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Quarantine-friendly workouts to improve your riding

If you’re like me, you’ve had to adjust your workout routine due to being stuck at home. While the days of Billie Blanks workout tapes are gone, they have been replaced with an amazing library of free content on the internet. Here are some at-home training options that will help you stay fit while we all wait for track season to start. Try playing around with them and see what you like.

Stretching

Stretching and flexibility are really important for proper riding technique. Here’s a video from Chris & Jenn Peris that walks you through some moto specific stretches. There’s even a full YCRS ChampBody series that goes a step further.

Yoga

Ken Hill talks a lot about doing hot yoga as a way to improve your flexibility, core strength and focus. While I certainly am not going to turn my living room into a sauna, room temperature yoga works just as well. Here is a good beginner video that was both relaxing and educational.

Barre

I had not considered barre until my girlfriend pointed it out to me. It actually targets the same muscle groups and fitness elements that are required when riding. Barre focuses a lot on the concept of “pulsing” which is basically putting yourself into a flexed position and introducing tiny back-and-forth movements. It feels very much like what you experience when holding yourself off of the bike mid corner. After seeing how beneficial this workout is to rider fitness I have decided to go embarrass myself and take a class in person when the studios reopen.

Meditation

Meditation improves your ability to retain focus and concentration. I have had good success with Calm, and I know some friends who use Headspace. I have a few free trial codes left for Calm, so just shoot me an email if you want to try it. Here is a great short video that I sometimes go back to in between meetings during the work day:

Bodyweight Workouts

This style of workout doesn’t require any equipment, which is great if you’re like me and don’t have space for a squat rack at home. These will definitely help you maintain your current level of fitness.

Cardio

Cardio is super important for maintaining your technique on the bike throughout the day. You should consider getting your hands on an exercise bike or rowing machine. Plenty of used exercise equipment can be had for cheap on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. I try to do a 30 minute class over lunch. Another great option is to watch a motorcycle race and imagine you’re in the race while you exercise. MotoGP is currently streaming for free if you want to give that option a try.

Here is one I liked and have gone back to a few times.

Abs

This is another great way to start your day with. The “10 minute abs” style videos are very manageable and give you a good burn.

This one is all business and no talking:

This one is more motivational and made me laugh a few times:

Ankles/Calves

I thought this one was really fun, and these exercises are something you can do while simply walking around the house once you learn them.

Thanks for reading! What other training options are there? Let me know if I missed anything by emailing me at joel@opensource.racing. See you on the track (hopefully) soon!

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