Most mountain bikers focus on technique while overlooking a fundamental truth:
Your body needs to be physically prepared for the demands of riding.
This progressive training program builds the foundational balance, strength, and coordination that allow you to truly control your bike, learn skills easier, and enjoy your rides!
❌ Discomfort after rides – particularly in your back, arms, and neck
❌ Hesitation on technical terrain because you're fearful of what'll happen if you crash
❌ A tendency to overthink rides and moves – your nervous system in survival mode rather than performance mode
❌ A sense of physical limitation that technique training doesn't seem to ease
❌ The frustrating disconnect between understanding what to do and your body's ability to execute it
❌ Blurred vision or having a hard time concentrating on long downhills
❌ Burning legs, arm pump or back pain on rides, although the others seem to be just fiiiiiine.
Well, if this sounds familiar, you’re not alone.
In mountain biking, coordination and strength are not add-ons.
They determine:
how long you can stay "relaxed" on a descent
whether your body supports or blocks wheel lifts
how stable you feel while braking or cornering
how quickly fear and fatigue take over
This course exists to train and refine those prerequisites, so skills training finally has something solid to stand on.
✔️ You're a mountain biker (or e-mountain biker) aged 35+ and don't currently do strength and coordination work regularly
✔️ You finish rides sore and stiff – not the good kind of tired, the "something's not right" kind
✔️ During MTB Skills Practice: You understand technique, but your body won't cooperate
✔️ You've tried fitness apps and quit because the "beginner" level was too advanced or too generic
✔️ You’re new to mountain biking, or coming back after a sedentary break, and want to prepare your body properly
✔️ You ride an e-MTB and struggle with the weight – or avoid it altogether, even though you know it could be a great support
✔️ You’re busy, short on time, but still looking for a realistic way to start training to support your riding
✔️ You feel limited by physical capacity more than riding skill (typical symptoms: arm pump, blurry vision, burning legs, difficulty concentrating...)
This program starts realistically and grows with you.
The bottleneck isn't always riding technique.
It's that most adult bodies lack the foundational capacity to support the technique.
Happy to share the scientific references, just email us. 🤓
Mountain bike coach since 2009, psychological counselor.
"I've spent years observing the gap between mental readiness and physical capacity. This program bridges that divide by addressing what's typically overlooked."
🐱 Fritz: Occasional guest star, excellent commitment to being exactly where he shouldn’t be. “Strong foundations matter. I apply the same principles to licking and naps.”
Doctor of physical therapy with a deep background in movement science and mountain biking and founder of the Ride Life & Outdoorwomenstrong.
She combines clinical expertise with mountain biking experience to understand what riders truly need to stay strong, resilient, and in control on the bike. Dr. Liz supported us with evidence-based insights and practical recommendations to ensure this strength course is effective, safe, realistic, and tailored to the demands of mountain biking.
Coach and mental trainer since 2014, background across multiple sports.
"Coming from youth athletics, I deeply understand the value of physical fundamentals. What surprised me was how rarely those fundamentals are actually taught to recreational riders."
...the gap between riding aspirations and physical readiness.
Building the Ride-Ready Body addresses this systematically, meeting you where you are and providing a framework you can return to as you progress.
✔️ Deliberately accessible:
Exercises calibrated for adults without athletic backgrounds, with multiple entry points for different starting capabilities.
✔️ Inherently progressive:
Each exercise includes scaled variations, allowing you to work at your current level and advance when ready. This isn't a one-time program; it's a training framework you'll use repeatedly as your capacity develops.
✔️ Functionally specific:
Every movement pattern directly translates to bike control, stability, and injury prevention. No generic fitness filler.
20 min sessions · Home-based · Minimal equipment
follow along warmup sessions (no equipment needed)
a structured program with 2 follow-along workouts per week (1 strength, 1 coordination)
20 minutes per session, done 2-3x weekly
Every exercise at 2-4 difficulty levels
Complete video demonstrations + how-to lessons
6-week structured program designed to be repeated, not completed.
No monthly payments: buy once, access forever
Why lifetime access matters: Most training programs are designed to be completed once. This one isn't.
Physical development doesn't happen in straight lines. You'll have busy periods, breaks, setbacks. With lifetime access, you return whenever it makes sense. Start at level one, progress to level two. Take three months off? Pick up where you left off. The 6-week structure stays the same. Your training intensity evolves. That's why this program is designed to be repeated, not just completed.
Improved trail performance is the obvious outcome, but it's actually the beginning rather than the end. Building physical capacity creates a cascade of benefits:
Injury prevention and healthy aging – maintaining functional capacity as you get older
Enhanced self-efficacy – confidence that extends beyond the bike
Genuine self-care – dedicated time that's actually about your well-being
Mental health benefits – the neurological and psychological effects of consistent, achievable physical challenges
We've come to see mountain biking as a remarkably effective vehicle for broader life enhancement. But that only works when your body is genuinely prepared for it.
FAQ section
You need: a gym mat, 2 tennis balls, 2 resistance bands (a light and a heavy one, or a set of bands so you can fine-tune the resistance as needed), and basic items you likely have; we'll provide alternatives if not.
20-30 minutes, 3 to 4 times per week. Sustainable rather than heroic. 🦸
Each week, you get:
one follow-along strength session (15–20 minutes)
one follow-along coordination session (15–20 minutes)
And the goal is to do each of these once or twice per week.
Both sessions include 3-4 exercises, each with three difficulty levels, so you can work at your current level and progress over time.
The core program runs over 6 weeks, giving you a clear, structured pathway to build your foundation. After that, you keep lifetime access.
Why? Well, life happens...busy periods, travel, time off the bike. With lifetime access, you can return to the program whenever you need to rebuild, maintain, or progress to the next level.
This is not a “finish once and forget” program. It’s designed to be repeated, not completed.
That's precisely who we designed this for. The progressive levels ensure appropriate entry points. If you feel like you "should" be working out, but don't know where to start, this is your start.
The progressive structure allows you to work within your current limitations.
But of course we recommend consulting your healthcare provider and asking if you're allowed to train your coordination and strength without using extra weights.
Probably not 🙂 This program is an introduction to strength and coordination training. It’s designed for riders who don’t yet have a solid foundation in MTB-specific strength and coordination, or who struggle to translate general fitness into bike control.
If you already:
train regularly in the gym
feel strong, stable, and well-coordinated
don’t struggle with fatigue, instability, or basic movement control
then this course will likely feel too basic for you.
In that case, you’ll get more value from more advanced strength programs for example The Ride Life App by Liz Koch.
That said, some strong riders still choose to use this course as a reset or movement-quality check, especially if:
skills feel inconsistent despite good fitness
tension or overuse issues show up on long rides
But as a rule:
This course is meant to be a starting point, not an endpoint.
We’d rather point you to the right next step than sell you something that doesn’t truly fit.
Well, this is not a generic program. This one's specifically for mountain bikers aged 40+. Every exercise directly relates to bike control and trail demands. So we're not doing anything that won't transfer to more fun and control on the trail. 🤓
You're not repeating it – you're progressing through increasingly challenging levels. The 6-week structure remains, but your training intensity evolves and you can repeat the program as many times as you like.
Exactly that. Access the program indefinitely, returning whenever beneficial. 🙂
Why lifetime access matters: Physical development isn't linear. Life happens – injuries, travel, busy periods. With lifetime access, you can return to this program as often as needed. More importantly, as you master one level, you progress to the next. This program is designed to be repeated, not completed.
Yes, with one condition. If within 14 days of signing up you can send us a video showing that you can comfortably complete the hardest levels of the follow-along sessions of week 1 & 2, we’ll refund you 100%.
Why this condition exists: This course is designed as an introduction and foundation. If you’re already able to perform the highest levels with control, then this program simply isn’t the right fit for you, and we don’t want you paying for something you don’t need.
Just send us:
a short video of you completing the hardest levels
within 14 days of purchase
And we’ll take care of the refund. We’d rather help you find the right next step than keep you in the wrong program. ☺️
Most training programs are designed to be completed once. This one is different. Each exercise includes three to four progressive levels, allowing you to:
Start appropriately: at a level that's challenging but achievable for your current capacity
Progress systematically: moving to more demanding variations as you develop
Return periodically: reassessing and rebuilding after breaks or setbacks
Continue advancing: there's a next level when you're ready and if not, we guide you straight to suitable programs of our partners
This design reflects how adults actually learn and develop physical skills – not in a straight line, but through repeated cycles of challenge and adaptation. Your lifetime access means you can use this framework throughout your riding career.
physical capacity doesn't appear spontaneously, and hoping for improvement doesn't create it. But consistent, appropriately challenging training does – and the research on adult motor learning supports this completely.
🛫 Six weeks establishes your foundation.
📶 Lifetime access ensures you can build on it.
📈 The progressive levels mean you're working at your appropriate challenge level.