10 weeks of heavy strength training improves performance-related measurements in elite cyclists
Participants
n=20 elite cyclists:
E&S group (n=12): heavy strength training + normal endurance training
E group (n=8): normal endurance training only
Protocol
Duration: 10 weeks, during the cyclists' short preparation phase
Strength (E&S): heavy strength training; the exercises (half-squat, leg press, single-leg hip flexion, ankle plantar flexion), 2 sessions per week and 4-10RM loads are from the full text (full text; not checked against the abstract)
Endurance: normal endurance training in both groups
Outcomes named in the abstract: lean lower-body mass, leg strength (maximal isometric half squat), determinants of cycling performance (mean power in a 30-s Wingate sprint, power output at 4 mmol/L lactate) and cycling performance (40-min all-out trial)
Key Findings
| Parameter | E&S vs E | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Maximal isometric half squat | Larger increase in E&S | p < 0.05 |
| 30-s Wingate mean power | Larger increase in E&S | p < 0.05 |
| Power at 4 mmol/L lactate | Tendency toward larger improvement in E&S | p = 0.068 |
| 40-min all-out trial | +4 ± 6% (E&S) vs −1 ± 6% (E) | p = 0.13, not significant |
Primary finding: in elite cyclists, 10 weeks of heavy strength training on top of endurance training increased maximal leg strength and 30-s sprint mean power more than endurance training alone, with a tendency toward higher power at 4 mmol/L.
Performance: the 40-min all-out difference (+4 ± 6% vs −1 ± 6%) did not reach significance with 12 vs 8 cyclists.
Lean lower-body mass was an outcome of the study; its result is not given in the abstract.
The authors' framing: the beneficial effects, obtained in only 10 weeks, should make heavy strength training executable even in the compressed schedule of elite cyclists.
Mechanisms
Inference, not tested here: a larger gain in maximal isometric strength alongside a larger gain in 30-s sprint mean power is consistent with a neural/maximal-force pathway feeding short, intense efforts; the abstract reports no mechanistic measures.
Practical Application
10 weeks of heavy strength training added to normal endurance training in elite cyclists (E&S n=12 vs E n=8, total n=20): larger gains in maximal isometric half squat and 30-s Wingate mean power (p < 0.05), a tendency toward a larger gain in power at 4 mmol/L lactate (p = 0.068), and a non-significant 40-min all-out difference (+4 ± 6% vs −1 ± 6%, p = 0.13). For an already elite rider, heavy strength work is a short investment that moves strength and sprint power; the threshold and time-trial effects were trends, not proven gains.
The load was heavy, not light high-rep work (the 4-10RM detail is full text; not checked against the abstract).
What happens after the 10 weeks without a strength stimulus was not studied here; REF-148 covers a control group that trained without it.
Limitations
n=20 in two unequal groups (12 vs 8); the abstract does not state random allocation.
The 40-min performance comparison is underpowered (p = 0.13); "improves performance-related measurements" in the title refers to strength, sprint power and the 4 mmol/L tendency.
VO2max, Wmax and body-composition results are not reported in the abstract; any such claim has to come from the full text.
12 vs 8 elite men, 10 weeks in the preparatory phase.
The 40-min all-out difference was not significant (+4 ± 6% vs −1 ± 6%, P = 0.13) and power at 4 mmol/L was only a trend (P = 0.068).
How this entry was checked and changed
Why this level
regraded 2026-09-27 from A: parallel controlled trial, n=20
Content correction 2026-09-27
"VO2max no change", "Wmax superior effect size", "lean lower-body mass trend up", "3-4 sets" -> not in the abstract; removed (lean mass noted as measured but unreported in the abstract).
Exercise list, 2×/week and 4-10RM loads -> kept but labelled as full text, not checked against the abstract.
Tier "mixed→4-5 (review…)" -> Tier 4, elite cyclists (this is a trial, not a review); Level A -> B+ (parallel controlled trial, n=20) per KB-LEVEL-RUBRIC; Sport "sprint" label dropped (Wingate is a test, not a discipline).
Cross-reference labels pointed at the wrong entry or named the wrong author (checked against each cited entry's byline); repointed to the entry the label describes, or removed where the base holds no such paper.