UAE Team Emirates sprinter Kristoff gives a peek into how he trains

Dubai - The 32-year-old, who joined the team in 2018 and went on to win the last stage of the Tour de France on the historic Champs-Elysees in Paris, begins his training with a 1.5-hour strength workout and completes the session with 5 x 10-minutes of interval training on his bike.

UAE Team Emirates, the country's pro cycling team, continue to do their bit for the community, especially during these tough times of the global coronavirus pandemic.
After John Wakefield, the team's trainer and sports director, put things in motion last week with a few tips on how to train like a professional cyclist, the team's ace sprinter Alexander Kristoff has taken it up a notch.
The Norwegian, who has won three stages on the Tour de France, gave a sneak peek into how he trains and gets into shape for the battles that lay ahead.
Kristoff, who finished second behind Peter Sagan in the points classification after landing two stages on the Tour de France in 2014, trains at least three times a week during the off-season and only once during the season as he would be busy competing around the world.
The 32-year-old, who joined the team in 2018 and went on to win the last stage of the Tour de France on the historic Champs-Elysees in Paris, begins his training with a 1.5-hour strength workout and completes the session with 5 x 10-minutes of interval training on his bike.
"It is leg day every day for me," Kristoff said on Sunday.
"When I stop cycling, I will focus more on my upper body and arms, but as a cyclist I don't need it. You get a lot of upper body exercise for free when you use free weights and do squats for example," he added.
Kristoff, who signed a contract extension last year that will see him with the team right until the end of the 2021 season, revealed that music provides him the added inspiration when training alone.
"When I am training alone, I listen to hardstyle music, my favourite song at the moment is 'Face of a champion - Coone & Sun zero Project.' It helps me to get in the zone and make the most of my workout," revealed Kristoff.
Kristoff, who counts the 2014 Milan-San Remo and the 2015 Tour of Flanders as his biggest wins, struck a note of caution when one starts training.
"Start easy to avoid injury. You need to use a few months to get you where you want to be. Try to train strength and core two to three times a week. If you only train on a bike for example, it is easy to get injury in your knees or other pain when you pedal," he said.
"With strength training you can strengthen all parts of the body, so you get more robust and less injuries. In the first weeks it is important to do lighter weights and more reps. If you're new to this work out, it's best to start with bodyweight squats so you can get the form down, which will help you avoid injuries," elaborated Kristoff.
james@khaleejtimes.com