep it in the range 4-5 sets of 6-12 reps each, using enough weight that the last couple of reps are very hard). Train them like you would any other muscle group.


What are you basing this on? For the most part, most data one would find talks the opposite. I can attest that high repetition for core work builds strength and visually looks fine, too. Check out this UNC basketball routine to build one's core.


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## CurbDestroyer (Mar 6, 2008)

What's a rest day without exercise? . . . What are you resting on your rest day if you exercise?


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

BetterThanAliens said:


> What are you basing this on? For the most part, most data one would find talks the opposite. I can attest that high repetition for core work builds strength and visually looks fine, too. Check out this UNC basketball routine to build one's core.


I'm basing this on peer- reviewed exercise physiology literature. There is no physiological difference between the muscle that is in your "core" and the rest of your skeletal muscle. Thus, if you are trying to make the "core" muscle stronger, you should train it like any other muscle. 
Doing insane amounts of repetitions could result in slight strength improvements, but will mainly result in muscular endurance... which is not the same thing. It's like saying, "hey, I'd like to make my legs stronger" then trying to do it by running 400m repeats. It just doesn't work that way.


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## phoehn9111 (May 11, 2005)

I come from a bodybuilding background and am now a developing cyclist.
The notion of doing squats during off days just amazes me, if I tried to do
that I would be too sore for the trainer sessions. I guess what is being referred
to is a lower intensity leg weight workout, and I just don't see the point of
even going through the motions.


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## function (Jun 20, 2008)

I do core exercises on rest days and it doesn't affect my riding the next day, i also do leg extensions on that same day which i have to maintain to avoid an old knee injury. Everyone is different.


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