Research summary · Training and performance
Heavy strength training for endurance cyclists
This review examines adding heavy strength work to endurance cycling, focusing on performance and its physiological determinants.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Systematic review and meta-analysis
- Journal
- European Journal of Applied Physiology
- Population / context
- Endurance cycling
What the publication reports
Seventeen studies included 262 cyclists, including 60 women. Programmes lasted 5–25 weeks with one to three weekly sessions. Pooled results favoured heavy strength training for cycling efficiency, anaerobic power and performance, without clear improvements in maximal oxygen uptake.
Limits and interpretation
Overall certainty was low, and the evidence does not identify one optimal programme. Physiological outcomes and performance tests differed. The journal issue is dated 2026; the article first appeared online on 9 July 2025.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
Heavy strength training effects on physiological determinants of endurance cyclist performance: a systematic review with meta-analysis
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 40632222DOI: 10.1007/s00421-025-05883-2Full text at the sourceReader discussion
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