What do England rugby star Tom Youngs and Olympic gold medallist Joanna Rowsell have in common? Yes, they’re both incredibly successful British athletes – but did you know they both use the Wattbike as a fundamental part of their training?
Olympic champion and five-time world champion Joanna Rowsell
With the World Cup just around the corner, England and Leicester Tigers forward Tom Youngs has bounced back from a shoulder injury he sustained in September to put himself in contention for a place in England’s starting 15.
“I’ve taken a few hits on the rugby pitch, but I’ll never forget my first three- minute test on the Wattbike,” says Youngs. “Luckily an in-built competitive nature that runs in the family lends itself pretty well to pushing yourself to the max! Since then I’ve never looked back.”
In September 2014, while playing for Leicester, Youngs suffered a shoulder injury that put him out of the game for the rest of the year, into surgery and facing a three-month rehabilitation period. “It’s any athlete’s worst nightmare. Any rugby player or fan will understand how frustrating this time was for me. Not only was the Six Nations just around the corner, but the World Cup was already in all our minds.
“Working hard to get myself back to full fitness, I set up a Wattbike in my garage. I already had a love/hate relationship with this fantastic piece of kit and knew that all the pain would be worth it.
“The whole England team uses Wattbikes in our warm-ups and recovery sessions, and for me personally, the bike has been key in helping me train through my rehabilitation: the level of accuracy and measurability allows me to train in the correct zones to ensure I progress properly.
“The bike has really improved my power output – a vital asset as a hooker in rugby – as well as my aerobic capacity and leg strength. The workouts push me, but keep me training ‘smart’. The Wattbike formed a key piece of kit during the Six Nations training and will do looking ahead to the competitive World Cup selections later this year.”
Meanwhile Olympic Gold medallist in the women’s team pursuit and a five-time world champion Joanna Rowsell has been an advocate of the Wattbike for many years.
“Training indoors is where the hard work is done to achieve big goals on the track and the road. The Wattbike offers training to power, which is by far the most effective and efficient way for any cyclist to improve on a bike. Plus it has benefits across a whole range of other sports: rugby, football, sailing... The fact that you can train with a combination of power, heart rate and cadence ensures that everyone can train at exactly the right intensity for any desired outcome.”
She continues: “I’ve written a training plan that I hope you’ll all enjoy. It’s to help improve your fitness with the aim of going faster against the clock. It’s suitable for specific 10-mile time triallists, triathletes and people wanting to increase threshold/sustained power. I used the sessions to help me on the way to my British National Time Trial Championship wins.”
Visit https://wattbike.com/uk/guide/training_plans/wattbike_10_mile_time_trial_training_plan_with_joanna_rowsell to download the full training plan
Train like Tom with this Wattbike lactic tolerance session
This session is designed to work Youngs at his supramaximal level, creating a lot of lactate which mirrors what happens during a game. This will help him cope with the lactic acid build-up more effectively. Youngs uses a Wattbike Pro, but depending on your ability it’s probably better to start off on the Wattbike Trainer. Remember – everyone has their own specific training zones, so you may need to adjust the setting for your own capabilities. You can find out more by visiting www.wattbike.com
Warm-up 3-minute cycle with several 5-second bursts, resistance 1
Block 1: Set the resistance to 5 200m as fast as possible (aim for under 12 seconds) – 50 seconds’ rest – X 5 reps 2 minutes rest after last rep
Block 2: Set the resistance to 2/3 500m as fast as possible (aim for under 36 seconds) – 75 seconds’ rest – X 4 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Block 3: Set the resistance to 1/2 750m as fast as possible (aim for under 60 seconds) – 90 seconds’ rest – X 2 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Block 4: Set the resistance to 4/5 200m as fast as possible (aim for under 22 seconds) – 30 seconds’ rest – X 3 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Newly signed Wattbike ambassador Tom Youngs in action for England
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What do England rugby star Tom Youngs and Olympic gold medallist Joanna Rowsell have in common? Yes, they’re both incredibly successful British athletes – but did you know they both use the Wattbike as a fundamental part of their training?
Olympic champion and five-time world champion Joanna Rowsell
With the World Cup just around the corner, England and Leicester Tigers forward Tom Youngs has bounced back from a shoulder injury he sustained in September to put himself in contention for a place in England’s starting 15.
“I’ve taken a few hits on the rugby pitch, but I’ll never forget my first three- minute test on the Wattbike,” says Youngs. “Luckily an in-built competitive nature that runs in the family lends itself pretty well to pushing yourself to the max! Since then I’ve never looked back.”
In September 2014, while playing for Leicester, Youngs suffered a shoulder injury that put him out of the game for the rest of the year, into surgery and facing a three-month rehabilitation period. “It’s any athlete’s worst nightmare. Any rugby player or fan will understand how frustrating this time was for me. Not only was the Six Nations just around the corner, but the World Cup was already in all our minds.
“Working hard to get myself back to full fitness, I set up a Wattbike in my garage. I already had a love/hate relationship with this fantastic piece of kit and knew that all the pain would be worth it.
“The whole England team uses Wattbikes in our warm-ups and recovery sessions, and for me personally, the bike has been key in helping me train through my rehabilitation: the level of accuracy and measurability allows me to train in the correct zones to ensure I progress properly.
“The bike has really improved my power output – a vital asset as a hooker in rugby – as well as my aerobic capacity and leg strength. The workouts push me, but keep me training ‘smart’. The Wattbike formed a key piece of kit during the Six Nations training and will do looking ahead to the competitive World Cup selections later this year.”
Meanwhile Olympic Gold medallist in the women’s team pursuit and a five-time world champion Joanna Rowsell has been an advocate of the Wattbike for many years.
“Training indoors is where the hard work is done to achieve big goals on the track and the road. The Wattbike offers training to power, which is by far the most effective and efficient way for any cyclist to improve on a bike. Plus it has benefits across a whole range of other sports: rugby, football, sailing... The fact that you can train with a combination of power, heart rate and cadence ensures that everyone can train at exactly the right intensity for any desired outcome.”
She continues: “I’ve written a training plan that I hope you’ll all enjoy. It’s to help improve your fitness with the aim of going faster against the clock. It’s suitable for specific 10-mile time triallists, triathletes and people wanting to increase threshold/sustained power. I used the sessions to help me on the way to my British National Time Trial Championship wins.”
Visit https://wattbike.com/uk/guide/training_plans/wattbike_10_mile_time_trial_training_plan_with_joanna_rowsell to download the full training plan
Train like Tom with this Wattbike lactic tolerance session
This session is designed to work Youngs at his supramaximal level, creating a lot of lactate which mirrors what happens during a game. This will help him cope with the lactic acid build-up more effectively. Youngs uses a Wattbike Pro, but depending on your ability it’s probably better to start off on the Wattbike Trainer. Remember – everyone has their own specific training zones, so you may need to adjust the setting for your own capabilities. You can find out more by visiting www.wattbike.com
Warm-up 3-minute cycle with several 5-second bursts, resistance 1
Block 1: Set the resistance to 5 200m as fast as possible (aim for under 12 seconds) – 50 seconds’ rest – X 5 reps 2 minutes rest after last rep
Block 2: Set the resistance to 2/3 500m as fast as possible (aim for under 36 seconds) – 75 seconds’ rest – X 4 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Block 3: Set the resistance to 1/2 750m as fast as possible (aim for under 60 seconds) – 90 seconds’ rest – X 2 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Block 4: Set the resistance to 4/5 200m as fast as possible (aim for under 22 seconds) – 30 seconds’ rest – X 3 reps 2 minutes’ rest after last rep
Newly signed Wattbike ambassador Tom Youngs in action for England
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