Training4cyclists

Cycling Training Tips

sprinter

Is a Heart Rate Monitor w/ Cadence Helpful in Sprint Training?

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Kscheid asked me the following question: “I am interested in knowing a bit more about monitors. I have a heart monitor, which I like using, but I know that there are other monitors out there, say for cadence and/or power output. I am not a racer, so I am not sure I would really need the power meter. However, I do want to improve my sprinting ability. Would a monitor that shows cadence be enough to help with gauging and measuring improvement?”

If I was asked to do some serious improvements on sprint skills, I would never recommend an upgrade from a heart rate monitor to a heart rate monitor with cadence.

Knowing your cadence as a sprinter might be useful, e.g. in post-race analysis of gear choice and cadence in the final sprint and other crucial moments. Before you start to analyse your performance in previous races, I think it is much more beneficial to work on your sprint power through training. That means different sorts of power sprints, high speed sprints and tactical sprints. That will make for sure make you a better sprinter.

Power meter can track progress in sprint performance

A power meter is the only tool worth considering if you want to track your progress. Spending time on analysis of maximum cadence is inaccurate and waste of time as a measurement of sprinting power. If you are not the lucky owner of a Power Tap or SRM Crank, the only way to track gains in sprinting skills will be on the result list. In most situations this is a cheap and really nice indicator of progress. On the opposite, what is a gain in maximum sprint watts worth if you can’t convert that to better results?

Sprinters can benefit in several ways from power meters

When the above is said, there are a lot of other good reasons why sprinters should use a power meter. If you are a road sprinter, you will need a large aerobic engine which can be trained more precise with a power meter. High sprinting power simply isn’t enough on the roads, you will need well trained aerobic system, like it or not.

Track sprinters who has 200m as their primary discipline don’t need the same amount of aerobic endurance training, but they will need to do anaerobic endurance intervals where a power meter is the logical way to pace intensity (heart rate monitors are worthless for these kind of intervals).

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How to Win a Bunch Sprint

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Most races end up in a bunch sprint, which normally is exclusively for the sprinters. But it is only a small percentage of Training4cyclists.com’s readers who are pure sprinters and play a role on the last 200m. I will now make a short description of how you can win the next bunch sprint ”“ at least in the theory”¦

1. Pick your parents carefully
When it comes to true sprinters, genes play a central role. Sprinters are born to be sprinters. It is said that you can turn a slow donkey into a faster donkey, but you can never make racehorse out of a donkey. This animal is simply born to be slow and this is also the situation for many non-sprinters.

Natural born sprinters have a higher percentage of fast twitch fibers than normal people. Road cycling sprinters are not as pure sprinters as you see them in track and field. This is because the sprinters have to carry themselves a long distance before they can see the finish line. 

Before you give up, it is important to note that in many races, stronger riders use the terrain to challenge the sprinters before the final 200m. They attack on the hills and make jumps in the crosswinds. That is their chance to beat the sprinters.

“So if you already know that the sprinters are faster than you, then you basically have three options: attack, attack, attack”¦ Got it?”
2.Patience
Save your energy for the final kilometer. Until then, your job is to get through the race as easily as possible. Many riders who could do reasonably well in a sprint, make the mistake that they spend energy in desperate attacks because they do not believe in themselves as pure sprinters. So make your decision before the race and stick to it. If you decide to go for the sprint, do it 100%, otherwise forget about it and make a different strategy.

3.Position
Sprint is all about position. If you are not in a good position you will never win a sprint even if you are the fastest sprinter. Keep the wheel of a sprinter you know is going to be among the first riders. If you are lucky or talented, you may have team-mates who will help you get in a good position.

4.Power
Power is always important, and for sprinters power is essential. If you want to make an incredibly fast sprint, you need to train for it. That means specific sprint and anaerobic endurance training, and maybe also strength training.