Our wealth management philosophy is that you cannot be an expert in every field, there is not enough time in a day to be a specialist in all areas. It’s critical to have the experience, process and resources to access wold class specialists in areas such as global investing, tax planning and estate planning to formulate the most efficient wealth plan. Getting the most out of cycling is no different, for injuries you see your physiotherapist, for expert advice on bikes and equipment you see the industry leading team at Steed Cycles and for strength and conditioning you see Olympian, Conditioning Coach and Kinesiologist, Gina Grain.

 

Gina is THE specialist in this field. She has 7 Canadian National Championship titles in road and track, Silver Medal at the 2006 Track World Championships, 2x Pan American Championship medalist on the road and track, and 2x 4th place finishes at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, 3 x winner of the Gastown Grand Prix and represented Canada at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. On top of that she has coached strength and conditioning to pro level athletes such as the Whitecaps, the Canadian Soccer Association Women’s National Team, the BC Alpine Team and elite cyclists through TaG Cycling. She has her Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Master of Exercise Science specializing in Strength and Conditioning.

Needless to say, we were all ears as Gina educated us on the benefits of adding strength training into our routine. She discussed how increasing power through strength training can improve your time trialing ability, cycling efficiency, maximal aerobic power (MAP) and functional threshold power (FTP) without an increase in body mass.

Another significant benefit is injury prevention. Strength training can increase joint mobility, core strength and bone density. Bone density is an important health factor as we age and cycling alone doesn’t help as it’s not load bearing. To increase or maintain bone density, cyclists need to consider resistance and load bearing exercises. Increasing core strength (generally lacking with cyclists) is another way to reduce injury and it’s a key focus in Gina’s program.

She also dispelled myths associated with strength training for cyclists such as reduced flexibility and increase in muscle mass. She showed us that athletes that she has worked with have increased power, while actually increasing mobility. This reduces pain while riding in the knee and lower back, both areas very common for riders.

To put this into practice, participants of this session are hitting the gym for their own Steed Cycles 6 Week Strength and Conditioning Program with Gina. It will comprise of an initial group gym session to assess current strength and mobility levels and review the exercises.  We had a blast learning the new movements and cheering each other on during the assessments.

Participants then have 6 weeks to follow the 2 workouts per week program. The program will focus on 6-10 exercises with low rep and high intensity. At the end of 6 weeks, the group will gather for the final group gym session to re-assess and analyze the results.

This is the last of The Steed Cycles Expert Cycling Info Session series for 2018 but we look forward to enhancing the knowledge of Vancouver’s cycling community and experience again next year. We believe you should enjoy your money, to do so, we feel you must be healthy and have a sense of community. Cycling is a great way to accomplish both!

Stay tuned for when we announce our team of specialists for 2019's Steed Cycles Expert Cycling Info Sessions!

UPDATE:  Results of the Fall 2018 6 Week Strength Training Program

The reassessment session is complete and the results are in!  In just six weeks, we saw some amazing improvements in strength, endurance, stability and mobility.  See the chart below that summarizes these significant gains and this highly effective program.  Thank you Gina for such a impactful session!