Motocross Mania

Over the last few years, the amount of people taking motocross fitness seriously has drastically increased, with most riders now owning a home gym or even having a gym membership, to increase their potential and of course, to improve their motocross fitness.

Unfortunately what is not increasing is the amount of riders developing their cardiovascular endurance, which is one of the key points that need to improve to ensure your motocross fitness is at its peak.

When entering the gym the main priority for a motocross rider, who’s aim is to develop their motocross fitness, should be to work on their cardiovascular endurance. Optimum cardiovascular endurance will allow enough oxygen to get the working muscles so that they don’t give up and are fuelled enough to carry on motoring through a race.

Many riders I see in a gym ignore the above and head straight for the weights instead. Light weights are an extremely good way of getting rid of arm pump, but personally, I feel the heavier weights are not necessary. By doing smaller sets and less reps on the heavier weights, all you are doing is teaching your body to sprint for an extremely short space of time, somewhere in the region of one lap of a normal motocross circuit I’d guess, this is not motocross fitness, it is weight lifting!

By regularly embarking on activities such as rowing, cycling, swimming, walking or jogging, you are increasing your cardiovascular endurance a great deal and by doing so, also increasing your motocross fitness.

These are my hints and tips for some Motocross Fitness training to get you into shape for your race. Please ensure you take care with any exercise program and you seek medical advice if you feel unwell. Motocross fitness is just as an essential part of the rider as the maintenance of the bike. So don’t waste time, get yourself in the right spirit for the race, because if you feel well and healthy then ultimately your racing will improve. It is not all about weight training and running. Its fine to have your body as fit as possible, but you should also concentrate on your mind.

These are my tips for the day of the race

·         Arrive in plenty of time. If you arrive late you will start to panic and your mental state will suffer.

·         Don’t eat too much food on the day; you don’t want to feel full while you are racing.

·         Make sure you drink enough water to be hydrated, but again not to much. Needing to go to the toilet half way round will really knock your concentration.

·         Get checked in and ensure you know what you are doing and when you are racing. If you are unsure then ask. Most clubs are more than happy to help you out.

·         Check your bike over; mentally you will then know everything is ready.

·         Walk the course and make notes of problem areas. This will help your mental state and will also loosen you up after the drive to the track.

·         Do some gentle warm up exercises half an hour before the race. Don’t go mad, you are just trying to stretch your body a little so you don’t pull a muscle at the first jump.

·         Ensure you at the start in plenty of time

·         Try to enjoy the race. The more you enjoy the race, the more relaxed you will be and the better you will ride.

As you can see there is more to Motocross fitness than running round in circles. Positive and calm mental attitude will help you out as much as any strenuous Motocross fitness training programme.

These are my hints and tips for some Motocross Fitness training to get you into shape for your race. Please ensure you take care with any exercise program and you seek medical advice if you feel unwell. Motocross fitness is just as an essential part of the rider as the maintenance of the bike. So don’t waste time, get yourself in the right spirit for the race, because if you feel well and healthy then ultimately your racing will improve. It is not all about weight training and running. Its fine to have your body as fit as possible, but you should also concentrate on your mind.

Here are my tips for general health for the weeks leading up to the race.

·         Eat healthily. Too much junk food slows your body down and also the rate at which your brain can process information.

·         Follow a fitness regime to get your body in shape. You don’t have to run five miles every day, but if you exercise regularly then your body will get fitter Two or three twenty minute sessions a week will keep you reasonably fit.

·         Ensure you are sleeping well. If not, try and find out the problem and sort it, whether it is a hard pillow a lumpy mattress or a noisy neighbour.

·         Are there things on your mind? You need to identify them and get them sorted. Distractions on the day can be costly. So get together a plan of all the items that are worrying you. Write them down and create an action plan to deal with them. Just writing them down will make you feel better.

·         Make sure your bike is maintained. If this item is crossed off your list, then that is one worry gone.

·         Ensure you kit is maintained and ready for the race. To many times I have seen people turn up in dirty boots and clothing. If it is clean and fresh it will make you feel better. How can you have the right attitude if you feel dirty?

I hope you enjoyed these tips and it helps you with your racing. Please come back for part two where I will talk about some of the things you can do on the race day.