Getting back to my “Susquehanna Experiment” weight training program, it only took a couple practice sessions to realize that low-volume, high-intensity training programs can get pretty complicated. And it only took a couple reps to see how hard it is!

Here are my thoughts on some parts of the routine:

The 5/5 cadence. Lifting a weight for five seconds and then lowering it down for five seconds, all in the same breath, is just plain hard. There is nothing like a constant load on your muscles to show you how long 10 seconds can be!

Under normal circumstances, I have no problem breathing in for a count of 5 and then breathing out for a count of 5. But when that breath takes place while lifting a barbell, and is followed by another eight long breaths under load, it’s a lot harder to concentrate on your breath!

Counting. Normally I would just count my reps and be done with it. In this experiment, I had to keep track of my reps and my breath! That meant I was counting from one to five twice for each rep.

This is where a spotter comes in handy! Have a spotter count your reps for you while you focus on counting your breath. (Eventually I managed to count my reps and just go by feel for the 5/5 cadence, though.)

The weight. Figuring out what weight to use is tricky, too. Even though this is supposed to be intense, and you are only doing 8-10 reps of each exercise, the amount of weight you lift will be fairly low. Trust me, the constant load on your muscles from the slow cadence is more than enough intensity!

I actually did two test sessions just to figure out the proper weight to start with, and even then I wasn’t positive what was best.

Preparation. I don’t know if there’s anything that could have prepared me for this! I hadn’t been lifting a lot, but I hit the weights every so often since I have some light weights at home. I also did a lot of Cyclo-Core routines and lots of extra push-ups.

However, this “Super-Slow” type of lifting still destroyed me!

Soreness. You better believe I was sore! I decided that once every four days is probably all my body can handle, so I went with a Monday/Thursday schedule.

Number of Exercises. At first, when Tim Ferriss recommended doing only 4-7 exercises each time, I didn’t think I’d be getting my money’s worth at the gym, so to speak. But if you do it right, you’ll be too exhausted to do a seventh set of anything!

High Protein Diet. Even though I’m close to being a vegetarian, I enjoyed the high protein diet. Turkey sandwiches, protein smoothies, mmm mmm good!

Now go ahead and get started on your weight lifting routines!

(And remember, you will be able to see all the details at the official Susquehanna Experiment page.)

Climbing is the most prestigious part of cycling, and for good reason - it’s freaking hard! Climbing to the top of an Alp (or two,) or just staying with the pack to the top of the “local monster” is a challenge.

So I thought you might interested in some tips I picked up from Graeme Street, creator of the Cyclo-Core off-season training program. The tips were part of a special report titled “3 Climbing Mistakes Most Cyclists Make” that you can probably get if you sign-up for the special report listed on his website.

So here we go:

MISTAKE 1: More miles = Stronger climbing

Just going out and riding doesn’t mean you’ll get better. You could ride all day long and still get beat by someone that rides 25 miles/week.

The key is to do quality miles!

MISTAKE 2: Lack of Attention to the Powerful Climbing Muscles

Sure, your typical rides work your quads and glutes, which do play a critical role in climbing. But the phenomenon known as “climbing” requires a lot of other muscles to start working - your hamstrings, for example.

And to work your hamstrings and core muscle groups, you’ll have to do off the bike workouts to really make a difference.

MISTAKE 3: Not Reading This Sooner

To get the real mistake number 3, plus the full details on the other two, check out Cyclo-Core and sign-up for the email list. (Scroll down and the sign-up box is right beside the “5 Cycling Training & Nutrition Secrets to Drop Weight and Add Power!” box.)

I just read one of Graeme Street’s e-mails, where he mentions the doctor that likes Cyclo-Core and is recommending it to his patients. In the audio, the doc says he is expecting big improvements in his cycling this season.

Well so am I, nothing special there! (If you’ve been reading for a while, you’ll remember that I only did a couple rides in January but I felt better than I did during the peak of last season, before I had tried Cyclo-Core.)

But it gave me a great idea - I can continue my training regimen of Core and Zen workouts without bothering to ride. Why? Well, aside from the fact that I am sort of burnt out on riding, this will be a great test:

How good will I be in my races next year if I don’t do much riding beforehand?

I’m sure I’ll do some riding, but in general, my riding time will be very limited compared to last season. Especially since I have to concentrate on graduating from college!

Those are three of the trends in the active.com article I mentioned yesterday. Sounds good, considering everyone is crunched for time these days and is looking for a good workout in not a lot of time. And avoiding crowded gyms is definitely a plus!

Once I thought about it, I have that those trends taken care of since I have Graeme Street’s programs, Cyclo-Core and Cyclo-Zen. Core is filled with functional workouts while Zen has a few yoga-based workouts. Best of all, you can do them at home in about 30 minutes.

They’re hard though. If you don’t believe me, read the whole review and watch the video: Cyclo-Core review

After a few months with just Cyclo-Core, I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy of Cyclo-Zen. (I have Speed too, which will be reviewed next month…)

I wasn’t really sure what to expect since I never did yoga. I had an idea of a few yoga poses, but that was about it. Not that it really mattered, because Graeme’s workout programs are on a whole new level.

I mean, I thought I was pretty good at calisthenics and all that. But Cyclo-Core kicked my butt!

So at least this time I wasn’t expecting to breeze through anything! I was looking forward to the chair position and other “mental toughness” exercises though. I guess I was looking for a new challenge, and I had wanted to try yoga anyway. All the magazines say it’s good

Yes, even if you have mastered Cyclo-Core, you’ll have some work to do before mastering Cyclo-Zen!

First off, what do you get?

There are two DVDs with six different workouts, and two audio CDs called “Zen and the Art of Recovery.” You have your choice of power yoga, recovery yoga, strength conditioning, flexibility training, yoga-spin intervals, and of course, the dreaded 8 Minute Power Routine!

I popped in DVD 2 and went straight for the power routine! It started with hindu squats, so I wasn’t too worried. But soon I realized that doing this stuff for 8 minutes straight was equivalent to sprinting uphill, out of the saddle, into a headwind, for 8 minutes! Not an easy task, and definitely not something to do more than twice in a row to start out!

(Just getting through the 8 minutes once is a challenge!)

[By the way, all the stuff I wrote about in the Cyclo-Core review about it being better than weight lifting and such, that all applies to this too. I just want to highlight all the extra stuff about Zen.]

So next up we have the Power Yoga. In typical Graeme Street fashion, this is hard work! You don’t work up a sweat or move quite like Cyclo-Core, but that doesn’t mean it’s any easier. Some of the positions really strain you, and they will definitely make you sore the next day!

After my first attempt, I noticed my joints (especially my ankles) were sore the next day. I think that’s because of the wobbling I did trying to balance in the positions!

On that note, balance is key in these workouts! Balance, stamina, and mental focus play a huge role here. Zen will really train you in those three disciplines.

Thinking that the Recovery Yoga would be nice and easy, I tried to do that to recover from what I had just done. Well, it wasn’t that easy. I’d use it as a stand-alone workout for an easy day, but I don’t think I’d want to do right after a hard workout.

Regardless, it’s a nice addition to your arsenal of workouts. Worth noting is that you get to see a new face and hear a new voice in a couple of these workouts

But I’d have to say the best part is that feeling you get once you complete the yoga workout. It’s like this overwhelming calm comes over you and you are content to just lie on the floor for a while. It’s a little different from Cyclo-Core, where you want to party because you are finally done, but you have no option besides lying on the floor, as you’re quite worn out

Now to be honest, I haven’t even attempted the other workouts on these DVDs. With it being spring and all, I’m outside most of the time. But this gives me more new stuff to look forward to at the end of the season.

I haven’t listened to the audio CDs either, I’ve just been pretty busy. On one of these lazy summer days coming up, I’ll relax and listen to them, and report back with my findings.

Even without fully testing this product, I know what my recommendation will be. If you read the Core review, you won’t be surprised by this.

My final verdict is…

If you can only afford one of Graeme’s programs, get Core. But budget for Zen before buying any new high-tech parts! (If you’re serious about your training, you’ll quickly realize the value here.)

This is also a good buy if you just want to try out yoga. If you think of the cost of a few yoga classes, the $70 for this doesn’t seem so bad

There are some $20 yoga DVDs out there, but I can’t say for sure if they are any good or not. I decided not to bother with those once I found this.

And seriously, the 8 Minute Power Routine by itself is worth a pretty penny! So, are you mentally tough enough?

Click here to order Cyclo-Zen for yourself!

P.S. By the way, I was the president of the Babson College Cycling Club. We did a video in 2005 with Cyclo-Core, so I had some of the team get together now to try out Cyclo-Zen. That’s where the pictures came from.