different question

[fastman]

I have been reading this board for a couple of weeks now and the main thing I have learned is how little I know.

Unlike most people here I am not a body builder instead an endurance athlete (in my 30’s). I only am in the weight room from September through April to work on off-season conditioning. Outside of legs I do pretty light weights. I am looking at what I can do to increase strength without adding bulk. In fact I am trying to get my weight down from the mid 160s to the mid 150s. I have plenty of fat to loose

So does anyone have any experience of increasing strength while limiting increase in mass?

[primodonna]

fastman- first tell me if by endurance you mean running, biking, triathlons etc...

I have run a marathon and done a few sprint-tri's so i can give you a few ideas if that's what you were referring to.

[CYCLEON]

another question - are you looking for anabolics that might help or training?

[fastman]

The sport is biking. While I have lots of good sources training for the sport. It is good to get a different perspective of training ideas, and nutrition. Since this is my off-season I have been hitting the weights a few times a week along with 6-10 hours on the bike.

I have thought a little about anabolics, but want to find out if there is something that could really help in ways other then making my wallet lighter.

[primodonna]

you read my mind... *move to workout forum* ?

[primodonna]

ok a few more ?'s for you (sorry)

are you more concerned with performance (i.e. do you race?) or in losing some fat?

are you doing your weight training directly before or after your biking or do you split them up between the am and pm?

[fastman]

My primary concern is performance (yes I race) and one of my obvious limiters is my weight, but improving power output is important as well.

I do my weight training in the evening (only time for it). Do my riding earlier in the day. On days I do weights I will either not ride or only do 1 easy hour.

The reason I did not put this in the workout forum is to see if anyone has any expericence with anabolics with enduramce sports.

[primodonna]

Ok...sorry about jumping the gun on that post about moving this.

Personally i never took any AS while i was in my endurance mode. Nor did i eat any protein which is the reason i lost every oz of muscle i had on me. Once I realized the error of my ways, it was too late to gain any of it back, but it DID help me go faster and longer and have more kick (or power to use a biking analogy) towards the end of races once i substantially raised my intake. (to at least 1g or protein per lb of bodywt)...and of course it did wonders for my ability to recover.

That would be my what is this now...5th question for you? How much protein are you eating now?

Even if you were to lift using a bb'ing program, i don't think you would have to worry about such an increase in your mass to the point where it hinders your performance with all of the riding you do. Now adding AS to the mix i would have a different answer.

I'm first concerned with your recovery time right now. If you are training legs on a friday then doing your long (or hard) rides on saturday, you aren't giving your legs enough time to rest. I know you're not going to be able to take days off in a row but if you schedule your leg training day so you have a few days before your next hard ride, you will be able to ride harder while at the same time giving your legs a little extra time to "rest". This, I would think, would help increase your strength without adding any bulk to them.

Since you race, I'm sure you are getting enough vits/minerals in your system but i have to throw that in there just in case. Also, you might want to think about adding some glutamine into your post-training (and riding) drink as well...and right before you go to bed.