is biking good for your explosive speed in hockey?
Nick G asked:
I run 3km everyday, and also bike 3km hard every two days. Is biking help me get good speed in hockey?
I run 3km everyday, and also bike 3km hard every two days. Is biking help me get good speed in hockey?
May 22nd, 2009 at 6:32 pm
anything that works out your legs does…
May 23rd, 2009 at 9:58 am
Nope. You need to work on short sprints that has resistance in order to work on certain muscle fibers. If I remember correctly from biology and fitness classes, ironically, it was the ***** who discovered there are three fibers in every muscle in the human body (well, they thought it was only German or “Aryans”…idiots). I can’t remember the order, but one fiber is slow-twitch, meaning that it’s good for things like marathons; third fiber is fast-twitch, which is good for, as you said, explosive speed like hockey; and the second one is an inbetween. Those short sprints I mentioned will work on the third fibers.
Biking’s only good for mild cardio workouts and to get rid of the lactic acid in your legs. Or you can sign up for a spin class at your gym. That’ll really get your muscles going, but won’t do much to improve your need of explosive speed.
May 25th, 2009 at 4:32 pm
that helps leg strength but u also need to do short sprints…another thing start out by laying down then push urself up really fast and sprint a short distance thats what i do..it seems to work
May 26th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Explosive speed.. You talk about sudden acceleration?
You have to train by doing what you want to do, so biking is not about explosiveness; it’s not an impulsion. It’s rather a continuous effort. It’s a good exercise for your heart, but for explosiveness, it’s not the big deal.
If you think about running very short distances (not more than 80 meters per run) as fast as you can, then yes it could do the job as it requires a very intense effort over a short period.
Hockey is all about errors and instability; if you can slow down and speed up quickly; if you can make very quick sharp turns; if you can change many times your angle; you are going to be good. Be a good skater and you will see your hands look quite better.
People think it’s about top speed or turning the rink within 15 seconds like Niedermayer that will makes the difference. Yes it helps, but remember the games is played with feet, not a full rink. The result: if you can accelerate quicker, you win the battle.
Look how Ovechkin does; he’s not rushing the zone. He knows the defense men have to settle their speed onto him; so he’s going mid speed. Until he comes by the blue line… Then the defense man cannot pivot and gets turned around before he can see it.
See? The speed difference, not the total speed.
So, to practice it, you have to find a way ot make sudden efforts and if you can make them while making a continuous mid effort it’s even better. For example, run with a friend a longer distance, perhaps 1-3km. By each 50meters, the one behind overtake the other and then sit back into a normal speed. Then, the other does it 50 meters further.
The idea is to be able to deliver energy quickly, effectively and over a short period and this even if you are already using energy. Sounds logical? Training like you play?
Of course, the ideal by far would be to do it in skates; same exercise. Weight training limit charges for a maximum of 3 reps coudl do it.
May 29th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
RIding a bike might not help. I would suggest short sprints for a long period of time.