What I don’t think people are getting is the fact that time under tension is what you are after. Strength training helps to build neural pathways for you to be able to use the muscle more effectively. The video isn’t telling you to go out and juice, the video is saying that cross training will help round you out physically.
@@michellekalinsky3730 and it will help reduce the risk of osteoporosis too. Cycling isn’t weight bearing (for the most part), you need to do walking and weight bearing exercises for that. I too started to train my whole body for general health benefits.
You have to remember, that many 'professional' bodybuilders are taking PEDs to build muscle but also get to a very low body fat percentage. I'm not saying getting ripped nauturally is impossible, but you will generally not be as big or ripped as one taking enhancements.
You have to remember that many ‘professional’ cyclists are doping to build endurance but also get toms very low body mass percentage. Every sport is riddled with dopers, cyclists dope just to get a KOM on strava. You can still gain plenty at the gym and with the right genetics you can be ripped natty. Train for your own benefit and to your own goals.
Getting "ripped" is a matter of nutrition. For a cycling lifting program, what I do it is 3 sets of 4-6 on squats and deadlifts, 1 set of 30 on squats after deadlifting, 1 set of 20 on lunges and step ups. 4 sets of 15-20 on calf raises making sure I get a good stretch on the way down and pause at the top. None of this bouncing stuff I see a lot of people do. Avoid the leg ext. and leg curl. I do this twice a week while only riding at zone 2 for the off season. Once I start doing some Zone 4 efforts, I cut back the leg training to 1 day per week and stop the set of 30 on squats. If you can find a powerlifter to teach you how to squat and deadlift properly, that makes all the difference in preventing injury.
My reading of strength training for cyclists is low rep range (4 to 8) is more beneficial. Youre in the gym to build strength not endurance which you do on the bike.
It's not an overnight thing ( Although we wish it was!). Ollie did a great video on his long fitness journey! 👉th-cam.com/video/NDY8-lcEIHI/w-d-xo.html
@@keithletourneau7305 when he hits that high pitch voice and squeals has to be one of the most annoying things I’ve ever heard… Relax Doucette, inside voice son lol
During the off season, I lift legs twice a week while only doing Zone 2 efforts on the bike. As I get into Zone 4 more and more, I stop the leg training in the gym but keep lifting upper body 4 days a week. When I raced cyclocross and road as a CAT 2, I still lifted upper body 4 days a week and noticed I wasn't getting as fatigued in the upper body during a race. For me, lifting is part of my life but I know many of my old team mates were afraid they would get big and heavy. This is not the case unless that's your goal.
Strength and mobility go hand in hand. A strong core and doing some strength training such as pull ups, squats, bench press etc will get you stronger on the bike for sure.
If you’re over 40, listen up; you need to be in the gym, picking up heavy things and putting them down, because once you hit 40 on average you will lose 1% of your muscle mass. You have stay ahead of this, and it’s the gym you need. Just riding won’t do it.
THIS!!! My only tweak is that it doesn’t have to be a “gym.” A home resistance training program with bands, dumbbells, etc can still help maintain muscle mass as you age. I’m not meaning to be pedantic, just bringing up options for those of us who don’t have ready access to a gym.
I completely agree. I'm in my mid-30s and I can't train as rigorously as I did a few years ago, especially when it clashes with family commitments. Strength training is not to be neglected, especially to stay one step ahead of the breakdown of muscle mass as a preventive measure. You don't have to aim to look like a bodybuilder, but strength in the torso is enormously important. Life experience has spoken!
You can't really go wrong with squats, deadlifts, overhead press and bench press. Even one, one hour session a week with low reps and relatively heavy weight will make a massive difference.
We better build a home gym for Si at the office 😂 Did you catch our video on how to stay fit as you get older? 👉th-cam.com/video/GCfqgnfoVWY/w-d-xo.html
Hi there I am 62 still working I generally walk at work 14/18000 steps with large bag maintenance in large NHS hospital ride my bike about 4/6 hours a week . I’ve just had a hernia fixed last week gone really well . Being realistic was going to try about 45 mins cardio gym work and see where I finish up each night cycling is new to me it’s been a missing Link to better sleep .zsuppose it’s just a case of tryl and error will just stick with it great channel.cheers Mark
I'll bulk up fast and have trouble getting lean. Low weight or just resistance training coupled with yoga for flexibility is my preferred cross training. I also love to hike and find that's great for keeping my bones solid into older age. Cycling is great and I love it, but Hank is absolutely right to be looking at cross training for full body fitness
@@gcn Yes. Got a bit obsessed at one point. I drew the supplement line at creatine and protein powder, but the gym was full of steroid-users and you can imagine the temptation when competition comes into it - personal or professional. Strength training is great (still do some), but it should within a natural realm/routine IMO. Ideally mix it with pilates/yoga too to keep suppleness and balance - especially useful for long-term health (...which isn't something you really think about in your early 20s with mad energy :)
I don't need to be ripped, being well toned and strong on the bike is all I'm after and currently working on, no supplements taking, doing it the long hard way.
I'm applying 80/20 to my strenght training. 4 days /week I start the mornings with 20 pusch ups, 10 pull ups, 10 chins, 10x2 core exercise and 1 min dead hang. Once a week I go full heavy lifting in the gym. Works like a charm
I get the desire to look a certain way. Personally I don't equate big muscles with performance on the bike, sprinting perhaps excepted. My amateur performance has been adequate to drop too many big thighs to delude myself here. So the second coach definitely resonated and made more sense to me as a cyclist training to be a better cyclist. Body building, opposed to strength training, is antithetical to cycling performance. It encourages bulking up, not strength. (Think "Mall Trucks", lol) So to build muscle it's simple - lots of reps and, unmentioned here of course, often lots of drugs. Conversely to build actual strength that will benefit cycling performance - the program calls for reps with heavy weights. Strength sessions on the bike have not shown to have the benefits of heavy deadlifts and squats at the 4-6 max rep range.
There's a good bit of truth here, but also some misinformation. Bodybuilding is antithetical to competitive cycling insofar as you can't really excel at both (unless, as you suggested, you're a track sprinter), but it's a good thing to have more muscle mass than less, all else being equal. Strength training is almost certainly more similar to bodybuilding than you suggest here, and it is very probably not a good idea to perform all of your sessions in the 4-6 rep range. There are only a few ways to increase strength, and building muscle is the most versatile since technique and neural coordination tend to be closely tied to specific motor patterns. The trick I really in finding the right understanding of your discipline and where weight training is actually helping. Primarily, it will improve your sprint performance, since type 2 fibers tend to experience more hypertrophy than type 1 fibers, and you probably are already recruiting most of your type 1 fibers through general cycling. There will likely be some improvement to your overall work capacity as well, with regard to intervals. Imo, Dylan Johnson does a good job of getting into the details of how cyclists should implement weight training, but most of us would be better off treating it as part of a total fitness program than being solely about cycling performance.
The idea of "double days" is good from my experience. I have been doing squats, deadlifts and presses in the morning and an interval session later in the day on the turbo trainer. I do recover well enough to do the intervals justice. If I tried to do them the next day, I would be too tired. That said, I'm still not convinced strength training makes me a better cyclist, just more rounded in my fitness.
One of the best training videos I have seen on GCN, but probably because I have recently started off the bike stuff using the Wahoo Systm. Really interesting stuff that! More please!
@@gcn I am enjoying it. I started playing 6 a side football again a few years back and found some cycling gains from that and I keep seeing if I add strength in it will help with both. So fingers crossed I turn into the hulk. Takes a few sessions to learn the "moves" and get your form right but gives a good burn during and after which can only be good!
Timely video, started cycling in 2021 at the age of 47years and in september 2022 I started to introduce specific strength training aswell (Legs / core primarely). And now I am looking into how to migrate those strength gains made in the gym, over to on-bike performance :) I have also gained a little muscle weight during this winter gym training. I work out about 5-6 times a week, where 2 sessions are in the gym where the legs get a lower resistance/higher rep range workout. Focus is on paced movement, form, progressive overload week to week and making sure each session take me close to failure. Due to these sessions are rather fatiguing I have dialed back the intensity on my indoor bike training sessions, but maintained frequency (=most in heartrate zone 2) In other words, I am using these winter months as my "base period". Now that the outdoor season isnt too far ahead I am now slowly reducing the intensity of my gym work, in order to have energy & recoverability when increasing the intensity on the indoor trainer. Clean eating, portion/macro control (more or less), consistency in training and good sleep over time will go a long way in terms of excersise quality, health, mood & of course performance.
Great comment! Thanks for giving us an insight into your routine. It sounds like you are doing an amazing job here, how are you finding recovery? That's the one we learnt the hard way, you have to recover to get better! Have you got any tips for someone that is looking to start introducing gym work into their training? 🏋️
@@gcn indeed, recovery is vital and where the true gains are found! My best tips to those who wish to get into gym works would be: Show up, leave the ego by the door and keep it simple / enjoyable:) Full stop. No-one else in the gym have "your" ambitions, they are there for theirs only. We are playing the long game here, as mentioned in the video "its a marathon". It is slow work but it will (!) pay off. Get some guidance from the gym coach/PT , find a program that you "enjoy" which make adherence so much easier to maintain. Expect "bad days", we all have them and no-one is coming for you. Relax :) But show up, even if all you manage to do is 15min on the threadmill :) Remember - You will most likely feel a greater deal of accomplishment from showing up on a "weak day" and do almost nothing, vs a good day where you performed as normal. The oddity gets the attention :) Regarding recovery - its a balancing act for all of us :) I space my two gym days evenly apart (3-4days inbetween) and do 30-90min Z1-2 HR on the trainer (or go for a walk) the next day depending on mood/feel/other comitments :D The remaining days I sprinkle in whatever I feel like, as its supposed to be fun afterall :D Thanks for the show, been following GCN the past two years and picked up a lot of good information that have helped my training fun and training gains! :D
@@halaircyclinggains1300 Some great points in here! Thanks for being a key part of the GCN community! Hope we can continue to provide you fun and informative content.
This sort of thing was covered by also gcn a year ago with manon at a velodrome with much better advice & help from the great Hoy , anyone who’s has not seen that one please go and watch that over this video as it has much better info imo
More please! TBH first half with Brad I wondered, why am I watching this ... dare I say it, rather basic and common knowledge. Lower weight higher reps, diet, genetics, etc -- no kidding. But that was perhaps just the setup for the second half with Chris, practical application which was quite informative! I like and may adopt the idea of structuring double days to play on strengths (pun intended), and maximize recovery. I often wondered how to balance the two. I'd love to see more content with Chris on specific movements, maybe for different rider types, and deeper dives into the science of strength for cyclists. Thanks!
The idea of this video is that we cover lots of bases. A little for those just starting out on their fitness journey and something for those already deep into the subject. Great to hear you would like more of a deep drive with Chris! We'll see what we can do 👀
Awesome video. I personally don't like to lift weights, mostly because when I had a job(Boilermaker local28) I used to pick things up and put them down, grant I used a crane to do most of the heavy lifting it still would get boring. So when I retired or became a pensioner I start my yoga practice, so now the heaviest thing I gotta pick -up is me @165lbs tho by the summer I hope to be between 155 and 160lbs so my Atheos goes even faster up hill.
This is going to sound very sad but…..I agree on the self confidence boost, used to like uncovering (shaving) my legs at the start of the track season to see the ‘definition’ achieved from the gym work.
Nothing wrong with a self confidence boost! If you feel fit and strong you will trust your body and push yourself even more! Hope this video has helped you with some strength tips 🙌
@@gcn love the track related stuff…..but then I’m biased😃. Anything in the pipeline about the British grass track scene? Some riders up here in Scotland make a good living from it in the summer.
Life is full of ironies. Back when I was racing, I never got as lean as I wanted, and had "soft" legs. I was never cut/ripped, with veins sticking out, and I was a bit envious of guys who were because I just liked that look, and wished my legs looked like that too. But I also remember some racers who had these really well defined muscular legs, but who were not as good racers as I was. I even mentioned the leg thing to one teammate at the time, saying I wished mine looked like his, and he replied he wished his legs had the ability of mine. Ironic.
I think he forgot to mention the most important thing. Specificity. Rate of force development is the most important part of any strength training. While you will gain strength doing 5 squats, it won't improve your sports results because you are strengthening your musle to do one motion 5 times very slowly. Even though you are activating the same fast twich fibres like in sprinting, the time it takes to extend your leg is very different so you have no benefit.
Great stuff. I will have to revisit this one, more than once. Would love to hear advice for us old-timers, if possible. I do my bike work in the AM (pre-breakfast), and strength training in the afternoon. But I’m 71 YO. Any things I should know?
Must say I do disagree with a few points in the video. As someone who trains in both cycling and weightlifting I think time in the gym should be spent in low rep range, high weight zones. As cyclists we already get a LOT of high rep work from simply pedalling our bike. The gym should be used to fill in the gaps that cycling can’t: ie strength work. Additionally, cyclists want strong lean legs. More reps means more time under tension = bigger muscles, but not necessarily stronger. Just my thoughts! Good to get this discussion going.
Come and do some Judo Hank! that's a pretty good all-round work out ;-) In reality what Brad and Chris are saying strength and conditioning is really important!
Talking muscle recruitment and turning it into speed: I recently discovered during a trainer session that I can sprint almost the same power on the trainer, sitting as outdoor standing which suggests that I have the sprint technique of a potato. Can you make a video about how to sprint properly and how to train it?
Brilliant! Been trying all sorts of things to increase strength on the bike. I've always been led down the road of low cadence. There is not much about cycling strength out there
Oh jee, thanks, Hank!!! One of the best things about cycling is that most riders look like bambies not bulked-up bulldogs. Guys, swollen veins stretched across mounds of muscles is worrisome - not sexy!
There is a natural bodybuilder category, but most bodybuilding is not just about "nutrition"; it's PEDs. If you want that look, understand the risks and aren't in competitions where PEDs are against the rules, then okay, go for it. But most cyclists who spend a lot of time lifting are going to look more like the second guy Chris and less like Brad
Most of us could get ripped but most of us would also be miserable getting there. It only gets exponentially harder the lower you get your percent body fat.
Genetically. I have big thighs and calf's but have never felt these attributes have given me any advantage. Playing across various sports, I have noted that people with significantly smaller muscle mass exhibit the same amount of power. The only discipline I can imagine excelling in by comparison would be bodybuilding. It's easy to assume appearance equals strength but in my experience, that really isn't the case.
"What does it take to get in shape for a competition?" His honest answer should've been: "all the steroids available at the pharmacy, legal and illegal"
Getting ripped is only something the pros should do - and only in peak season for an A race. Having this little fat, about 3-5%, which gives the appearance of being ripped, is not healthy in any way. The body needs to have at least 14% fat storage to be healthy. Below 8% is considered underfat.
I went sugar and grain free a while back and actually got too lean to sustain long efforts over two hours. Had to reintroduce some more carbs to get some fat back.
You’re looking at the science of zone 2 with San Millán and then talk about strength training for cyclist with a bodybuilder…not really the same depth and quality of advise…
Facts of life...nobody looks like that guy without taking/using "stuff"...every gym has more stuff floating around and available than any pharmacy. On top of that, it has not much to do with real strength or power just posing.
Strength and mobility sessions have been a gamechanger for me. When moving, our body first takes care of the joins and then moves on to putting the strenght. Having gym specific sessions twice a week has greately improved not only the strength but also the form and ‘purity’ of my movements, resulting in higher endurance and less stress/injuries
For more complete insightful scientific information on muscle growth, strength and power seek out any podcast with Dr Andy Galpin. It will blow your mind. Ie "The Drive" with Peter Attia or "Huberman Lab" wiith Andrew Huberman.
Yes, but strength training is not the same as 'exercise'. What I mean by that is you should be adding load to your lifts over time. Getting to xxkg on you squat and staying at that weight becomes exercise and no longer strength training. By all means start at home and develop good technique and habits but you may at some point need more extensive equipment/weights. Of course, that all depends on your goals which may change over time!
Absolutely. You can also do it with no equipment. Just learn how to do an air squat properly as number 1 then, lunges, and press ups and that almost has you covered.
Lance - "Where have I been??!! I've been on my bike six hours a day!!!" Brad - "the key is nutrition. It's your diet" C'mon GCN the product endorsements are fine but now this?
Cyclist need optimal muscle, not for aesthetic bulk & ripped. More muscle more energy you will use, you will not go further & faster. However need to lift weight in order to keep overall body strength.
Fan of GCN but no idea why you are getting a clueless body builder on to talk rubbish.. higher reps and hypotrophy.. ermm no. power is built from low reps and explosive work. Muscle is a bi product.
I don't want legs like those, James, they look ridiculous. But I should very much like to hear you say "the strongest" instead of "the most strong". That would make this old teacher happy. ☺😘
Considering the history and ongoing issues in cycling and body building, I think it is a real mistake for GCN not to have directly addressed the elephant in the room around performance enhancing drugs in this video.
agreed, but I don't think someone who bodybuilds has to come out about using them every time they are seen online either. If they are always addressing the elephant in the room then there would be no time for discussion of training and nutrition. Why not have one in general about cycling peds, overuse of "therapeutic" exemptions, and the pressure to succeed in cycling and leave the bodybuilding stuff to the bodybuilders to talk about on their channel? I don't think it offers us much.
@@Smurf_Garden I agree about not having to address it everytime, but if you are going to title a video "how to get shredded..." then it is a real error not to do so
Everybody wants what they haven't got regardless of the sport. 20+ years of rugby and the army have meant that I have the size and I don't want it. I'd rather be lean and not hanging on for grim death when rides get quick. Plus when you're over 100kg yes you can out out large amounts of power but your watts/kg sucks and let's not even start talking about dragging that mass uphill
Sure. But. I'd see it positively. A guy that still gets to eat a piece of cake and can run up stairs or cycle 120km won't win a bodybuilding competition. A competitive cyclist has to live without broad shoulders and nice biceps cause it's not aero and too heavy. Normal people get to be a jack of all trades. Would be fun if there was a race where everyones total weight has to be 300 pounds. Maybe that would get anticardio gymbros going. Gymbro+ Sixpack of water vs wannabe tourdefrancewinner + the whole dam
The secret to shredding is diet. You can't out train a poor diet. A serious cyclist's goal should be maximizing strength to weight ratio, and power over time. Being human anatomy chart shredded is NOT a good goal. Most body builders do NOT feel their best on their 'peak' days. Shredded to the max is all about dehydration, fat depletion etc. This is not a performance situation. Yes I have BB experience. Some cyclists will just be more shredded naturally, but that should not be the goal, to show up the most shredded at a race, only to get dropped by a slightly pudgy guy, but with max glycogen stores. I do support over all strength training to round out the entire body, and it does trouble me when a seemingly fit rider can't do 20 quality push ups.......
He said he ovoids sugar but he said he starts the day eating oat meal well that turns to sugar in your body so yeah he don't eat sugar . No difference in eating something that turns to sugar or just eating sugar. His body has to be in a calorie surplus that's hard to do especially when you get that big. But don't brag that you don't eat sugar when in fact he eats something worse gluten a form of sugar thats worse than sugar itself. I know i lift also and i know how hard it is to get enough calories and eat right not always easy. I'm half his size and i have to consume three thousand calories a day sometimes more when i ride a lot. But to stay sugar free is real hard. Edit: good stuff mate do keepemcoming wont ya.
Ripped ?!?! Everyone is different, I remember when I was knocking on the door of under 19 national team ( didn't make it ) we had all sorts of tests done , we got weighed in water I had the second lowest fat content out of 12 riders yet my legs especially around my calves looked incredible non- athletic ! Some people just carry more % of these fat reserves under the skin 🤣
Basic training principles are the same, regardless of ped use. The specifics of how you apply those principles changes, but this video isn't really in-depth enough for it to matter.
Poor video GCN. 1. Elite level bodybuilders openly abuse drugs. It's a sport where WADA have declared the IFBB to be non-compliant with the world anti-doping code. To ask how we as cyclists can look more like them without mentioning the obvious in a video titled "how to get shredded for cycling" is pretty stupid. 2. After watching the video I don't know whether you are trying to give us advice on improving cycling performance or increasing muscle mass/muscle definition. As cyclists we don't need to go to the gym to train endurance like the bodybuilder suggests. What is the point of doing high reps, high volume, low weights when that's similar to the training stimulus what you are already getting on the bike? Science clearly suggests that heavy weights, low reps is the most effective form of weight training for improving performance on the bike across all power zones. (Obviously for beginners it would be necessary with an adaptation phase with low weights to decrease risk of injury/work on proper form).
As an ex Body Builder of many decades and now keen Cyclist, I found the knowledge presented here was almost like a culmination of my study / research and experience over a very long period of time. This was packed full insight and condensed into a one very informative & entertaining video. BRAVO!
To get big isn’t hard. To get big and ripped harder. Strength is better than power. I have power, the ability to put power out isn’t difficult but to have the strength to cycle everyday and to go further faster isn’t power. You don’t need max power to be a fast rider. You need a certain amount of power but once you have that you need to train to sustain it. Diet, training and rest so you can train more. Mentally these bodybuilders go to the limit when dieting. They all say it’s the hardest part of competing. Hard work beat genetics.
Thanks for the comment! Great to hear you are finding the plan and style that works best for you. There is no alternative to hard work 🙌 Did you catch Brad's workout tips? 👉 th-cam.com/video/8gS8dozEbPA/w-d-xo.html
Wack creatine monohydrate into you! Also known as fluid retention, creatine can cause rapid water weight because the supplement draws water into your muscles' cells. Your muscles will hold onto this water, resulting in bloating or puffiness around your arms, legs, or stomach. Your muscles may even appear bigger, even if you've just begun your training.
Cycling and some other sports should have an open class with no drug testing and then a restricted class with testing, sort of like auto racing does. Let's see what the human body is capable of doing both naturally and enhanced. Besides, without steroids or other PEDs, most sports are just genetics contests. I don't see much difference between athletes having vastly different testosterone levels naturally and using PEDs, in terms of fairness.
What I don’t think people are getting is the fact that time under tension is what you are after. Strength training helps to build neural pathways for you to be able to use the muscle more effectively. The video isn’t telling you to go out and juice, the video is saying that cross training will help round you out physically.
Glad you enjoyed the video! Do you do lots of cross training to help with your cycling? 👀
And the older you get the more important it becomes.
Absolutely cross train year round! I’ve found I do way better physically not just sticking to riding.
@@michellekalinsky3730 and it will help reduce the risk of osteoporosis too. Cycling isn’t weight bearing (for the most part), you need to do walking and weight bearing exercises for that. I too started to train my whole body for general health benefits.
You have to remember, that many 'professional' bodybuilders are taking PEDs to build muscle but also get to a very low body fat percentage.
I'm not saying getting ripped nauturally is impossible, but you will generally not be as big or ripped as one taking enhancements.
This is a very important comment and one should be very careful about chosing their rolemodels online
You have to remember that many ‘professional’ cyclists are doping to build endurance but also get toms very low body mass percentage.
Every sport is riddled with dopers, cyclists dope just to get a KOM on strava. You can still gain plenty at the gym and with the right genetics you can be ripped natty. Train for your own benefit and to your own goals.
Exactly. And big Brad in this video is juiced to the max.
By many, you mean all.
@@VirgilOvid This is why it is waste of time trying to follow pro training programmes. They are genetically superior and possibly taking drugs.
More of this please! Specific gym sessions for alround fitness would be great, also tailored to cycling not getting ripped.
Getting "ripped" is a matter of nutrition. For a cycling lifting program, what I do it is 3 sets of 4-6 on squats and deadlifts, 1 set of 30 on squats after deadlifting, 1 set of 20 on lunges and step ups. 4 sets of 15-20 on calf raises making sure I get a good stretch on the way down and pause at the top. None of this bouncing stuff I see a lot of people do. Avoid the leg ext. and leg curl. I do this twice a week while only riding at zone 2 for the off season. Once I start doing some Zone 4 efforts, I cut back the leg training to 1 day per week and stop the set of 30 on squats. If you can find a powerlifter to teach you how to squat and deadlift properly, that makes all the difference in preventing injury.
try dialed health, he has online roadie strength programs even some BW stuff. I've used his mtb ones before
My reading of strength training for cyclists is low rep range (4 to 8) is more beneficial. Youre in the gym to build strength not endurance which you do on the bike.
4-12 really. Hypertrophy is also helpful.
Great point to make about it taking time to get where you want, too many people expect quick results and get disappointed when that doesnt happen.
It's not an overnight thing ( Although we wish it was!). Ollie did a great video on his long fitness journey! 👉th-cam.com/video/NDY8-lcEIHI/w-d-xo.html
Important video for every cyclist.
Chris Peden's knowledge is impressive! Would like to have a coach like him.
4:02 Surely Coach Greg will be doing a reply video 😂
Lmfaoo!!! Can't wait fo him to lose him mind over this video haha
Douchette. Is funny sometimes but his shtick gets on my nerves. Had to unsub.
@@keithletourneau7305 when he hits that high pitch voice and squeals has to be one of the most annoying things I’ve ever heard… Relax Doucette, inside voice son lol
During the off season, I lift legs twice a week while only doing Zone 2 efforts on the bike. As I get into Zone 4 more and more, I stop the leg training in the gym but keep lifting upper body 4 days a week. When I raced cyclocross and road as a CAT 2, I still lifted upper body 4 days a week and noticed I wasn't getting as fatigued in the upper body during a race. For me, lifting is part of my life but I know many of my old team mates were afraid they would get big and heavy. This is not the case unless that's your goal.
Strength and mobility go hand in hand. A strong core and doing some strength training such as pull ups, squats, bench press etc will get you stronger on the bike for sure.
If you’re over 40, listen up; you need to be in the gym, picking up heavy things and putting them down, because once you hit 40 on average you will lose 1% of your muscle mass. You have stay ahead of this, and it’s the gym you need. Just riding won’t do it.
THIS!!! My only tweak is that it doesn’t have to be a “gym.” A home resistance training program with bands, dumbbells, etc can still help maintain muscle mass as you age. I’m not meaning to be pedantic, just bringing up options for those of us who don’t have ready access to a gym.
I completely agree. I'm in my mid-30s and I can't train as rigorously as I did a few years ago, especially when it clashes with family commitments.
Strength training is not to be neglected, especially to stay one step ahead of the breakdown of muscle mass as a preventive measure. You don't have to aim to look like a bodybuilder, but strength in the torso is enormously important. Life experience has spoken!
You can't really go wrong with squats, deadlifts, overhead press and bench press. Even one, one hour session a week with low reps and relatively heavy weight will make a massive difference.
We better build a home gym for Si at the office 😂 Did you catch our video on how to stay fit as you get older? 👉th-cam.com/video/GCfqgnfoVWY/w-d-xo.html
I’ve always thought it started sooner, in your 30’s even sooner for women.
Hi there I am 62 still working I generally walk at work 14/18000 steps with large bag maintenance in large NHS hospital ride my bike about 4/6 hours a week . I’ve just had a hernia fixed last week gone really well . Being realistic was going to try about 45 mins cardio gym work and see where I finish up each night cycling is new to me it’s been a missing Link to better sleep .zsuppose it’s just a case of tryl and error will just stick with it great channel.cheers Mark
I love this. More, but also more for those of us who are over 50 with brains that think we are still young….
Brad had some keywords for all sports.
Carrying unnecessary weight. Train specifically for what you want to achieve.
Huge fan of Brad’s advice. Thanks Brad!
I'll bulk up fast and have trouble getting lean. Low weight or just resistance training coupled with yoga for flexibility is my preferred cross training. I also love to hike and find that's great for keeping my bones solid into older age. Cycling is great and I love it, but Hank is absolutely right to be looking at cross training for full body fitness
Just never let it get to the point where over-lifting knackers your joints and/or juicing knackers your system and integrity.
Can't argue with that
Have you done lots of gym work and nutrition? 👀
@@gcn Yes. Got a bit obsessed at one point. I drew the supplement line at creatine and protein powder, but the gym was full of steroid-users and you can imagine the temptation when competition comes into it - personal or professional. Strength training is great (still do some), but it should within a natural realm/routine IMO. Ideally mix it with pilates/yoga too to keep suppleness and balance - especially useful for long-term health (...which isn't something you really think about in your early 20s with mad energy :)
I don't need to be ripped, being well toned and strong on the bike is all I'm after and currently working on, no supplements taking, doing it the long hard way.
Hope it's going well! do you find that it's better to focus on overall strength and then the ripped legs look will come? 🔎
sounds lazy
I'm applying 80/20 to my strenght training. 4 days /week I start the mornings with 20 pusch ups, 10 pull ups, 10 chins, 10x2 core exercise and 1 min dead hang. Once a week I go full heavy lifting in the gym. Works like a charm
Just like a true bodybuilder, that shaker cup never left his hand.
I get the desire to look a certain way. Personally I don't equate big muscles with performance on the bike, sprinting perhaps excepted. My amateur performance has been adequate to drop too many big thighs to delude myself here. So the second coach definitely resonated and made more sense to me as a cyclist training to be a better cyclist.
Body building, opposed to strength training, is antithetical to cycling performance. It encourages bulking up, not strength. (Think "Mall Trucks", lol) So to build muscle it's simple - lots of reps and, unmentioned here of course, often lots of drugs.
Conversely to build actual strength that will benefit cycling performance - the program calls for reps with heavy weights. Strength sessions on the bike have not shown to have the benefits of heavy deadlifts and squats at the 4-6 max rep range.
There's a good bit of truth here, but also some misinformation. Bodybuilding is antithetical to competitive cycling insofar as you can't really excel at both (unless, as you suggested, you're a track sprinter), but it's a good thing to have more muscle mass than less, all else being equal.
Strength training is almost certainly more similar to bodybuilding than you suggest here, and it is very probably not a good idea to perform all of your sessions in the 4-6 rep range. There are only a few ways to increase strength, and building muscle is the most versatile since technique and neural coordination tend to be closely tied to specific motor patterns.
The trick I really in finding the right understanding of your discipline and where weight training is actually helping. Primarily, it will improve your sprint performance, since type 2 fibers tend to experience more hypertrophy than type 1 fibers, and you probably are already recruiting most of your type 1 fibers through general cycling. There will likely be some improvement to your overall work capacity as well, with regard to intervals.
Imo, Dylan Johnson does a good job of getting into the details of how cyclists should implement weight training, but most of us would be better off treating it as part of a total fitness program than being solely about cycling performance.
The idea of "double days" is good from my experience. I have been doing squats, deadlifts and presses in the morning and an interval session later in the day on the turbo trainer. I do recover well enough to do the intervals justice. If I tried to do them the next day, I would be too tired. That said, I'm still not convinced strength training makes me a better cyclist, just more rounded in my fitness.
One of the best training videos I have seen on GCN, but probably because I have recently started off the bike stuff using the Wahoo Systm. Really interesting stuff that! More please!
Love to hear it! How are you getting on with off the bike training? 👀
@@gcn I am enjoying it. I started playing 6 a side football again a few years back and found some cycling gains from that and I keep seeing if I add strength in it will help with both. So fingers crossed I turn into the hulk. Takes a few sessions to learn the "moves" and get your form right but gives a good burn during and after which can only be good!
@@bobhump36 Great to hear! Keep it up 🙌
what about the PED use ?
Loved Brad in Nathan Barley
Timely video, started cycling in 2021 at the age of 47years and in september 2022 I started to introduce specific strength training aswell (Legs / core primarely). And now I am looking into how to migrate those strength gains made in the gym, over to on-bike performance :) I have also gained a little muscle weight during this winter gym training.
I work out about 5-6 times a week, where 2 sessions are in the gym where the legs get a lower resistance/higher rep range workout. Focus is on paced movement, form, progressive overload week to week and making sure each session take me close to failure. Due to these sessions are rather fatiguing I have dialed back the intensity on my indoor bike training sessions, but maintained frequency (=most in heartrate zone 2) In other words, I am using these winter months as my "base period".
Now that the outdoor season isnt too far ahead I am now slowly reducing the intensity of my gym work, in order to have energy & recoverability when increasing the intensity on the indoor trainer.
Clean eating, portion/macro control (more or less), consistency in training and good sleep over time will go a long way in terms of excersise quality, health, mood & of course performance.
Great comment! Thanks for giving us an insight into your routine. It sounds like you are doing an amazing job here, how are you finding recovery? That's the one we learnt the hard way, you have to recover to get better! Have you got any tips for someone that is looking to start introducing gym work into their training? 🏋️
@@gcn indeed, recovery is vital and where the true gains are found!
My best tips to those who wish to get into gym works would be:
Show up, leave the ego by the door and keep it simple / enjoyable:)
Full stop.
No-one else in the gym have "your" ambitions, they are there for theirs only.
We are playing the long game here, as mentioned in the video "its a marathon". It is slow work but it will (!) pay off.
Get some guidance from the gym coach/PT , find a program that you "enjoy" which make adherence so much easier to maintain.
Expect "bad days", we all have them and no-one is coming for you. Relax :)
But show up, even if all you manage to do is 15min on the threadmill :)
Remember - You will most likely feel a greater deal of accomplishment from showing up on a "weak day" and do almost nothing, vs a good day where you performed as normal. The oddity gets the attention :)
Regarding recovery - its a balancing act for all of us :)
I space my two gym days evenly apart (3-4days inbetween) and do 30-90min Z1-2 HR on the trainer (or go for a walk) the next day depending on mood/feel/other comitments :D The remaining days I sprinkle in whatever I feel like, as its supposed to be fun afterall :D
Thanks for the show, been following GCN the past two years and picked up a lot of good information that have helped my training fun and training gains! :D
@@halaircyclinggains1300 Some great points in here! Thanks for being a key part of the GCN community! Hope we can continue to provide you fun and informative content.
Super video! Is it possible to make a video with what food to eat for a 5 day interval? Thank you gcn Team 🤗
This sort of thing was covered by also gcn a year ago with manon at a velodrome with much better advice & help from the great Hoy , anyone who’s has not seen that one please go and watch that over this video as it has much better info imo
Longines Hydroconquest? Good choice Hank!
I saw that too! Nice watch Hank!
More please! TBH first half with Brad I wondered, why am I watching this ... dare I say it, rather basic and common knowledge. Lower weight higher reps, diet, genetics, etc -- no kidding. But that was perhaps just the setup for the second half with Chris, practical application which was quite informative! I like and may adopt the idea of structuring double days to play on strengths (pun intended), and maximize recovery. I often wondered how to balance the two. I'd love to see more content with Chris on specific movements, maybe for different rider types, and deeper dives into the science of strength for cyclists. Thanks!
The idea of this video is that we cover lots of bases. A little for those just starting out on their fitness journey and something for those already deep into the subject. Great to hear you would like more of a deep drive with Chris! We'll see what we can do 👀
Awesome video. I personally don't like to lift weights, mostly because when I had a job(Boilermaker local28) I used to pick things up and put them down, grant I used a crane to do most of the heavy lifting it still would get boring. So when I retired or became a pensioner I start my yoga practice, so now the heaviest thing I gotta pick -up is me @165lbs tho by the summer I hope to be between 155 and 160lbs so my Atheos goes even faster up hill.
Loving this episode and Brad et al is awesome ✊🏾👊🏾
This is going to sound very sad but…..I agree on the self confidence boost, used to like uncovering (shaving) my legs at the start of the track season to see the ‘definition’ achieved from the gym work.
Nothing wrong with a self confidence boost! If you feel fit and strong you will trust your body and push yourself even more! Hope this video has helped you with some strength tips 🙌
@@gcn love the track related stuff…..but then I’m biased😃. Anything in the pipeline about the British grass track scene? Some riders up here in Scotland make a good living from it in the summer.
Life is full of ironies. Back when I was racing, I never got as lean as I wanted, and had "soft" legs. I was never cut/ripped, with veins sticking out, and I was a bit envious of guys who were because I just liked that look, and wished my legs looked like that too. But I also remember some racers who had these really well defined muscular legs, but who were not as good racers as I was. I even mentioned the leg thing to one teammate at the time, saying I wished mine looked like his, and he replied he wished his legs had the ability of mine. Ironic.
Interesting !
I think he forgot to mention the most important thing. Specificity. Rate of force development is the most important part of any strength training. While you will gain strength doing 5 squats, it won't improve your sports results because you are strengthening your musle to do one motion 5 times very slowly. Even though you are activating the same fast twich fibres like in sprinting, the time it takes to extend your leg is very different so you have no benefit.
Great stuff. I will have to revisit this one, more than once. Would love to hear advice for us old-timers, if possible. I do my bike work in the AM (pre-breakfast), and strength training in the afternoon. But I’m 71 YO. Any things I should know?
Reminds me GMBN training session with Nino Schurter! Not sure on the name of the video but he had a great balance
Must say I do disagree with a few points in the video. As someone who trains in both cycling and weightlifting I think time in the gym should be spent in low rep range, high weight zones. As cyclists we already get a LOT of high rep work from simply pedalling our bike. The gym should be used to fill in the gaps that cycling can’t: ie strength work. Additionally, cyclists want strong lean legs. More reps means more time under tension = bigger muscles, but not necessarily stronger. Just my thoughts! Good to get this discussion going.
Come and do some Judo Hank! that's a pretty good all-round work out ;-) In reality what Brad and Chris are saying strength and conditioning is really important!
Robert F is an absolute beast. His leg strength is unreal.
Talking muscle recruitment and turning it into speed: I recently discovered during a trainer session that I can sprint almost the same power on the trainer, sitting as outdoor standing which suggests that I have the sprint technique of a potato. Can you make a video about how to sprint properly and how to train it?
On Zwift, or other platforms, there are dedicated training sessions for sprinting. However, much of your sprinting ability depends on your genetics.
How about this golden oldie from Cav? 👉 th-cam.com/video/wd2TiTR0XAs/w-d-xo.html Perhaps this is something we can do again! 💨
@@gcn Dan Lloyd sprinting on a bike. What an uncommon sight these days.
Brilliant! Been trying all sorts of things to increase strength on the bike. I've always been led down the road of low cadence. There is not much about cycling strength out there
"uphill cyclists", otherwise known as a "climber"! Refreshing content 👌 FYI. I am a downhill cyclist 😆
What kind of training could you do get stronger and faster on the climbs . I am always drop on the climbs ... please help
He didn't mention PEDs but it's ok. I'm a cyclist but I enjoy my gym weight training just as much.
Oh jee, thanks, Hank!!! One of the best things about cycling is that most riders look like bambies not bulked-up bulldogs. Guys, swollen veins stretched across mounds of muscles is worrisome - not sexy!
If you're racing in sanctioned events the body builder injectable diet might have WADA knocking.
There is a natural bodybuilder category, but most bodybuilding is not just about "nutrition"; it's PEDs. If you want that look, understand the risks and aren't in competitions where PEDs are against the rules, then okay, go for it. But most cyclists who spend a lot of time lifting are going to look more like the second guy Chris and less like Brad
Most of us could get ripped but most of us would also be miserable getting there. It only gets exponentially harder the lower you get your percent body fat.
Genetically. I have big thighs and calf's but have never felt these attributes have given me any advantage. Playing across various sports, I have noted that people with significantly smaller muscle mass exhibit the same amount of power. The only discipline I can imagine excelling in by comparison would be bodybuilding. It's easy to assume appearance equals strength but in my experience, that really isn't the case.
Leanness = minimal bodyfat as possible = look out for what goes into your mouth
Not necessarily "what" but "how much".
@@donwinstonwont recommend only eating sugars…😂
@@donwinston yes especially "what"
@@donwinston Definitely agree with this comment. The quality of calories matters, but without a caloric deficit it is all in vain.
@@dul22 Calories trump everything.
what are the best performance enhancing drugs for 1hr time trails?
EPO
"What does it take to get in shape for a competition?"
His honest answer should've been: "all the steroids available at the pharmacy, legal and illegal"
The sound of giving those guys a high five! Might as well be slapping a brick wall! 😳🤣
Getting ripped is only something the pros should do - and only in peak season for an A race. Having this little fat, about 3-5%, which gives the appearance of being ripped, is not healthy in any way. The body needs to have at least 14% fat storage to be healthy. Below 8% is considered underfat.
I went sugar and grain free a while back and actually got too lean to sustain long efforts over two hours. Had to reintroduce some more carbs to get some fat back.
Sorry in the post below I mis-typer. It should read from "78 to "87.
You’re looking at the science of zone 2 with San Millán and then talk about strength training for cyclist with a bodybuilder…not really the same depth and quality of advise…
Interesting video. I would recommend the channel/videos of Jeff Nippard on YT wrt strength training and nutrition.
definitely a recommendation I can get behind.
should be emphasised that ‘clean eating’ is (to an extent) subjective
Facts of life...nobody looks like that guy without taking/using "stuff"...every gym has more stuff floating around and available than any pharmacy. On top of that, it has not much to do with real strength or power just posing.
LOL'd at the thumbnail. Hank in shock at the massive quads that are bigger than him 🤣
We aim to please 😉
Exelent video again 👍
Strength and mobility sessions have been a gamechanger for me.
When moving, our body first takes care of the joins and then moves on to putting the strenght.
Having gym specific sessions twice a week has greately improved not only the strength but also the form and ‘purity’ of my movements, resulting in higher endurance and less stress/injuries
For more complete insightful scientific information on muscle growth, strength and power seek out any podcast with Dr Andy Galpin. It will blow your mind. Ie "The Drive" with Peter Attia or "Huberman Lab" wiith Andrew Huberman.
Can you strength train at home with basic equipment?
Of course
Body weight exercises are a good start. However, you will need progressive overload to build strength. That means more weight included in exercises.
Yes, but strength training is not the same as 'exercise'. What I mean by that is you should be adding load to your lifts over time. Getting to xxkg on you squat and staying at that weight becomes exercise and no longer strength training.
By all means start at home and develop good technique and habits but you may at some point need more extensive equipment/weights. Of course, that all depends on your goals which may change over time!
Of course! Here is Hanks top home strength training tips 👉 th-cam.com/video/ymuQtR_-Loc/w-d-xo.html
Absolutely. You can also do it with no equipment. Just learn how to do an air squat properly as number 1 then, lunges, and press ups and that almost has you covered.
The coach might have taken a double dose of pre-workout. Good video thanks.
One of the best cycling Vlogs I’ve watched great info.
Lance - "Where have I been??!! I've been on my bike six hours a day!!!"
Brad - "the key is nutrition. It's your diet"
C'mon GCN the product endorsements are fine but now this?
Cyclist need optimal muscle, not for aesthetic bulk & ripped. More muscle more energy you will use, you will not go further & faster.
However need to lift weight in order to keep overall body strength.
I think it’s time I’ll let me take the reigns with Hank and get him on a bodybuilding stage 😉
Fan of GCN but no idea why you are getting a clueless body builder on to talk rubbish.. higher reps and hypotrophy.. ermm no. power is built from low reps and explosive work. Muscle is a bi product.
Thanks Hank. Thats marginal gains in training info!
I don't want legs like those, James, they look ridiculous. But I should very much like to hear you say "the strongest" instead of "the most strong". That would make this old teacher happy. ☺😘
Considering the history and ongoing issues in cycling and body building, I think it is a real mistake for GCN not to have directly addressed the elephant in the room around performance enhancing drugs in this video.
agreed, but I don't think someone who bodybuilds has to come out about using them every time they are seen online either. If they are always addressing the elephant in the room then there would be no time for discussion of training and nutrition. Why not have one in general about cycling peds, overuse of "therapeutic" exemptions, and the pressure to succeed in cycling and leave the bodybuilding stuff to the bodybuilders to talk about on their channel? I don't think it offers us much.
@@Smurf_Garden I agree about not having to address it everytime, but if you are going to title a video "how to get shredded..." then it is a real error not to do so
@@petergilheany2 John Cena is not a cheater for using cheetah blood! hehe. agreed.
That would be parallel to admitting a Colnago frame costs about $300 from the factory.
Just don’t get an eating disorder in the process
Ripped? Build muscle, lose fat - good. To look really ripped, just dehydrate - not good. Ask yourself this, 'do I want function or do I want image'?
Big, natural, shredded. Choose 2
I like that.
Everybody wants what they haven't got regardless of the sport.
20+ years of rugby and the army have meant that I have the size and I don't want it.
I'd rather be lean and not hanging on for grim death when rides get quick.
Plus when you're over 100kg yes you can out out large amounts of power but your watts/kg sucks and let's not even start talking about dragging that mass uphill
Sure. But. I'd see it positively. A guy that still gets to eat a piece of cake and can run up stairs or cycle 120km won't win a bodybuilding competition. A competitive cyclist has to live without broad shoulders and nice biceps cause it's not aero and too heavy. Normal people get to be a jack of all trades. Would be fun if there was a race where everyones total weight has to be 300 pounds. Maybe that would get anticardio gymbros going. Gymbro+ Sixpack of water vs wannabe tourdefrancewinner + the whole dam
ask DurianRider
3:56 you don't need to be that ripped to do a bit of gardening, do you?
He forgot to mention the most important Thing: Roids
As I see, chicken breast and broccoli
Look the part play the part
Maybe it's those non tone legs Hank should have been looking out for. All that power flying under the radar 📡
Well intended video, but check out CoachGreg before you assume that you can get swole and then ripped without a cocktail of PEDs
Hahaha! Chicken and Broccoli juice………..nudge nudge, wink wink.
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
We'll take that as a compliment 😂
@@gcn 👍👍👍👍👍👍😊😊
🙂
The secret to shredding is diet. You can't out train a poor diet. A serious cyclist's goal should be maximizing strength to weight ratio, and power over time. Being human anatomy chart shredded is NOT a good goal.
Most body builders do NOT feel their best on their 'peak' days. Shredded to the max is all about dehydration, fat depletion etc. This is not a performance situation. Yes I have BB experience.
Some cyclists will just be more shredded naturally, but that should not be the goal, to show up the most shredded at a race, only to get dropped by a slightly pudgy guy, but with max glycogen stores.
I do support over all strength training to round out the entire body, and it does trouble me when a seemingly fit rider can't do 20 quality push ups.......
He said he ovoids sugar but he said he starts the day eating oat meal well that turns to sugar in your body so yeah he don't eat sugar .
No difference in eating something that turns to sugar or just eating sugar. His body has to be in a calorie surplus that's hard to do especially when you get that big.
But don't brag that you don't eat sugar when in fact he eats something worse gluten a form of sugar thats worse than sugar itself.
I know i lift also and i know how hard it is to get enough calories and eat right not always easy.
I'm half his size and i have to consume three thousand calories a day sometimes more when i ride a lot. But to stay sugar free is real hard.
Edit: good stuff mate do keepemcoming wont ya.
58 to retirement..😁
Ripped ?!?! Everyone is different, I remember when I was knocking on the door of under 19 national team ( didn't make it ) we had all sorts of tests done , we got weighed in water I had the second lowest fat content out of 12 riders yet my legs especially around my calves looked incredible non- athletic ! Some people just carry more % of these fat reserves under the skin 🤣
100% transparity is key to a video like this, or it loses all credibility. This guy is clearly on the juice. Come on GCN. Treat us like adults.
Basic training principles are the same, regardless of ped use. The specifics of how you apply those principles changes, but this video isn't really in-depth enough for it to matter.
Anyone knows what model is Hank’s shoes? 🥹
You should never ever lock your knees on a leg press - ever
Poor video GCN.
1. Elite level bodybuilders openly abuse drugs. It's a sport where WADA have declared the IFBB to be non-compliant with the world anti-doping code. To ask how we as cyclists can look more like them without mentioning the obvious in a video titled "how to get shredded for cycling" is pretty stupid.
2. After watching the video I don't know whether you are trying to give us advice on improving cycling performance or increasing muscle mass/muscle definition. As cyclists we don't need to go to the gym to train endurance like the bodybuilder suggests. What is the point of doing high reps, high volume, low weights when that's similar to the training stimulus what you are already getting on the bike? Science clearly suggests that heavy weights, low reps is the most effective form of weight training for improving performance on the bike across all power zones.
(Obviously for beginners it would be necessary with an adaptation phase with low weights to decrease risk of injury/work on proper form).
I haven’t finished the video but I hope coach Greg is consulted for this
As an ex Body Builder of many decades and now keen Cyclist, I found the knowledge presented here was almost like a culmination of my study / research and experience over a very long period of time. This was packed full insight and condensed into a one very informative & entertaining video. BRAVO!
To get big isn’t hard. To get big and ripped harder. Strength is better than power. I have power, the ability to put power out isn’t difficult but to have the strength to cycle everyday and to go further faster isn’t power.
You don’t need max power to be a fast rider. You need a certain amount of power but once you have that you need to train to sustain it.
Diet, training and rest so you can train more.
Mentally these bodybuilders go to the limit when dieting. They all say it’s the hardest part of competing.
Hard work beat genetics.
Thanks for the comment! Great to hear you are finding the plan and style that works best for you. There is no alternative to hard work 🙌 Did you catch Brad's workout tips? 👉 th-cam.com/video/8gS8dozEbPA/w-d-xo.html
@@gcn ex lifter that is now cycling. Loving it.
Wack creatine monohydrate into you! Also known as fluid retention, creatine can cause rapid water weight because the supplement draws water into your muscles' cells. Your muscles will hold onto this water, resulting in bloating or puffiness around your arms, legs, or stomach. Your muscles may even appear bigger, even if you've just begun your training.
Cycling and some other sports should have an open class with no drug testing and then a restricted class with testing, sort of like auto racing does. Let's see what the human body is capable of doing both naturally and enhanced.
Besides, without steroids or other PEDs, most sports are just genetics contests. I don't see much difference between athletes having vastly different testosterone levels naturally and using PEDs, in terms of fairness.
KittenMittens