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HISDESTINYWAS
THEBOARDS.HE
KNEWITTHE
FIRSTTIMEHE
CAREENEDDOWN
THEBANKINGOF
AVELODROME
recalls. He took up guitar to try
to fill the void, without success.
For two years there was trouble
in Paradise.
Then his English teacher
suggested he enter a triathlon.
He showed up for the race
pushing his uncle’s old steel
bike. “I wasn’t ready for the start
of the swim and was last into the
water, but the bike leg I loved- just that racing feeling,” says
Glaetzer. “Everyone who knows
me can vouch that I’m super-
competitive in everything I do.”
While he could handle
himself on the bitumen, his
destiny was the boards. He
knew it the first time he
careened down the banking of a
velodrome. It wasn’t long before
he was outracing the top juniors
at the biggest meets, prompting
a reaction of Who the hell is this
guy? His coach told him he
possessed something
exceptional; something no
coach could instil.
At the 2012 world
championships in Melbourne,
after only three years in the
saddle, he posted the same
qualifying time for the
i nd iv idu a l spr i nt a s t he
legendary Chris Hoy, an 11-time
world champion and six-time
Olympic champion. “I do
believe it’s a God-given gift that
I have,” says Glaetzer. “To have
some success at a young age is
something that a lot of people
want and train so hard to get,
but they don’t quite have the
talent. Fortunately, I do have it
and I’m loving it.”
POWER TO BURN
Glaetzer’s training focuses on
building colossal speed and
power below the waist. Obtain
those qualities and pants-
splitting size must follow.
And Glaetzer has something
else: the ability to maintain his
top speed for longer than just
about anyone else in the world- a knack that makes him the
ideal third rider in Australia’s
crack team-sprint unit.
His most gruelling training
occurs on the three days each
week when he lifts weights with
his fellow elite riders in the
mor n i ng, fol lowe d up by a p o st-
lunch track session. Lasting up
to a mammoth three hours, the
weights workouts comprise
mu lt iple c i rc u it s of comp ou nd
exercises interspersed with
core-torching moves.
“It’s not so much about getting
big; it’s about building strength
and then converting that to
power,” explains Glaetzer, who’s
banned from doing upper-body
work. Because muscly arms and
shoulders would be dead
weight? “To some degree, yes.
We need to brace the handlebars
to counteract our leg power, but
there’s no need at all to be
massive in the upper body.”
Glaetzer doesn’t muck about
with fitness-class weight. For
three-rep-max efforts his best
numbers are 180 kilograms for
the squat, 150kg for the deadlift
and 310kg for the single-leg press.
“I love the gym,” says
Glaetzer. “I think I like it more
than the track sessions. It’s the
pure challenge of determining
wh at you r b o dy i s c ap able of i n a
measurable way.”
Typical of athletes whose god
is speed, Glaetzer pushes his
limits fearlessly, turning
demonic when performing the
big moves. “After some lifts I
ne e d to t a ke a m i nute to
compose myself because I’ve
got blurred vision or my eyes
hurt,” he confides. “I just love
t h at fe e l i ng of g iv i ng my
absolute maximum.”
Want bigger thighs without
the weights-room suffering?
There is an alternative, says
Glaetzer, an ambassador for
Swisse. It involves finding a
steep hill and riding up it- repeatedly – with no help from
your gears. “Grinding hills in a
big gear would increase your
muscle mass if you wanted to
avoid the gym,” he says.
At the track sessions, a 40-lap
warm-up precedes drills
focused on hitting or
maintaining top speed, with a
handful of maximal efforts
punctuated by 20-minute rest
p e r io d s. O n t he b ac k of a
morning spent heaving loaded
barbells, these afternoon all-
outers test character.
“By the time you’re up to your
third or fourth effort, the
morning’s taken its toll,” says
Glaetzer. “It’s a battle to go out
and maximally hurt yourself
again. It’s like voluntary torture,
but you have to do it. And you
can’t hold back, because success
is about commitment.”APRIL 2016^111SEAT OF POWER
Glaetzer focuses on building ever-greater
str e ngth in the l eg s – your ti c ket to im pr ove d
sports performance and a balanced physique.Directions
Do Superset 1 without resting between the big
move and the core exercise, then rest for a
minute. Do five rounds, rest for 2-3 minutes,
the n fo ll ow the same pr oto c o l fo r S upe r set 2.
A
SQUAT
With a barbell across
your back, brace your
core and squat until
your thighs are
horizontal. Drive back
up for eight reps.A
DEADLIFT
With your back flat,
grasp the barbell
at your shins.
Lift and straighten.
Do eight reps.Superset 1 Superset 2
B
PLANK
(90 SECONDS)
Hit the floor and hold
yourself still on your
elbows and toes.B
BEAR CRAWL
(60 SECONDS)
With your weight on
your hands and feet,
move quickly across
the floor.FOR MORE GREAT CYCLING CONTENT, CHECK OUT THE SUMMER ISSUE OF BIKE MAGAZINE. ON SALE NOW