Ask any performance cyclist that’s ridden for anything over an hour if they’ve ever had back pain and they’re almost certain to say yes.
Ask any physical therapist worth their salt if crunches are the answer and they’ll almost certainly say no. Yet, that’s what we see and hear many cyclists do to “strengthen their core”.
Besides calming an overworked posterior chain, a strong set of well rounded core muscles provides a good foundation for cycling and virtually every other activity. But the key really is having balanced strength from front to back, side to side, top to bottom; and that’s where pro cyclist Tom Danielson’s new book, Core Advantage, hopes to help.
Its 224 pages contain 50 exercises developed by Allison Westfahl, personal trainer and founder of The Athletic Edge. Retail is $18.95 (or on Amazon for $11.63). Full PR after the break…
PRESS RELEASE: Professional cyclist Tom Danielson used to have a bad back. He shifted in the saddle, never comfortable, often in pain. When doing crunches made matters worse, he turned to personal trainer Allison Westfahl for a new approach. Danielson and Westfahl developed all-new exercises to build core strength specifically for cycling, curing Danielson’s back problems and giving him a new performance edge. Their new book Tom Danielson’s Core Advantage: Core Strength for Cycling’s Winning Edge will help cyclists of all abilities to ride stronger, longer, and more comfortably. The book will is now available in bookstores, bike shops, and online. Preview the book at www.velopress.com/tommyd.
Tom Danielson’s Core Advantage delivers 50 essential core exercises for cyclists of all levels, amateur to pro. Each Core Advantage exercise complements the motions of riding a bike so cyclists boost efficiency and eliminate pain in the back, neck, and shoulders-all without weights, machines, or a gym membership. The book’s simple exercises build strength in the low back, hips, abs, chest, and shoulders without adding unwanted bulk. Diagrams explain the goal of each exercise, which Danielson models in clear photographs.
Beginner, intermediate, and advanced core training plans will strengthen muscles that stabilize the body so cyclists can pedal more efficiently, maintain power out of the saddle, and climb with newfound power. Each plan will create balanced muscle strength that helps cyclists avoid overuse injuries and develop endurance to prevent tightness and painful knots and strains.
Riding a bike takes more than leg strength. Now Tom Danielson’s Core Advantage lays out the core strengthening routines that enable longer, faster rides.
- Tom Danielson’s Core Advantage: Core Strength for Cycling’s Winning Edge
- Tom Danielson and Allison Westfahl with foreword by Patrick Dempsey
- 7″ x 9″, 224 pp., $18.95, 978-1-934030-97-4
- Paperback with illustrations throughout
Tom Danielson is a professional cyclist with Team Garmin-Sharp-Barracuda. Danielson won the national collegiate mountain biking championship riding for Fort Lewis College. He began his pro road cycling career riding for Team Mercury and then Team Saturn. Danielson won the Tour de Langkawi, Nature Valley Grand Prix, the Cascade Cycling Classic, Tour de Toona, and the Mt. Washington Hill Climb. In 2004, Danielson signed on with the Italian squad Fassa Bortolo and then Discovery in 2005 when he won the Tour de Georgia. While riding for Discovery, Danielson won a stage of the Vuelta a España. Since 2007, Danielson has consistently placed in the top 10 in stage races and Grand Tours, including stage wins in the 2011 Tour de France and USA Pro Cycling Challenge.
Allison Westfahl is a certified coach, personal trainer, and founder of The Athletic Edge, a fitness consulting company based in Boulder, Colorado. She holds an MS in Exercise Science, a coaching certification from USA Triathlon, and has earned a CPT and PES from the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Westfahl has worked as a personal trainer to amateur and youth athletes as well as elite cyclists Ryder Hesjedal, Timmy Duggan, Blake Caldwell, and Mike Friedman. She is the author of The Gluten Free Fat Loss Plan.
