In the rapidly-advancing world of cycling and sports nutrition, where things like high carb fuelling have transformed performance over the last few years, there's a new trend emerging: juices.

You may already be familiar with the popularity of cherry juice – maybe you've seen practically every pro drinking a bottle of the crimson liquid at the end of a Tour de France stage.

Packed full of antioxidants, tart cherry juice is a benefit to cyclists because it reduces oxidative stress and inflammation, particularly useful after hard efforts. You can find out all about that in our explainer of why cyclists keep drinking cherry juice.

Cherry may be the most popular fruit or vegetable juice product in cycling right now, but it's not the only one. One of the newest products to hit the market – and the WorldTour – is broccoli sprout juice, first developed and produced by Swedish brand Nomio.

Nomio is led by scientists who also discovered that dietary nitrate – most notably found in beetroot juice – helps improve the delivery of oxygen to the muscles, so they know a little something about harnessing the power of plants for sports performance.

The magic substance in broccoli juice is isothiocyanates, or ITC, which is present in many cruciferous vegetables, and Nomio extract it most potently and efficiently from broccoli sprouts.

After extensive double blind and placebo-controlled testing with endurance athletes, Nomio discovered that ITC use significantly improved how individuals responded to training.

Like cherry juice, the benefit of broccoli juice about oxidative stress. The power of ITC is in how it can help reduce lactate production by up to 12%, according to Nomio and a peer-reviewed study from 2023. This has the effect of reducing stress on the muscles, and allowing athletes to both tolerate higher intensities of training and recover faster, promoting improved endurance and performance.

"Our drink shifts the lactate curve to the right," Nomio CEO Oskar Holmblad explained to Cyclingnews. "Everything else is kept the same, but you can push a little bit harder at the same lactate level."

Though it does also aid with recovery, Nomio is not a strictly post-workout supplement like cherry juice – the brand suggests drinking Nomio before intense exercise to improve performance, or before bedtime to promote recovery during intense blocks.

For cyclists, it's clear to see why all these benefits might be attractive, given cycling is one of the toughest endurance sports out there, so it's no surprise to see how broccoli juice has made its way into the pro peloton.

Nomio did much of their early testing and development with the Swedish national orienteering team, and through them linked up with Swedish Lidl-Trek coach Mattias Reck, who suggested Nomio to Mads Pedersen.

Pedersen was first spotted using Nomio during the Spring Classics – where he claimed victory at Gent-Wevelgem – and has been key in Nomio becoming known in the world of cycling.

"Mattias also has his finger on the pulse, he knows what's happening and he wants the best for his riders, so he talked with Mads about trying the product," Holmblad explained. "And Mads wants to win. He puts in the hours and he feels like anything that can help him win, he wants to try."

As well as a benefit to Pedersen, Nomio have benefitted from the partnership too, learning a lot about the power of the product for cyclists through the Dane.

"We've done pretty extensive tests with Mads – he's been pretty generous with providing us with data – and he sees a 15 to 20 watt increase across all power zones, and he does that from one acute shot," Holmblad explained.

As well as the one-off use, Holmblad sees major benefits for cyclists using the product long-term, in a rare sport that has events as long as Grand Tours.

"You can also imagine that in the Giro or the Tour or the Vuelta, when riders are going on for 21 days, that the benefit of drawing less lactate is also that you use less glycogen. For the sprint part, that also means that you've consumed less of your power, and also that over the course of 21 days, you don't get as fatigued."

Nomio don't say that their product is cycling's next wonder fuel, but they're clear that it has proven, usable benefits for cyclists, especially those who are always looking for the next tiny gain.

"With Mads, we don't want to overstate what the drink does," Holmblad said. "Obviously it has great effects, but 99.9 per cent of what he achieves is obviously down to his own training and his own determination. But in terms of marginal gains, it's very interesting how our product works. Alongside other products like nitrate, bicarbonate or beta alanine, we can show from the data that the product actually works."

The appeal of natural performance enhancers

In a sport that has often been accused of being over-medicalised with synthetic drugs or supplements, there seems to be a growing interest in natural, food-based products right now. Whether that's cherry or broccoli juice, or the new salmon-based recovery product from Unbroken, these naturally derived products are gaining popularity in cycling.

There are probably many reasons for this – perhaps fear of contamination of supplements in pill form, or just pragmatic performance factors – but one is certainly how normal juices seem. Cherry juice products tend to be made up of a handful of ingredients alongside the fruit, and Nomio has just three: broccoli sprouts, lemon juice, and sugar.

This also helps the usability of Nomio, as they have found the product to be extremely easy to drink and digest, whereas even glucose gels take some getting used to for a person's GI system.

"I guess part of the appeal is that it's a tangent to a very regular diet where people eat broccoli, it's just that we jam-pack a small shot with lots of broccoli," was Holmblad's take on the rise of plant-based supplements.

"And it feels very natural. It doesn't feel synthetic; it feels like something you would drink in the course of your regular meals. So I guess that's the general appeal with beetroot and nitrates and spinach and rocket, et cetera, it's the same. It's like 'it should give me an effect, but if it doesn't give me an effect, there's no harm done.'"

On the topic of contamination, which several high-profile athletes have fallen foul of in recent years, Nomio is also safe in the knowledge that the production line of a juice product is much safer.

"There are stories of pill factories in Europe where there's cross-contamination with this and that, but contaminants in our factory would be like pineapple or kiwi," Holmblad said. "So from a contamination point of view, it's basically what your morning orange juice is, just turbocharged."

What next for broccoli juice?

It's clear that broccoli juice has not yet caught on in the same scale as cherry juice, but that's not to say it couldn't, with professional teams constantly searching for the newest and best innovations in nutrition.

For the scientists at Nomio, cultivating a great product that works is obviously the primary win, but as a commercial company, the brand wants to grow, as well as spreading the benefits of broccoli sprouts.

"We are testing with quite a few of the WorldTeams, and we're seeing growing interest," Holmblad said. "Obviously, Mads has been super helpful in helping to increase the awareness in the sport, and given his success this year, I would be surprised if not everyone's using it by the end of the season or early next.

"I believe the teams have jumped on it quickly because you feel the effects in no time. It’s super easy to use, no one has any issues with it, and in the event it ends up not doing much for you, the one 'downside' is that you’re getting a load of broccoli in your system – which I don’t think anybody sees as a particularly bad thing."

Nomio added a second cyclist to their list of pro consumers, with Sweden's Caroline Andersson (Jayco AlUla) also now using the product and sharing how she includes it in her training.

Exploring other products and supplements may also seem like a next step for a nutrition brand, but for now, Nomio are quite happy to have one very strong product rather than several less developed ones.

"We're not going to put a second product on the market before we have something that is absolutely unique and something that only we can do," Holmblad said.

"So our science team is still researching in nature and in the world for stuff that can help, but we're not particularly interested in dabbling in caffeine or beta alanine or bicarb, stuff that's already out there.

"At this point, we're just focusing on making our product the best it can be."

Over the years, technological advancements have played an enormous part in helping athletes optimise their training and maximise performance. The tools and technologies most of us are familiar with today, such as training with power meters, were once a foreign concept reserved for professionals. However, just as quickly as technology trickles down to the masses, new concepts are introduced, helping the fastest get faster. 

One of the latest technologies to sweep through professional cycling is continuous glucose monitoring. The small sensors you may have seen applied to the triceps of riders from Team Ineos, Jumbo Visma, Canyon SRAM and Qhubeka Assos, are continually gathering data about a rider's level of interstitial glucose, helping them to understand how their body reacts to fuel and how this is affected by different types of fuel. This information provides an extra piece of the puzzle to help a rider - and their performance directors - understand at what level the athlete performs at the best, and an everyday view of how efficiently a rider burns fat versus carbohydrates. 

The technology was created by health-technology company, Abbott. Its Freestyle Libre sensor was launched to the public in 2014, and is widely used by diabetics to remove the need for routine finger pricking. The sensor, which measures blood glucose levels continually, is applied to the arm and pairs via Bluetooth with a reader or an app that can graph out the user's blood glucose levels over time. 

Taking this technology and applying it to performance enhancement is Supersapiens founder Phil Southerland, who has been a Type 1 Diabetic since childhood. 

Southerland is a keen cyclist, and with regular blood glucose testing, has defied doctors' orders to lead a healthy and successful cycling career. He is also the founder of Team Type One, an organisation of over 170 athletes with Type 1 diabetes; and Novo Nordisk, the UCI ProTeam that was prominent in the breakaway at Milan-San Remo this year. 

In his own words, monitoring glucose for health could also become monitoring glucose for performance and, in 2006, he competed in the Race Across America (RAAM), as part of Team Type One. The team was given early prototypes of the continuous glucose monitoring sensors and went on to win the eight-person open race. The following year, Team Type One won the race again, breaking the record in the process. 

With the knowledge gained from a lifetime of learning, Southerland believes that this concept of glucose for performance isn't exclusive to diabetics, and that all athletes can benefit from tailoring their sugar strategy. 

There's certainly truth in the matter. Glucose is key to performance and correct fuelling is one of the most underused so-called marginal gains, but is Supersapiens' continuous glucose monitor really the solution? 

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The sensor

The sensor itself is circular, 35mm in diameter and 5mm thick. The outward face is white, while the face that touches the skin is clear and ridged. Inside, there's a circuit board, a small battery, an NFC chip, Bluetooth sensor, and a small amount of onboard memory. It's to be worn on the back of your upper arm.

If any part of this review will put you off using continuous glucose monitoring, it's the fact that protruding from the inner face is a 5mm long filament that, for the entire time you wear it, will poke through your skin and into your arm. This filament is flexible, is approximately the width of a couple of hairs, and it's genuinely pain free. According to Southerland, the risk of infection is small - less than one per cent - would only lead to light irritation and a small bump on the skin, and is vastly reduced by cleaning the area prior to application. 

The sensor sticks to the skin using a dual-sided sticky patch, which comes pre-applied to the sensor. If you're worried about it coming loose, a second, larger sticky patch is available that can be applied over the top. For my first sensor, I wore the second sticky patch - I didn't trust that it would remain in place without it - however upon trying to remove the sensor at the end of the 14 days, it became clear that my concerns were unnecessary, as it was still well and truly secure. For the second sensor, I forewent the second patch. The only reason I can see someone needing to wear the second patch is anyone in regular physical contact with others - I'm thinking rugby players - where rough contact could pull the sensor from the skin. 

No IPX rating is given by Supersapiens but the Freestyle Libre 2 sensor - also made by Abbott for diabetics - is given a rating of IPX7, meaning it's suitable for submersion to a depth of 1m for 30 minutes. My presumption is that the Abbott’s Libre Sense Glucose Sport Biosensor used by Supersapiens is made to the same rating, and during testing I showered, bathed and sweated on the turbo trainer without any issues with the functionality of the sensor or the stickiness of the patch holding it in place. 

According to Southerland, the onboard memory is good for around eight hours of data, although I've found it to max out at around 7.5 hours. This means there's regularly a gap at night, but this is the point at which blood glucose is at its most stable, so I don't feel these gaps in data create any gaps in insight. 

The sensor then remains active within the app for 14 days before it expires. This expiry is set on a timer, so all the battery needs to do is last the 14 days, which it does. 

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The application

Application itself is really straightforward. When you first do it, there's a short learning curve, but the Supersapiens app has both video- and article-based walkthroughs which are clear and easy to understand. 

With each sensor comes an applicator, which is a handheld device that you use to extract the sensor from its pouch, then push down and apply the sensor to the skin. Placed centrally in the applicator is a needle that is around 8mm long and 1mm thick. This needle is used to prick the skin and provide entry for the filament, and once it's done its job, it retracts to within the applicator for safety. To reiterate, the needle itself doesn't stay in the skin. 

If you're anything like me, the needle will seem ominous but the actual prick is surprisingly pain-free. For my first application, which you can watch in the video below, the apprehension was high, the prick of the needle was almost non-existent, however, there was an unexpected pain afterwards when I moved, which faded within five seconds. For my second sensor, this post-application pain was non-existent. 

There is a slight risk - around 1.5 per cent - of hitting a nerve upon application, which Southerland says would lead to a mild discomfort for a couple of days. I have a feeling this happened with my first application because of that post-application pain, but also due to occasional tingling sensations I experienced for a few days after. As it was my first ever experience with such a sensor, I assumed it was par for the course, but I didn't experience any such feelings with the second sensor. 

Removal

At the end of the 14-day period, your sensor will expire within the app, so you'll need to remove it and apply another. The removal process is just like pulling off a plaster. For me, despite the filament being pulled from the skin, there was no pain, bleeding, or marks left behind.  

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Supersapiens app

Upon application, the sensor will need to be paired to the app. This is a simple case of scanning it using the NFC capabilities of your smartphone - as if paying using contactless in a store - and then it takes an hour to gather data before it becomes visible within the app. 

The main tab within the app is called 'Live'. This comprises your live blood glucose level, which becomes visible as soon as a Bluetooth connection is established. It is measured in mg/dl (milligrams per decilitre) and ranges from 55, maxing out at 200. According to Southerland, there are two ideal levels for each individual: 'Off-hours', which is the blood glucose level at rest, which Supersapens calls the 'off-hours target range', and 'on-hours', which is during exercise. Due to the needs of the body, the blood glucose level during 'on-hours' periods will be higher, this range is coined by Supersapiens as the 'Glucose Performance Zone'.

When a Bluetooth connection exists between phone and sensor, the data is measured minute-by-minute. Without a live Bluetooth connection, the sensor will continue to measure your data, but at 15-minute rolling averages, and store it in its onboard memory. You can then transfer this by scanning the NFC chip with your smartphone. 

It will continue to collect live minute-by-minute data when you minimise the app or put your phone away assuming it remains within range and bluetooth remains switched on. Closing the app will lose the connection and revert to those 15-minute averages. 

Below this is a timeline of your mg/dl value over time, onto which you can overlay events such as workouts and 'life' events such as meals, fasting, sleep and periods of stress. Adding these events is straightforward, albeit slightly clunky, and you can add notes, tags and more to enable you to compare them later down the line. At the moment, there are no integrations with third-party apps, but Southerland tells me that the brand is working on integration, so I predict it's only a matter of time before things such as your Strava activities or MyFitnessPal meal tracking becomes seamless. Likewise, there's not currently any integration with the best cycling computers, but Southerland suggests this is in the works too, meaning your data will be visible in real-time whilst riding, without having to open the app on your phone. 

Across from the Live tab is 'Insights'. This page begins by supplying information on today's exposure to glucose, before offering up detailed reports on historical exposure. With averages over set periods of time (day, week, month, etc), as well as information about your typical variability (how much your mg/dl value fluctuates), and your zones. 

The third and final tab is called 'Events', and this allows you to see your events ordered in a list. From here, you can select and compare events against others, allowing you to overview how your blood glucose level responds to different meals or different exercise intensities. With the compare feature, you can see data during the event, as well as pre-event glucose loading. 

Everyone will react to fuel differently and perform best at a slightly different level. However, there are general best practices that we can all benefit from. In medical terms, anything below 72 is considered hypoglycaemic, while anything above 125 (while fasting) is considered hyperglycaemic. The average for non-diabetics can be anywhere between those numbers, with men typically averaging around 106mg/dl. I have averaged 110mg/dl throughout my four-week test. Anyone who knows me will attest to the fact that I eat a lot of sugar, so this serves as a reassurance that the sensor is accurate. 

So what's the point? 

With all the technological advancements in cycling that are designed to make you go faster, such as aero helmets, waxed chains and skinsuits, there are few that yield greater results than consistently fuelling your workouts correctly. 

The human body can typically store enough glycogen for around an hour's worth of high-intensity exercise, and beyond this, it can metabolise around another 90 grams of carbohydrates per hour (with 2:1 glucose to fructose ratio) although recent research suggests the 30g fructose can be pushed higher. Nonetheless, under fuelling will quickly lead to reduced performance. 

During 'on-hours', Supersapiens claims there's a tangible performance benefit to maximising the time spent within your ideal blood glucose performance zone without under- or over-fuelling. 

During 'off' periods, this can be just as important. Dropping below 70 mg/dl is said to impede your ability to replenish your muscle glycogen, and spiking above 140 mg/dl has been associated with inflammation, so remaining within these parameters is key to maximising recovery. 

How Supersapiens can help

By continually monitoring your blood glucose, Supersapiens enables the understanding of your body's typical range, how different foods affect it, and what level you feel you perform best at (your glucose performance zone). To use the cliche saying, knowledge is power, and by continually monitoring your blood glucose and plotting it onto a timeline, Supersapiens provides that knowledge. 

In order to get the best insight into the potentials of the Supersapiens continuous glucose monitor, I spoke with Javier Gonzalez, lead performance nutritionist at Ineos Grenadiers, who has been using the sensor on riders since January this year. 

"When [a rider is] exercising, they're burning a mixture of carbohydrates and fats, and the carbohydrate will be coming from their muscle glycogen stores, their liver glycogen stores, and the food that they're eating. These devices measure interstitial glucose, which is the glucose level in the circulation, and that will reflect the amount that's coming from what they're eating, and also from their liver glycogen stores that are being broken down. So it gives us a little bit of a window into one of the fuel sources that they have available during the session. 

"If they're eating, or if they're doing different types of sessions, then that will influence the fuels they're using. And we can get a bit of a snapshot from the glucose levels as to what's going on with their metabolism."

The real-time, yet continuous nature of the sensor lends itself to being used in a wide range of scenarios, from highly controlled lab testing to passive monitoring in everyday life. Gonzalez explains a few ways in which Ineos is using Supersapiens to gain insight into its riders. 

"We do some very specific controlled, almost little experiments if you like, in training to understand how riders might respond to different fuelling strategies, it might be that they change the timing with when they eat, or it might be new products that we're trying out to see that how that affects their blood-glucose level. 

"One of the tests we've done is we get riders to do a training session without ingesting carbs. And we can see how that in one of the sessions, their blood glucose will drop. When they are better adapted to some of the lower carb sessions, then they should be able to maintain their blood glucose level for longer without needing to take onboard carbs.

"But then the other way is just monitoring and understanding. We know that if you don't fuel enough in prolonged sessions, then one of the causes of fatigue can be a low blood glucose level hypoglycaemia. So if a rider is fatigued, then we can understand if [low blood glucose] was a potential cause, or we can rule it out to know it must have been something else."

What's clear is that Supersapiens is not an app for the passive and it won't simply feed you actionable insights for free. The app is not a coach, it's a tool to be used. Think of it in the same way you think of a power meter, in that both will simply be expensive random number generators until you use the data they provide to optimise your training. To that end, throughout the test period, I used the Supersapiens app to try to learn about my body in various ways. 

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My own testing

The first test I performed was a gauge of how my body responds to three different fuels. Glucose, fructose, and a 2:1 combination of both. To normalise the result, I ensured I consumed the same breakfast and lunch on all three days. Of course, this is very two-dimensional, and given more time, you can test all sorts of foods, in varying quantities, with different timing strategies. 

Finding the 'Glucose Performance Zone'

This test is recommended by the Supersapiens app as a method to find your glucose performance zone. The goal is to repeatedly perform the same workout, varying your fuel strategy each time and making a note of how hard it felt. You can then compare your perceived exertion with your blood glucose levels, and get an idea of what level you perform best at. 

Pre-workout fuelling

It's widely accepted that a pre-workout meal should be ingested approximately three hours prior, but exactly what you eat in your pre-workout meal is equally important to the timing. An example given in the Supersapiens blog outlines a theoretical situation of an athlete:

"What he eats on the morning of the race is also critical. Say he wakes up glucose loaded at 105 mg/dL, indicated by his Trailing Average Glucose data. Then he eats a super high-carb meal. His glucose will spike. Depending on his insulin response, this could potentially bring his glucose levels down below the 105 mg/dL he started with. Alternatively, his glucose level may have risen to 140 mg/dL and be sustained there because the body is slow to respond. Which response will occur? The only way to know exactly how his body reacts to what he eats, without it being a guessing game, is to continuously measure his Live glucose levels and learn his unique body’s response to what he eats. With this information, he could have eaten a meal that provided a stable and sustainable glucose rise, keeping him in the optimal fuelling range."

To try and quantify the difference between a fuelled and unfuelled workout, I performed the same workout before breakfast on two separate days. 

The workout was one hour long and comprised 2 x 20-minute efforts at FTP. The first time was unfuelled, while the second was fuelled by 90 grams of carbohydrate, as well as a high-carb meal in the evening beforehand.

Given the duration of the exercise, I doubt the in-event fuelling made too much difference, and there's a potential placebo effect occurring, since I was aware which of the two rides was fuelled. However nonetheless, the first ride was a real struggle, and it's clear from the workout graph that I soon had to reduce the resistance of the turbo trainer. The second workout was still tough, but as a possible result of being better fuelled, I was able to hold FTP for a longer duration. 

Optimised 'off hours'

Outside of exercise, Supersapiens claims the 'off-hours' can also be optimised. This is more a best practice than a test, but with enough time, data and attentiveness, you can get an idea of what levels you need to sustain in order to recover adequately. However, for a non-diabetic, it's worth remembering that the body is efficient at regulating itself, so unless you are truly restricting your calorie intake (or the opposite, and you really really like ice cream), then your body should be pretty adept at self-optimising.  

Is a Supersapiens continuous glucose monitor a valuable addition to your training?

With all this in mind, using the Supersapiens continuous glucose monitor to identify your own glucose performance zone is a highly individualised and long process. According to Southerland, more than 40 different things can affect blood glucose (fatigue, freshness, exercise frequency, metabolic rate, caffeine, fuelling, previous day's exercise, etc). It's extremely tough to control every aspect of life in order to definitively test a single change in strategy. 

Gonzalez spends plenty of time in a laboratory testing athletes for research purposes, and in this setting, he attempts to control as many factors as possible. 

"We control as much as we can. We've considered the temperature of the room, sleep patterns before, diet for 24 or 48 hours before, the amount of training they do, and another physical activity in the two days before they would come into the laboratory. And then in the lab, they're lying still, we're controlling everything really, really precisely."

However, an even greater number of factors can affect performance and rate of perceived exertion, so to normalise everything to a point that glucose strategy can be considered the single reason for an increase in performance is impossible. For this reason, I personally see the future of Continuous Glucose Monitoring being something that is worn by an athlete but monitored by a coach because, in order to interpret the data effectively, it takes a sound knowledge of the factors at play. There are various videos and blog posts built into the app which go some way to explain the science, but the team at Supersapiens is clearly aware of the opportunity that lies in high-performance coaching plans, as Southerland explained that the brand is building a Coaches University. 

For those that choose to go it alone, there's a steep learning curve ahead. From learning the ins and outs of the app itself, to learning the various terminologies and what's considered normal. That's before you get started trying to learn your body's response to sugar, at which mg/dl you perform best, and so on.

The price

Pricing ranges from €65 to €80 per sensor, depending on how many you choose to buy at a time. A pair of 14-day sensors, suitable for 28-days of testing will set you back €160.00. A three-month training pack (7 sensors / 98 days) will cost €490.00, and a six-month commitment (12 sensors / 168 days) will set you back €780.00 for 12 sensors. Alternatively, a recurring subscription is available, which will see a pair of sensors delivered every 28 days, at a cost of €130.00 every 28 days.  

 Verdict 

The Supersapiens continuous glucose monitor can offer a genuinely useful snapshot into your blood glucose levels, which in turn offers extremely valuable insight into pre-, during- and post-workout fuelling. There are few greater gains than correctly fuelling your workouts, and Supersapiens is one tool that helps you understand and then optimise your fuelling strategy. 

However, with the high price and steep learning curve, it's likely not going to be a short-term commitment for anyone choosing to go it alone, so the greatest gains will likely come to those using Supersapiens at the request of a coach or nutritionist, where professional knowledge can guide the journey. 

Topics: Training Zones, ITB issues and seat position, Early season training regimen

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness (at) cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Training Zones

ITB issues and seat position

Early season training regimen

Training Zones

Good Morning,

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Hank,

There are many valid ways to set up training zones. Here are the zones I use and how to calculate them:

Zone 0, Resting, <60% maximum heart rate
Zone 1, Active Recovery, 60-70% maximum heart rate
Zone 2, Aerobic Endurance, 70-80% maximum heart rate (but at least 5 beats below LT in case LT is low)
Zone 3, Moderate or Tempo, 92-96% of lactate threshold
Zone 4, Hard or Threshold, 97-102% of lactate threshold
Zone 5, All Out, heart rate depends on duration of exercise but will exceed lactate threshold if exercise lasts more than a minute or so

In order to set up zones in this way, you have to test your own personal threshold and maximum heart rates. The effort required to identify your maximum heart rate is of course very hard, so you should check with your physician before doing that test. If the doctor advises against all out effort but allows you to ride hard enough to breath harder, I'd suggest you identify your lactate threshold as your chat-no chat threshold heart rate and then set up zones as follows:

ITB issues and seat position

Hi,

Last year I completed an ironman, and the combination of increased training loads and ramping up of my running I gave myself IT band syndrome on my left knee (and my right IT band got very tight, but didn’t exhibit ITBS symptoms). I took 4 months off all exercise over the off season, and saw a Physio and doing the rehab (focused on VMO and glute strengthening along with massage/stretching of the ITB and stretching of the hips) I saw some improvement in the ITB. Concurrently I have been focusing on overall flexibility via yoga, and my range of movement in my hips has expanded greatly since last year’s ironman.

In February I got back on the bike to get back into bike racing however as I have ramped up my volume and intensity I have noticed the IT band flaring up again and it is now impacting my training.

Last weekend one of the riders in the race I completed videoed the race and I noticed that my hips were wiggling up and down as I peddled much more than the other cyclists in the race. My initial thought is that my seat is too high. If more bike setup details would be useful let me know and I will send them through.

Also is Steve able to recommend any bike fitters in NY City?

Thanks,
James

Steve Hogg says:

G'day James,

ITB issues caused by cycling are always caused by the opposite hip dropping while pedalling. If you are dropping both hips, then both ITB's will tighten to varying degrees.

The cause(s) are always poor function, poor position or any combination of both. Radical positions tend to increase the incidence and sensible positions tend to decrease the incidence for a given degree of functionality.

I cannot recommend a good bike fitter in New York because I have little or no firsthand knowledge of the situation there to comment.

It is probably worthwhile reading this as background info.

Once you've read that, get back to me with any specific questions that you have.

James replies:

Hi Steve,

Thanks for getting back to me. I think I didn't make one thing clear, by racing I meant road bike racing, ie on a standard road bike, cervelo r3 in my case. Not sure if I was clear on this in my original email.

Thanks,

James

Steve Hogg says:

G'day James,

No I didn't realise. The mention of "since last year's Ironman" threw me. Thank you for the clarification. Okay, so you are not stable on the seat and are dropping each hip while riding a road bike, and it is this that is causing your ITB issues. The question of course, is why are you unstable.

Potential answers can be grouped in to 2 categories and the full answer could be any combination from either group. They are:

Functional Factors:

1. If a rider is generally tight in the hips and low back, then the pelvis, hip and lower back on each side tend to work as a unit rather than individually. What typically sets off the chain of neurological inhibitions that result in this are excessively tight hip flexors. How tight are you in the hip flexors, glutes , hamstrings and quad lumborum?

If you are unsure, find out.

If you know you are really tight in those areas, then you have something to work on.

If you are reasonably flexible and functional in those areas, then either your feet are the problem or part of the problem, or what follows is to blame.

Regarding the feet; if you have less than wonderful feet functionally, then that will theoretically impose a lateral or rotational load on one or both knees while you pedal. At a level below conscious thought, humans are generally really good compensators which in turn means that we are adept at shifting the load. What hurts is the part of the body least equipped to bear that compensatory load, which in this case if your ITB's. Three links following will give you a good grasp of foot correction so that you can decide whether that is the issue.

-Arch Support
-Wedging
-Shimming

What follows is a word I dislike. "Core Strength". In simple terms, if you are reasonably functional and have a reasonable position on the bike and are still having stability issues on the seat, then your ability to apply force to the pedals (peripheral load) is greater than your ability to resist the application of that force (central stability). If you are in doubt about your core abilities, go and see a Functional Trainer and find out.

What remains are the Positional Factors:

1. The most common problem I see is too high a seat height. Probably 80% of my fit clients leave with a lower seat height than the one they arrive with. Much more about this here.

2. Seat set back is the next thing to tackle. If you seat is too far forward or too far back, the rider will not be stable on the seat. You are unstable on the seat, though we don't know why yet. More here;

3. Cleat position affects everything we do on the bike. Every pedal down stroke is a potential challenge to on seat pelvic stablity. My experience is that most riders give only cursory attention to cleat position and that oversight is a major cause of problems of all sorts. More info here:

4. Bar position. If you have to reach too far out or too far down to the bars, there will be an increased tendency to pelvic instability. More about this here.

Once you've worked your way through that, please let me know how you get on.

Steve Hogg says:

Early season training regimen

I am a dedicated roadie from the Midwest who is in his early 60’s. during the season I average 100-180 miles per week and am a B+/A- rider. Like a lot of us, I have done spinning and weights 2-3 times a week in the off season. Now that there is a spring thaw, I am hitting the road, but need some advice on the transition from gym to road. Normally I can do a 50-80 mile distance ride without problems, but what distance do I start with? 45 miles, 60 or what? While spinning does a good job of simulating riding, I can only do 1 1.2 to 2 hours before I am about to die of boredom. Also, once one is back on the bike there are certain muscles or combination of muscles that you just don’t use indoors. Don’t forget about your sit bones and reawakening those callouses.

There is a plethora of advice for going from hibernation to the road, but what about us who have worked hard to try to preserve on legs from the winter doldrums? You input is appreciated.
Mark

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Mark,

As a general rule it's always safe to go about a half hour longer than your recent routine longest ride, so if you've been doing 2 hour trainer rides, I'd suggest you start with 2:30 outdoor rides. When you've gotten a few of those and at least a week of rides in, go for 2:45s and so on, adding about 15 minutes per week to the longest ride until you are up to your usual distances.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Leg and knee pain deriving from ITB/Sciata issues, Max HR and age, Benefits of Spin Classes, Pushing yourself “over the top” – pros and cons?, Knee Pain and Q-Factor, Scott Saifer versus Chris Carmichael, Differences in thigh sizes, Asthma affecting HR zones?, Disappointment with results

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness (at) cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Leg and knee pain deriving from ITB/Sciata issues

Max HR and age

Benefits of Spin Classes

Pushing yourself “over the top” – pros and cons?

Knee Pain and Q-Factor – a thorough response from Steve Hogg

Scott Saifer versus Chris Carmichael

Differences in thigh sizes

Asthma affecting HR zones?

Disappointment with results

Leg knee pain deriving from IT Band/Sciata issue?

Hi, I have a problem which is really limiting my riding and becomes very painful. Hope you can offer some advise with it.

I'm 35 and have been riding and racing over 20 years. I currently race at Cat3 level in the UK, just doing a handful of races a year.

All my riding over the winter has been and is quite steady state, about 60 to 70% Max HR.

About 3 weeks ago I was 2 hours in to a 3 hour ride, when I started getting a pain on the outside of my right knee.

Since that ride it has continued to be a problem, it's starts hurting once I get to about an hour, although the harder I push the sooner it starts hurting, by an hour and a half it is very painful and I literally can't ride any more. Today I crawled back at 10mph such was the discomfort.

I thought it might be IT band syndrome, but I think it's too far back, as in further around the side of the knee and into the very top/outside of the calf. It also kind of runs down my lower leg and down the outside/front of my shin.

It almost feels like what I imagine a sciatic pain would be like.

I've been to my usual physiotherapist twice and my chiropractor 3 times since it started. They both seemed to think it could be tight muscles. But no amount of massage, ice or stretching seems to help.

There was no injury or change in equipment before this painful niggle started.

I am desperate to train to get fit for racing, but am lost as to what to do to try and fix the situation. Any suggestions?

Matt.

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Matt,

I'll say at the outset that I don't know exactly what is hurting. However, here's a 'To Do' list to check off. Firstly, check the condition of your cleats. If they are badly worn, or worse still, if a bevel has been worn on them (SPD SL, Look Keo or similar three bolt Look clones) then that may be enough to explain the onset of the problem. If so, replace the cleats.

Also check the condition of the pedal platform. Have any depressions been worn on the upper surface of either pedal where it is contacted by the cleat?

If so, on either pedal, replace the pedals. If they are worn to the point where your cleats are not contacting them squarely, again, this can cause sundry problems.

Has anything else changed? Equipment, diet, stress levels etc?

Has the weather been colder than usual causing you to wear more layers of knicks etc?

Let me know how you get on.

Max HR and age

Hello,

I'm a 44 year old male who last raced/rode 15 years ago. At that time my maximum heart rate was 197 (I watched it go from 202 down to 197 over a 5 year period). From what I understand, MHR decreases by about 1 per year starting at about the age of 10. I was hit by a car last year and suffered some spinal compression fractures and started riding again this winter as part of my recovery (not really relevant). I'm not riding hard now and have been riding mostly below 145 bpm for the last 6 months. Based on the above formula, my maximum would be around 185 now.

A few weeks ago I ran into a group ride and rode with them for a few miles before I turned off. At one point someone went a little hard and I felt I may be going anaerobic so I glanced down thinking I'd see my HR in the low to mid 170s. I was surprised to see 180 as I was just starting to get that little burn (plus we were talking). I'm experienced in wearing the HRM and have a very good understanding of how my body feels based on RH. To get to my question, is there any way that my MHR is much above the estimated 185? If so, how is this possible? I'm almost willing to accept that adrenaline may have made it seem easy.

I'm going to be racing in June so I'll find out for sure, but I'm curious as I'm starting to build my racing fitness now.

Thanks.

Michael

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Michael,

The loss of one beat per year off maximum heart rate is a population average for fit people, sedentary people, sick people... everyone. Within that population there are people who lose more and people who lose fewer beats over the years. In particular, if you separate out people who train from everyone else, the loss is closer to 1/2 beat per year than a whole one. That means your maximum heart rate could now be around 188 and you'd still be "normal", and again, there are plenty of people whose maximum heart rates don't drop as quickly.

Benefits of Spin Classes

Hello Panel,

I've recently joined a spinning class and am wondering if anything I do in the class will make me a better recreational road cyclist. What I believe is somewhat unique about this class is that the entire 60 minute session is spent in the standing position - with a focus on the "pulling up" of the pedal and not the pedal stroke down. Most of the time the stationary bike has very little resistance and we spin at a high rate. It's also fairly straightfoward and not filled with dance moves or push-ups on the bike. It is a rather fast paced class and I find my HR to average in high Z4 territory (with 20-30 minutes in Z5) and I have reached a higher max HR than I ever have on a road bike. However, that specific burning sensation that comes with sprinting up a hill is nowhere to be found - which makes me wonder what exactly am I getting out of this? Is this intense activity a good use of my energy?

David

Scott Saifer says:

Hi David,

Whether this class is beneficial depends on how developed you are as a cyclist and how much you are doing it. If you have done very little riding, anything you do on a bike will make you stronger. If you have a lot of miles in your legs, training needs to be more specific to be beneficial. If that's your category, such a class might be beneficial once a week or so, but not all the time. The deal is that while the muscles that pull up on the pedals are important, and you can't help pushing down with the front leg if you are standing, the movement you are doing is not that similar to how you ride most of the time.

You won't get a burn if your cadence is high enough and resistance is low enough that you are using all low-force, high-endurance slow-twitch muscle fiber.

Pushing yourself “over the top” – pros and cons?

Panel,

I'm wondering if there are training benefits to "over the top", hard rides.

I'm a reasonably fit 45+ rider who does some cyclocross racing and competitive rides during the rest of the year. I ride about 7-12 hours per week pretty consistently and I think I do a good job of mixing endurance with power and climbing for my cycling goals.

My question is in regard to those training rides where I find myself with a group of fitter racers and may end up in serious physical distress (pain and inability to turn legs any faster at best, vomiting or brief loss of vision at worst) while trying to hang in with the group on rides between 2 and 4 hours. I think most riders have been in this situation; over their heads on a hard ride and repeatetly going over the top of their fitness limit. I'm not talking here about dehydration or bonking - just over exertion. This type of situation happens to me about once a month. I do not sustain any injuries (i.e. joint of soft tissue problems) from this, but I will feel terrible after the ride and basically be unable to do anything productive until I eat and rest.

Here's the question - is there any training benefit to this? Or is this damaging and counterproductive?

Thanks,

Matt

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Matt,

Go til you blow! That's the ticket to short term fatigue and longer term growth. Going as hard as you can until you can't any more is a good way to improve your endurance for super hard efforts, and, since it challenges recovery, your recovery. It won't make you faster, but it will make you able to hold you 2-3 minute speed for a few more minutes. In that sense it is good. Now, if the guys you are riding with are not killing themselves the way you are, you will NEVER catch up with them physically if you are doing this sort of riding. If you are gasping while others are chatting, being able to gasp longer is not going to let you keep up with them. If you are in that position, you need more aerobic power first, and it is difficult though not impossible to improve aerobic power while draining yourself with anaerobic efforts. Doing the race-like group ride once per month actually sounds perfect if that is your situation.

If you are chatting as long as anyone else is chatting, and then breathing harder only when others are also starting to suffer, you could do one of these rides weekly to improve your ability to hang on and to recover. You do need weekly killer hard rides for 3-4 weeks to "get race legs".

Knee Pain and Q-Factor – a thorough response from Steve Hogg

Panel

Steve Hogg says [with David’s responses in italics]:

G'day David,

So moving from a triple crank to a double crank is the only thing that has changed lately?

Again, I ask because a change in foot separation distance in either direction can sometimes require a different rotational angle of cleat on one or both shoes. For info on how to determine cleat angle see this link

Steve concludes:

G'day David,

Thanks for the detail. So it seems like there are no variables other than the foot separation distance forced on you by the change in cranks. Off the top of my head, your older triple would have had a Q factor of 155mm or thereabouts while your new cranks have a Q factor of 147mm or thereabouts. So 4mm per side difference.

You also mention no problem on your tandem. Tandem cranks are usually a wider Q factor than standard road double chain ring cranks which probably confirms that you are sensitive to too narrow a foot separation distance.

What is the lateral position of your Speedplay cleats?

Speedplays have lateral adjustment potential across the shoe sole of approximately 7mm. If there is potential to move the cleats further inboard (to move the feet further out) on the shoe sole by 4mm per side, then do so and that should solve the problem. If your existing cleat lateral adjustment position doesn't allow you to do that, get hold of some Speedplay plus 1/8" or plus 1/4" pedal axles and fit those to the double chain ring bike and then adjust your cleats accordingly to give you the wider foot separation distance that you seem to need.

Scott Saifer on differences (or not) to Chris Carmichael’s training philosophy

Hey Scott,

"First, I'd never recommend a program that consists mostly of short but hard intervals." – Fitness Q&A 29 February, 2012

Scott seems consistently at odds w/ Chris Carmichael's training philosophy. i think a debate between the two of them would make a good read for the training geeks.

Best,

Bret

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Bret,

In the introduction to his book, The Ultimate Ride, Chris Carmichael ably explains his transition from a push-hard all the time coaching approach to a more moderated approach that looks to get maximum gain without risking burning out the athletes. He talks about how the programs he administered for the Olympic track team burned out lots of talented, committed riders and how he now focuses more on aerobic development, at least when working with road racers. My philosophy is not too far off from the one Chris expresses in those pages.

Differences in thigh sizes

Hi,

Thanks for your very informative Fitness Q&A section, they’re a great read.

Following six months of structured training to prepare for a 250km single day road ride in the high country, I’ve noticed that visually my right thigh is significantly bigger than my left. A tape measure confirmed what my eyes were telling me and the circumference difference just below my glutes is 3cm. Is this unusual and should I be worried? Should I actively try to work the left leg more to compensate for the size (and presumably strength) difference?

During my hilly training rides (150km – 200km) with lots of seated climbing I had my right ITB flare up a couple of times towards the end of the ride causing some mild discomfort. It settled quickly on both occasions with some stretching and rolling of the legs. I completed the 250km ride without any ITB discomfort.

If it helps, I always clip out with my left foot when stopping at lights. I’ve been fitted by a cycling focussed physio who stated I have no leg length difference and had a BG Fit which suggested I had a minor (by a couple of mm) functionally shorter left leg. Both my Specialized road shoes have a 1.5mm varus insole wedge in addition to the 1mm varus sole of the shoe.

Anthony

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Anthony,

A difference in leg size by itself is not something to worry about, but the ITB flares are since they have the potential to get worse and keep you off your bike. Any chance you are sitting off-center or twisted on the saddle? That could cause both issues over time. If you'll say which way you twist, Steve will probably be able to tell you your whole life story and what to do to get everything balanced out.

Steve Hogg adds:

G'day Anthony,

Is it that you have only recently noticed the disparity in thigh diameter, or do you think it is the product of your recent 6 month training block?

Either way, if you have right side ITB issues that are caused by riding the bike I can safely say that you are dropping the left hip while riding. ITB issues caused by riding a bike are always a product of the opposite hip being dropped. The question is why are you favouring the left side?

The possible answer is that functionally short left leg you mentioned. Have you addressed that difference in any way?

If not, you should. If you are dropping the left hip and almost certainly you are, you are reducing the pressure you can apply to the left pedal. Additionally, you are asking the right leg to reach further while the plane of movement of the right hip is constantly challenged. That is quite possibly enough to cause the disparity in size you have noted as well as the ITB problem.

What to do?

The very first thing I would be doing is checking your seat using the info here http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/

By far the most common problem I find with fit clients is that a large majority have too high a seat height. If a rider sits too high, they won't equally overextend each leg. They will compensate asymmetrically because this is the nature of all cycling related compensations for less than ideal position. I don't know that this is your problem, but it is likely and worth checking out.

Perceived effort versus HR zone training for Asthmatics

Hi all,

I have a question regarding HR training for asthmatics.

I'm a 180 pound (and gradually shrinking - down from 220 a couple of years ago) 5'10", 31 year old male and have been training for the past couple of years for triathlons, road races, MTB races, and a few cyclocross races. I'm currently training for my first full IM distance triathlon (After having completed a half IM last October) so I thought I'd get a little more serious about training by heart rate. In the past, I have used a heart rate monitor but have still done most of my running and cycling at 'conversational pace' and relied on perceived exertion to set my effort. I recently used Joe Friel's method to find my Lactate Threshold HR (30 minute all out, average HR over last 20 minutes was 172 bpm on the run and 160 bpm on the bike) and was satisfied about my effort. I am an allergy induced asthmatic (I have poor peak flow and FEV1, on average, but only need a rescue inhaler 1-2x per year), and I have never experienced exercise induced asthma.

Something I have noticed since setting my zones, however, is that my Zone 2 'conversational pace' runs are by no means conversational - I could maybe utter some 2-3 word gasps, but that's about it. I am now running at a much higher effort on my endurance runs, but they've seemed manageable so far. My Zone 2 bike rides haven't changed at all (perceived exertion is on par with HR zone).

My questions are: is it typical for asthmatics to have a poorly calibrated perceived exertion scale on runs, but not bike rides? Is there any reason why asthmatics shouldn't be using Friel's HR zones? Are there other bits of conventional training wisdom that I should be wary about? Should I be trying to improve my lung capacity?

Thanks,

Alex

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Alex,

No one should use an all-out test to determine LT heart rate. Here's why. Riders who routinely train hard can develop the ability to ride heart rates well above LT for extended times. I had a client at one point who could ride a 45 minute race 40 beats above the LT heart rate we measured with a lactate monitor. His performance was poor of course, but his heart rate was up there. It is quite possible that your issue here has nothing to do with your asthma and everything to do with taking too high an estimate of lactate threshold heart rate. In any case, zone 2, conversational aerobic endurance etc rides should most certainly be conversational in pace for asthmatics as for anyone else. If your zone 2 has you out of breath, your zone is set too high.

Disappointment with results

Aloha,

Wondering if you could help me figure something out? Here is some basic information that may help:

Male
62 years old
6'4" tall
215 pounds
Skinsuit, booties, Giro aero helmet
Cadence between 80-85 rpm
20+ years racing experience

Bike
Cannondale Slice
63 cm frame
Aero bars (factory)
Front wheel: American Classic Carbon 50mm with sew ups (140 psi)
Rear wheel: X-Lab disc with sew ups (150 psi)
22 pounds

Conditions
10 miles TT (out and back mostly flat)
Asphalt road (rough)
Half-way 6% hill about 100 yards
~3 mph side wind
75% humidity (Overcast)

I don’t have a power meter or heartrate monitor on my race bike. My computrainer power threshold for a 10 mile TT is between 280-310 watts. During the race I started conservatively for the first 1.5 miles, then slowly ramped up the speed. Based on my threshold, I thought I should have had a much better result. I was wondering if you could help me figure out my average power output for the TT so that I could make adjustments. I think I started out much too slow.

Thank you,

Darryl Perry
Lihue, Hawaii

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Darryl,

No, we can't work backwards from the data you've provided to the power you produced, at least not with enough precision to be meaningful. One of the variables to be plugged into the equations would be your coefficient of drag, and there's no way to calculate that without having both speed and power to plug in. If you can get a few data points for speed and power in a no-wind, level ground situation with the same bike, position and kit, we can calculate a coefficient of drag and work back from time in the TT to average power.

One suggestion though: High pressure in your tires makes you faster on glassy-smooth tracks, but slower on rough asphalt. You've put a lot of money into your wheels, and then you are giving the time back with over-pressured tires.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Resuming training after a winter break, Drifting and motorpacing, Losing power over the course of a ride

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness (at) cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Resuming training after a winter break

Drifting and motorpacing

Losing power over the course of a ride

Resuming training after a winter break

Panel,

My winter training season has been going pretty well until recently, when I had to get a minor surgery done. Recovery time from that surgery is about one month, and they recommend staying off the bike for that entire time. Most of my training involves short, but hard intervals. My first question is, how long should I expect before being back to the same level I was before the surgery? How much can performance degrade in one month? Then, when comes the time to train again, should I go back to what I was doing, i.e. short intervals/high intensity, or start again with longer intervals at a lower intensity? In other words, is that break long enough to cause a "reset" in my training program.

Thanks,

Eric

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Eric,

First, I'd never recommend a program that consists mostly of short but hard intervals. Depending on how long and how frequently you've been doing that, you might find that you are stronger after a month off than you were before the break. This is because a steady diet of hard intervals will leave most riders overtrained, so that time off serves as needed recovery time as much as it interrupts training.

A month is the length of a standard rest period at the end of a racing season, after which a racer on a periodized training plan would start base again. A month is long enough to lose most anaerobic capacity, and a substantial amount of endurance capacity. Generally you can expect the endurance and aerobic capacities to return with about 6 weeks of base training. I'd suggest eight weeks of base before starting intervals or other training above 80% of maximum, and then limit that harder training to two days per week, with the rest of your training done as base.

Drifting and motorpacing

Dear Panel,

I am interested to know the advantages of drifting or motorpacing while training. In other terms what are the benefits (if any) of riding at LT/sub LT or Z2 behind a scooter or inside a speeding peloton. In case of a positive difference could you please explain the underlying reasons?

Thank you

Khalil

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Khalil,

There are potential positive benefits of doing a fraction of one's training behind a scooter or in a peloton. First, drafting skills are as important as fitness in massed-start racing. A rider who can draft closely and can make split-second side-to-side adjustments to stay optimally in the draft has a huge advantage over a rider who drafts farther back or doesn't quickly adjust for changing wind direction. Motor pacing is good and group riding is excellent for developing those skills, if the pacing is appropriate to the physiological training needs of the rider.

Second, many riders find it difficult to ride solo as hard as they can ride to keep up with a scooter or group. Riding a particular heart rate, position, power and cadence behind a motor, in a group or solo will give the same training benefits, but if following something makes it possible to ride a steadier hard effort, to sustain a hard effort longer or make a harder effort than one could riding solo, then following something can be beneficial a day at the appropriate pace and the appropriate points in the training cycle.

For riders who are moderately strong, group riding can provide adequate motivation to hard training. If one rider is much stronger than everyone else in town, group riding may not provide adequate challenge to simulate what that rider will find when racing his peers. Such a rider is a good candidate for motorpacing if he is not easily motivated to work hard.

Be careful with motorpacing and group riding to be sure that the pace is appropriate to training goals. If the pace of these sessions is hard, be sure to allow adequate recovery and don't overload with too frequent sessions.

Losing power over the course of a ride

Hi

I have a question about training and losing power during a longer ride:

I am encountering what seems to be a persistent problem with my power output on longer rides. Today i did a 5h ride, and toward the end I couldnt increase my power output and HR. I just couldnt get anymore power out due to my legs feeling dead.

Mt LT threshold is 244w, but the normalized power for the ride was only 156w.

Other stats for the ride

Peak 5m power 228w
Peak 10m 209w
Peak 20m 197w
Peak 30m 194w
Peak 60m 182w

Ryan

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Ryan,

We call that getting tired on a long ride. It's possible that 5 hours is simply beyond your endurance ability but it's also possible that you are making poor gear choices, riding too hard for the distance, not drinking enough or not eating enough to keep youself strong. What is your typical cadence, how do you pace yourself, how much do you drink and eat on a ride, and what?

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Ice baths, Heart rate variation, Seat post slippage, Salt intake

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Using ice baths as part of recovery, a good idea?

Heart rate variations as an older cyclist

Seat post slippage resulting in hip and knee pain?

Salt intake for riding in warmer climates

Using ice baths as part of recovery, a good idea?

I am training for an upcoming century ride and yesterday I cranked (pardon the pun) out over 70 miles. The previous weekend I did a 50 mile ride and afterwards struggled with sore legs and in the following hours got extremely light-headed each time I got up.

Yesterday, I decided to try something that I have read about that some pro teams (Garmin, to name one) do after races. I filled our bath tub about half full of cold water and knelt in it for about 15 minutes. When done, took a shower. Yesterday watching the Super Bowl, I was tired but never got light headed or had sore legs and felt the same this morning. So I think the soaking my legs in the cold water really helped.

What I did also after the ride was to eat a small sandwich thinking that it would help alleviate the potential light-headed drama.

My question is, how long should I soak my legs and is there another way to accomplish this without wasting a large amount of water.

Thanks,

Mark Young

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Mark,

The fancy name for cooling your muscles as you are doing with the cold bath is "cryotherapy" (from "cryo" meaning cold, not what you do when you first lower your body into ice water). There are several methods and reasons for cryotherapy and there is some accumulating evidence for some and against others, so when your buddies tell you that they read that ice-baths "don't work" be sure to ask them specifically what they don't work for.

This is an evolving field with no one best protocol determined yet, but here's what we think we know: Cryotherapy doesn't help with routine "recovery" or mid-event. Cooling muscles makes them weak until they warm up again, so you wouldn't to cool working muscles between closely spaced events. Cooling does help when over-heating is an issue, so cooling other parts of the body as a way to reduce overall body temperature on hot days can support performance. Cryotherapy generally doesn't help with next-day performance unless the prior day's workout was soreness generating, but does reduce next day soreness.

Back to your question: to be effective against soreness, your cooling period needs to be long enough for the cooling to reach the interiors of the muscles that would otherwise become sore. That means that if you are a big guy with massive muscles, you'll need to cool for longer than a small, spindly guy with string-bean muscles.

Having said that, 5-15 minutes is probably long enough for any given muscle. One way to achieve the same end without wasting water is to give you an ice-cube massage. Rub your calves and thighs post-ride with an ice-cube at a time, replacing them as they melt. Keep the pressure moderate, enough to make a depression in the skin, but not hard enough to hurt. I've had good results with 2 large ice-cubes per calf and 4 per quad plus hamstring.

Heart rate variations as an older cyclist

As a cyclist of many years I keep fit spinning but there appears to be a slight problem with my heart rate.

Best regards,

Mike M

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Mike,

Ignore the charts. They are based on population averages and don't take into account people with large, slow-beating hearts or with smaller, fast-beating hearts. There is nothing wrong with a heart rate that rises easily and can be maintained during harder exercise, so long as the heart rate is consistent with the exercise intensity and comes down in a minute or two after you back off exercise intensity.

That is, if you are doing a pace that usually gives you one heart rate and you are suddenly seeing a much higher heart rate, that's a problem. If you exercise and then when you back off your heart rate doesn't drop in a few minutes, then that may well be a problem.

If the maximum heart rate you can hit drops by more than a few beats per year, that's a problem too, but a heart rate that is higher or lower than someone else's for a given effort is not anything to worry about.

Seat post slippage resulting in hip and knee pain?

G’day guys,

When I purchased and picked up my Cervelo S5 last September I also got an excellent bike fitting done that was very comprehensive.

This was my second fit; the first had been done years previous on my old bike, the shop when transitioning to their new system had lost my previous fit data, so this was all new and done using the Specialized BG Fit system.

About two weeks ago, I started to have this pain in the back of my right knee whenever I’d do gluteal extensions (cuff around ankle attached to weights, leg bent and moving leg back). It was this exercise and not the leg curls I was doing that seemed to cause this sensation, although I will admit that towards the end of the last few reps of the leg curls there was some pain, whereas with the glutes it was there from the start, but only the right knee.

I’d also noticed at least on one or two trainer sessions that my hips started to hurt a bit after awhile – that alone should have been the proverbial red flag. Why, because last spring on my old bike, I’d been riding with a seat post that had slipped a few millimeters and experienced the same sensation in my hips.

When I noticed it and raised the saddle back up (tape marked the proper height fyi) the pain subsided. So the other day I was able to free the S5 from its winter trainer prison and go for a 50 mile ride. It felt like my legs were almost slapping my chest, well not quite, but that feeling. I didn’t have any hip pain, but it got me wondering about my saddle height, etc. I rang up the shop and got the measurement for the seat mast/ saddle height and lo and behold it had slipped something like 3 or 4 cm! I readjusted it and noticed a big improvement on the trainer this past weekend.

Chris Wright,

New Hampshire

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Christopher,

Here's a non medical answer from someone who has his own permanent knee issues. Firstly, I don't know how long it will take to pick up where you left off in the gym. In an effort to offer advice, it would help if you knew the exact nature of the injury. "Pain behind the knee" is a general description so I can only offer general advice.

Secondly, be very, very conservative in restarting your gluteal extensions and hamstring curls. Knees are mainly composed of fibrous tissue; ligaments and tendons. These tissues receive very little blood flow and can be quite hard to injure in many circumstances. But the limited blood flow also means that once injured, they can take a long time to recover from.

I would suggest taking the week off as you suggest and then starting your gym routine at half the load you were using. Add load in weekly increments of 10% until you reach the loads you were using pre injury. If you experience pain at any stage of this progression, stop the exercises and see a physiotherapist or sports doc and find out what is going on.

Additionally, use a correction pen to place a mark on your seat post as it emerges from the frame to ensure that if the post slips again, you have a visual indication.

Salt intake for riding in warmer climates

Hi,

I'm 53 and typically ride about 10 - 12 hours per week in a hot climate (Thailand). During my rides I usually consume about 1 bottle of 750ml of fluid comprising a 325ml can of Sponsor mixed with water. The can of Sponsor says it contains 0.07% sodium and 0.02% potassium (plus sugar, etc). Am I consuming enough salt?

Thanks,

Eddie.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Eddie,

The saltiness of sweat and the requirement for salt vary tremendously from athlete to athlete so I can't say if the diluted Sponsor is giving you adequate salt to replace what you seat away during the ride, but it is doubtful. The concentration of sodium in sweat is typically around 0.9grams per liter, or 0.09%. Your Sponsor drink is a little less concentrated than that when consumed full strength, and roughly half that the way you are diluting it. So, assuming you are just replacing the fluids lost during sweating, it is very likely than you are seating away more salt than you are consuming in that drink.

This doesn't mean you necessarily need to consume more salt than riding however. You need to keep the concentration of salt in your body in a narrow range to maintain normal function, but the range does have enough width that if you are eating enough salt over the course of a day, it doesn't matter so much how it is distributed unless you are doing very long rides. That is, if you get enough salt in your off-bike food to replace what you lose on the bike each day, you don't need to worry about replacing salt while you are riding.

The exception to the above rule is if you are riding long enough in hot enough weather to become salt depleted, you'll need more salt during rides. You'd know if you were becoming salt depleted because you'd have symptoms of low blood pressure, the most obvious of which is lightheadedness on standing up after rides. If you do find yourself getting light-headed on standing after rides, take more salt on your rides, either in the form of saltier drink, or adding some salty food to the mix.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Adjusting training after Thyroid problems, Resting and sickness, Pedaling style

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Adjusting training after Thyroid problems

Resting and sickness

Pedaling style

Adjusting training after Thyroid problems

Hi,

I have just been diagnosed with a under active thyroid am on medication and this seems to be working, however I am not training or working at the moment. Can I do anything with my diet to help me from being overtired when I resume training .I am 53 yrs old and try to 150 Mlles a week, plus my full time job.

Regards,

John.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi John,

Most people need a few months to get their thyroid medication dose adjusted. Work closely with your doctor to get the dose that makes you feel most normal. Once your thyroid dose is adjusted, your dietary needs are the same as any other person or athlete.

Resting and sickness

Hi,

After being told to rest by the doctor - I have a cold - I am reluctantly following orders. I wonder though, what do elite athletes do when they have an impending event (race/tour) and become ill with a cold a few weeks before. Do they train through it, or is it also best for them to rest?

Thanks,

Tim

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Tim,

Your doctor is right. Smart pros rest when they are sick, and most of them are smart or they wouldn't be pros. resting a few weeks before a big event is actually a good idea anyway, though not necessarily as deep resting as you would do when sick. If you are feeling at all worn out, achy or exhausted, don't exercise at all. Exercise takes energy away from fighting hte germs and getting you healthy, delaying your recovery. If you feel pretty good except for a sniffle or cough, it's okay to do some short, light exercise, like a 30-45 minute ride at less than 70% of maximum heart rate.

Pedaling style

Panel,

I've read quite a few articles on how to determine one's pedal style and I seem to be a 'heels down' type. I recently moved my cleats back a tad to compensate and this feels optimal, but with one weird observation: It feels like that I am pushing my glutes back into the saddle when I come over the top of the stroke almost as if I rely on the rearward bracing of my seat to apply proper force. Is this normal for heels down people or is my saddle position just that far off?

Thanks,

Karsten

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Karsten,

There are 2 issues here. Firstly, the change is recent and you probably haven't modified your motor pattern (muscle firing sequence) to accommodate the change yet. I would advise not changing anything else for a couple of weeks as it takes this long for old motor patterns to be broken down and new ones to become embedded. How long is individually variable but can be hastened by only riding at low to moderate intensity. Anything above approximately 75 per cent of max HR and you will attempt to fall back into patterns of motion that you are used to, but that won't work perfectly because you have altered your cleat position.

Additionally, read the advice given here.

If after a week or two, the issue you describe doesn't feel natural, then the likely culprits for your need to shove back off the top of the stroke are:

-Seat height too low
-Cranks too long
-Seat too far forward

If you run into trouble, let me know and I will attempt to advise further!

Topics: Food intake/Nutrition, Power differences in pedal strokes, 10 mile time trials

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Food intake/Nutrition

Power differences in pedal strokes

10 Mile time trials

Food intake, nutrition planning

Hi All

Could you please advise best food intake regime prior and post exercise, I'm about to hopefully start shedding approximately 50kgs through both cycling and boxing.

I'm currently working nightshift from midnight until around 8:30am and I plan to train after work then go to sleep.

At present my diet needs changes in both content and quantity but I also need a few pointers with regards to when is ideal for eating and what I should eat at certain times

Appreciate any help you can provide

Thanks

Mark

Pamela Hinton says:

Hi Mark,

Although each athlete's training diet should be individualized to meet their particular needs, a few general principles apply. Obviously, if you want to lose body fat, you must expend more energy than you consume. You can accomplish this both by increasing your training volume and/or intensity and by reducing your energy intake. However, you do not want to short change your body on the fuels needed for training or on the nutrients needed for recovery and training adaptation.

If you are regularly(i.e., multiple times per week) training for more than 90 minutes at a time at moderate-to-high intensity, you need to be sure to be sure that you are eating enough carbohydrate. Here’s the reason that dietary carbohydrate is essential for endurance athletes who train for prolonged periods of time. Our bodies prefer to use carbohydrates and fats (not protein) for energy during exercise. At rest or during low-intensity exercise (<50% of VO2max), the preferred fuel is fat. This fat can come from our diets if we've just eaten or from our fat stores if we're between meals. As exercise intensity increases, our bodies have to shift from fat to carbohydrate to generate energy.

At maximal exertion, we use only carbohydrate. In situations where oxygen demand is high (i.e., high-intensity exercise), carbohydrates have an advantage over fats because less oxygen is required to produce a given amount of energy. Dietary carbohydrate is important because the carbohydrate stored in our bodies as glycogen in the liver (240 kcal) and muscle (1400 kcal) is in limited supply. When our glycogen is gone (usually after 1.5-2 hours of exercise), we literally run out of fuel and have to markedly decrease our exercise intensity (i.e., switch back to using fat).

There are two strategies to prevent depletion of glycogen during
exercise: start with “full” glycogen stores and consume carbohydrate during exercise. To maintain glycogen stores, endurance athletes should consume 6-10 g of carbohydrate per kg of body weight (target body weight) in their usual diet. The pre-training meal should provide 100-300 g of carbohydrates, depending on workout duration and intensity. During a training ride of >90 minutes, the recommended intake is 30-60 grams of carbohydrate per hour. Drinking 16-32 ounces of a commercial fluid-replacement beverage that contains 4-8% carbohydrates every hour would meet this guideline. Most energy gels contain about 25 g of carbohydrate, and these work fine as long as they are taken with water to avoid gastrointestinal distress.

Post-exercise nutrition is focused on recovery, which includes both repletion of glycogen stores and synthesis of skeletal muscle protein.

The optimal way to replete glycogen stores is to consume 1.5 g carbohydrate per kg of body weight (target body weight) within 30 minutes after exercise and again every 2 hours for the next 4-6 hours.

Carbohydrates that are easily digested and absorbed, i.e., high glycemic index, will allow for rapid repletion of muscle and liver glycogen. Exercise increases the rate of protein breakdown and synthesis in skeletal muscle and, with adequate nutrition, it can have an anabolic effect on skeletal muscle. Carbohydrate consumed post-exercise is beneficial because it reduces the rate of protein degradation.

However, to increase protein synthesis and achieve a net increase in muscle mass, it is important to consume protein after exercise. Studies have shown that consuming about 0.2 g of protein per kg of body weight per hour during the first 2-3 hours post exercise results in net protein synthesis.

While these guidelines are by no means comprehensive, they should provide some guidance on pre- and post-training nutrition.

Good luck!

Pam

Scott Saifer adds:

Hi Mark,

Take a look at the article archives here and choose the one called Four Nutritional Plans for Endurance Athletes (http://www.wenzelcoaching.com/Archives.htm). There's a pdf you can download that talks about what to eat before, during, after and between rides to get lean and maintain energy and enthusiasm for training.

Power difference in pedal stroke

Hi

Cheers

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Al,

You can test the theory that you are making different power on the two sides without buying force pedals if you can borrow a Computrainer. They have them in some cycle-training classes. They have a function called "Spin Scan" that lets you compare the two sides of your pedal stroke by giving you a graph of power vs pedal position around the stroke.

You should look to improve your fitness on both sides as much as possible unless the imbalance is causing other problems such as one-sided back-soreness or saddle sores. If asymmetric pedaling is causing problems, you should certainly strive to correct it. Otherwise, make both legs as powerful as possible and don't worry about one doing more work than the other.

Correcting such an imbalance is a many-month process. If there is a significant difference in strength, start by working on that by doing workouts that are challenging for the weaker leg but easy for the strong leg. if you have a lazy leg rather than a weak leg, it is often possible to correct it by such simple maneuvers as focusing on the weaker leg by counting cadence on the down-stroke on that side.

Good luck!

Training for a 10 mile time trial

Hi

I was wondering what would be best way to train for a 10 mile time trial on rollers.

At the moment I work using heart rate, my max is 181, and I try to aim for my average 10 mile time trial rate of 164 beats per minute when I do a training effort.

Guy

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Guy,

I'll assume you are well trained for your other races, with a massive base and structured transition to intensity and that you are going well in your longer races. If any of that is not true, you need to back up and look at the bigger picture again.

Again, assuming you are well trained for road racing, there's not much fitness change you are going to accomplish as you prepare to TTs. Rather, you need to dial in your pacing and gearing strategies. Ideal pacing for a TT allows you to maintain power the whole time, with near exhaustion at the end. Since you are doing the training on rollers, you don't need a power meter to tell you if you are making steady power or not since power and speed correlate perfectly on rollers.

So, pick a heart rate you think will be sustainable for 10 miles. Warm up thoroughly and then hit that heart rate. Note the speed you make after a minute or so and then stick to that speed for 10 miles, if you can. If you can't, start a few tenths slower next time. If you can, start a tenth higher next time. Do this sort of workout no more than once per week.

When as you find the highest pace you can sustain for ten miles, pay attention to the feel as well as the heart rate throughout the session. That's the feel and heart rate you are shooting for in your events.

Make sure you have a huge fan and plenty of cool air blowing over you when doing hard workouts on rollers or a trainer.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Cleat adjustment and knee problems, endurance racing, average heart rate, electrolytes, winter attire, cold knees

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Cleat adjustment and knee problems

Endurance racing, average heart rate

Electrolytes

Winter attire, cold knees

Cleat adjustment and knee problems

I am an avid club rider and have been riding for years with only minimal physical complaints. I was fitted for my bike with Specialized's process and was doing fine. However, I took matters into my own hands one day and moved my Look cleats from their original position (mid to front) to the back position. I did this because I read something about cleat position in an article somewhere and tried this to see how it felt. There were no immediate problems on the bike at all. However, off the bike was a different story. After riding this way for a month or so, I began to experience pain/stiffness in the back of my left knee when rising from a sitting position or from kneeling after a period of time. When I first noticed this, I didn't connect it to the cleat adjustment because of the amount of time that elapsed between changing the cleat position to the onset of pain. I had to think long and hard before I even connected the dots to this. I have since moved my left cleat position back to its original setting. The right cleat is still in the back position since I've not felt any discomfort. However, the pain/stiffness after sitting/kneeling persists behind the left knee. I can stretch my hamstring out and it seems to provide some temporary relief. I did all this back in the summer of 2011 but now, at the start of 2012 I'm still experiencing the same symptoms.

I am considering scheduling an appointment with an orthopaedic doctor to have it examined. Is there any insight you can give me about this that I can share with the doctor to help him zero in on the problem and solution?

Thanks,

John Meehan

Laurel, MD, USA

Steve Hogg says:

G'day John,

This is an easy one. When you moved your cleats back, that reduces ankle movement and also increases leg extension. Did you drop your seat when you moved the cleats further back?

If not, that is the source of your problem. Pain behind the knee on a bike or arising from riding a bike is always overextension of the legs.

Why is it still happening even though you have moved the left cleat back to its original position?
Because you haven't moved the right cleat back to its original position. The right cleat is still causing overextension which you are likely compensating for by dropping the right hip. In turn this means that the left leg is still overextending.

I suggest that you move your right cleat back to its original position as a starting point. If you then want to experiment with cleat position, fine, but drop your seat when you do.

Click these links for more info on setting cleat position, seat height and why your right cleat position is affecting your left leg.

Endurance racing, average heart rate

I'm sure there are numerous factors involved but maybe there is also something simple at work here. I recently completed a 12 hour endurance mountain bike event and my Garmin recorded these lap times and average heart rate for 10 laps (mins per lap/bpm). 56/159, 57/160, 57/157, 57/152, 59/148, 58/146, 59/145, 62/143, 61/141, 63/142. It shows a steady increase in lap times and a steady decrease in heart rate. I do not FEEL l like I slacked off more as the race continued, the later laps certainly felt more difficult than the early ones. There are pits stops after every lap, ranging 3-15 minutes each.

(Recordings of other races and training show very similar increases in lap time with decreases in average heart rates)

So the simple questions are:

1. Do tired legs require less blood flow therefore a lower heart rate?
2. Or is the heart itself fatigued, along with the legs, and it can no longer perform late in the race as it did early?

Any thought and input is greatly appreciated

David Loehrs

Tucson, AZ

Scott Saifer says:

Hi David,

No, your heart doesn't get tired, but as your muscles fatigue it takes more mental effort to maintain the same power output. That's why you feel like you maintained or increased effort but still went slower. In order to make steady lap times in a long race, you have to go gradually harder. What's going on is that individual muscle fibers are making less contraction force as their fuel is depleted and their internal chemistry is changing, so you have to recruit more fibers. Recruiting more fibers means sending nerve impulses to more fibers, which is what you normally do to increase force, so maintaining cycling effort feels like working harder and harder. Your heart rate is dropping because you are not actually maintaining power, and your legs don't need as much oxygen to make less power. If you did maintain power and speed, you'd find that your heart rate actually increased a few beats with time passing due to an effect called "cardiac drift". Cardiac drift is a result of decreased blood volume and therefore less filling of the heart chambers prior to each beat. Less stroke volume means more strokes to deliver the same amount of blood.

Just FYI, if you pace optimally in an endurance MTB race, you feel like you are going super easy the first few laps, then you are working a bit in the middle laps and finally burying yourself at the end, all while maintaining steady power and lap times.

Electrolytes

I live in the San Francisco East bay area. The training, racing, and riding is some of the best in the world. Our Sat rides feature amateurs, current master national champs, pros, world class triathaletes, Olympians…… a tough and very cool crowd.

At 52 years of age I do my best to “cut meat” with these tough men. I often fair well. Over the years I experienced, on occasion, cramping as do many. I have read so much about electrolytes, much contradictory info. One article from Garmen team said that cramping is rarely due to sodium issues.

Spoke to my friend that does bravies and lots of double centuries and he shared with me his special recipe for electrolyte replacement. Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, and Sodium. Thought I would give it a try. My friend says that the distant guys can tell the difference between a sodium cramp and a calcium cramp?

I train often in the Eastern Sierra and high mountains of California to prepare for the Everest Challenge stage race and Halaekala climb in Maui. Last summer I began experimenting with ratios and frequency. The short of it is that once I figured out the correct protocol my ability to train was improved significantly, much deeper.

I learned that perceived fatigue at the end of a 5 hour climbing workout may be from electrolyte depletion and not from having had deeply exhausted your body. Correct replenishment enabled me to go so much deeper in my training that I improved my time on the 2 days of the Everest Challenge stage race by an honest :45:00 with no cramping.

Here’s how I knew it worked: Years previous at Everest cramping was always an issue at the end of the first day (about 16,000’). This time no cramping on the first day, of course I was fatigued but not like completely hammered out shit tired. Good on second day finished well, took 45 min out of my best time overall, did not make the podium though. The following weekend, as usual, I sponsor the Diablo Challenge, a local hill climb 800 + participants, and always try to make a good showing. Lost 2 minutes and 13 seconds to my best time. I was so fatigued from Everest the weekend before that I needed more time to recover. The year before I cramped badly at Everest yet the following weekend I had a personal best on our local climb race, the Diablo Challenge. The big difference between cramping tired and being tired from fully using all your reserves correctly is significant and requires much more time to heal and recover. You can’t get to the deep training if your electrolytes are not correct. Avoiding the cramping enables one to train deeper and get stronger without damaging tissues.

Through this I have learned that everyone has different needs and many factors come into play: Age, type of training, environment, and personal chemistry. And, for a lot of hard core endurance athletes the over the counter electrolyte replacement products are not enough. Each athlete needs a customized program. Electrolyte imbalance can even be fatal!

My question? Is this credible?

Fact or fiction?

Thanks

Brian Gates
Orinda, California.

Pamela Hinton says:

Hi Brian,

Ideally, you'd like to replace electrolytes at the rate they're lost in sweat during exercise. However, that's not possible for sodium because the rate of absorption from the gut is limiting. Nevertheless, the sweat concentration (and rate of absorption for sodium) are the basis for the recommendations. As you know, sweat losses are going to be highly variable among individuals and within an individual depending on acclimitization, environmental conditions, duration of exercise, etc. Although present at much lower concentrations that sodium, athletes who train for prolonged periods of time can lose significant amounts of potassium, magnesium, and calcium via sweat.

Based on the reported concentrations of these electrolytes in sweat, I recommend 500-700 mg of sodium, 80-200 mg potassium, 4-40 mg magnesium, and 30-300 mg of calcium in 1.0-1.5 liters of water per hour. Most of us do not get enough magnesium in our diets. And, in my experience with athletes who suffer from muscle cramps, increasing magnesium intake via food or a dietary supplement to the RDA often helps.

Winter attire, cold knees

Hi,

This question is about winter attire. I'm a collegiate cyclist from northern New Jersey but spend most of my time in Syracuse, NY as a graduate student at Syracuse University. The winters in New Jersey can be pretty cold but in upstate New York they are brutal. If I get out to train for the collegiate season at all, because snow usually prevents me, I subject myself to freezing temperatures.

When the season starts, whether or not I've gotten out, it is likely that the weather will still not cooperate. Last year at a race in Albany, NY it was 22 degrees at the start. The course took us alongside the Hudson where the wind picked up making the temperatures even more oppressive. At this race as in all other races and training rides I rode in shorts. Is this an unhealthy decision? Sometimes my knees look a bit discolored after a ride but I have never felt discomfort or pain before, after, or during. Thanks for your help!

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Trevor,

I've lived in upstate New York and you are right, it gets cold there and stays cold a long time. Cover your knees. I'm not promising you'll an injury if you don't, but a century or more of accumulated wisdom says its a good idea. I've had many clients who's knee problems are cured by keeping the knees warm, suggesting that if they had kept them warm in the first place, they'd not have had problems in the first place. Find some other way to show how tough you are.

Here's the rule: If it's below 65F (18C), put on a layer over your knees. As it gets colder, add layers so that your knees always feel like it's 65F or warmer (some coaches say 70F (21C). I think that's extreme). If you touch your knee skin after a rider, it should not be cold.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Power to weight ratios, Returning confidence levels after a bad crash, Efficient cadence, Balancing aerodynamics and power, Recovering from a shattered femur

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Power to weight ratios

Returning confidence levels after a bad crash

Efficient cadence

Balancing aerodynamics and power

Recovering from a shattered femur

Power to weight ratios

Hey Cyclingnews!

I am a 17-year-old road cyclist and I compete at the highest level for my age nationally. I see a lot of stuff surrounding road cycling in power relative to weight. I’m an all right time trial rider but my real strength is hills, while I don’t have the power of many of the more mature top riders my exceedingly low weight means that on longer climbs (4min+) and steeper ones I can keep up and beat many of the much better all round riders on those hills. This brings me to my point of writing into you guys.

The reason I have such a low body weight is down to three things, my physical maturity, (which I accept will come to pass), my height (173cm) and my extreme lack of upper body muscle volume. I want to know form you guys if it is worth while doing any upper body specific exercises to increase my strength in my Pecs, biceps, deltoids etc... I already do abdominal workouts because I recognize the importance of strength there.

My last note is that sometimes at an exceedingly high pace when the hammer is down my arms fatigue and go kind of weightless as in a complete loss of strength, far before any other muscle sets do which generally results in a loss of power at the pedals. So I want you guys to answer this question: increasing upper body strength will obviously increase my ability to apply power through a more rigid frame but will the gains in strength be applied enough to outweigh the extra gains in weight.

Thanks

Daniel.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Daniel,

I have really good news for you. Muscle strength depends on two factors which can develop separately: How much muscle mass you have (size and number of muscle fibers) and how efficiently your brain can recruit the existing muscle mass. Gym workouts done without aerobic endurance work in the same program (not the same session, but sessions of each within the same week) will cause increases in the protein component in individual muscle fibers, increasing muscle mass. The research says that if you do gym work while doing high-volume endurance training in the same program, you will gain muscle strength without gaining muscle mass.

So, the easy answer to your question is that if your arm strength is limiting your cycling ability, you should definitely do some strength work for your arms. Using weights is a convenient way to do that.

(Your case is special since you are young and still developing. You will probably add muscle mass as you age independent of lifting.)

Returning confidence levels after a bad crash

I recently crashed from my bike and stayed on the ground for twenty minutes. Lying unconscious five minutes on the cold ground.

I survived the crash with cuts and bruises and my recovery is going well but my psychologically side is no doubt how to continue with my riding. Reason of my crash is a dog that ran in front of me in second. The accident was unavoidable. How can I channel my fear and my breaking doubts? I stayed locked and paralysed second before crash and that's all I remember! I have only second and half to react and my reaction is both brakes squeezed down to the bottom. My speed was about 40 km/h moment before impact.

What’s the best way to approach returning to the bike – I want to come back, but I’m obviously quite shaken up!

Sincerely yours,

Sinisa Saric

Carrie Cheadle says:

Hi Saric,

I'm so sorry to hear about your crash. After a bad crash it can be challenging to get your confidence back and get yourself riding again. After a crash you can feel a little more vulnerable and fragile when you get back on the bike. That fear of reinjury is a strong one – it's your brain's way of trying to keep you safe.

Unfortunately, when you do get back on your back, the physiological response of the anxiety you feel usually includes holding your breath and tensing your muscles which affects your balance and coordination on the bike. This begins a negative feedback loop because as soon as you feel unstable on the bike it causes anxiety and feeling anxious causes you to feel unstable on the bike.

To start regaining your confidence you want to create a way to set yourself up for accomplishing small successes. Start off small and slow. When you are ready to get on your bike, go for a short fun ride. Start with situations that don't make you feel nervous and start building confidence from there. Working on your bike handling skills including Scott's suggestions on learning how to fall is a great way to build that confidence as well. Practicing those rolls helps your brain get the message that you aren't as vulnerable as you think and you aren't going to get hurt every time you fall which can help to start breaking that anxiety loop.

You also need to work on relaxing on the bike. An easy tool to make sure you are releasing tension while you are riding is to relax your face, relax your hands, and breathe. Do this drill every few minutes to help relax the physiological tension that tends to build up when you get back onto a bike after a crash.

There is truth in the saying "time heals all wounds" - this goes for both physical and mental. Be patient with yourself, be patient with the process, and work on your physical skills as well as your psychological comeback.

Good luck!

Carrie

Pamela Hinton says:

Hi Saric,

It sounds like you might have experienced a concussion as a result of your accident. A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that is caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head that changes the way your brain normally works. Loss of consciousness is one symptom of a concussion, but there are many others, including headache, nausea or vomiting, balance problems, dizziness, double or blurry vision, sensitivity to light or noise, feeling slow or foggy, problems with concentration or memory, and confusion. You don’t have to be “knocked out” to have had a concussion. In fact, most concussions occur without loss of consciousness. You should pay attention to how you are feeling and avoid exercise that aggravates any of these symptoms.

I mention the possibility of a concussion because the symptoms might be contributing to your fear and lack of confidence. If your balance is off or you feel “slow” processing information, getting back on the bike will be even more challenging. Most people fully recover from sports-related concussions, but for some people, signs and symptoms of concussion can last for days, weeks, or longer.

Pam

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Saric,

I'm sorry about your crash. As you know, bad crashes happen from time to time, even to the very best riders. I'll let Carrie answer about how to deal the psychological aftermath of a crash.

It sounds like you went over the bars and landed on your head. There are a few skills that you might want to develop along with your psychological recovery, if you don't already have them:

1. When you grab the brakes hard, push yourself backwards off the seat, lower your shoulders and straighten your arms at the same time. The more weight you put over the back wheel and the lower you get your center of mass, the less likely you are to go over the bars, even if you hit something pretty solid.

2. Go to a grassy field or a gymnastics hall and practice dive rolls and somersaults, first from standing, then from walking and eventually from a run. You won't always have time to control a fall, but if you have developed the reflexes, you at least have more of a chance.

3. If you end up scared enough that you will take some time away from the bike, replace some of the bike time with a martial art that includes falling, such as Judo or Aikido.

Efficient cadence

Over the years, I have read two different clinical studies concluding that the most efficient cadence over a whole range of powers is 80 rpm from an oxygen utilization standpoint. Yet the conventional wisdom is train to spin at 90 rpm or better. Please can you explain, or suggest optimum training plan from a cadence perspective?

Thanks,

Tom.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Tom,

Indeed, the research generally agrees that 80 rpm or so is optimal from an oxygen utilization standpoint, for stronger riders putting out higher power. For less trained riders or lower power, the optimum is even lower and yet no one (other than Ironman triathletes) races at or below 80 rpm unless they are out of gears. What gives?

There is no shortage of oxygen or heart beats in the world, so getting maximum power for a given rate of oxygen consumption is not a particularly important goal. The thing that stops racers is not running out of oxygen, but various forms of fatigue. In the case of Ironman triathletes, fuel is the limiting factor. They run out of usable carbohydrate sooner than they face any other sort of fatigue. It turns out that at intensities well below LT, the cadences that reduce oxygen use also spare carbohydrate, enhancing endurance. That doesn't explain why mased-start bike racers ride around 100 rpm though.

Pedal slower than the typical 90-110 of a pro and the well known power=force x velocity equation dominates. Lower foot velocity means higher force to get the same power, and higher force means more rapid fatigue. Pedal much faster than 110 rpm, even if you have a well developed spin, and another effect becomes dominant: Think for a moment about pedaling really fast in a very low gear or with the chain off and you'll realize that a lot of energy and muscle tension go into keeping the feet moving in a circle, even when there is little or no pressure on the pedals. Very high cadences mean more wasted energy, more muscle tension and more rapid fatigue.

Biomechanical modeling studies show that peak muscle tensions during riding at typical power outputs of racers are minimized around 100-110 rpm, coinciding with the cadences actually used by the most successful longer-distance, massed start racers. On very long cranks, the tension minimizing cadence is proportionally slower, and on very short ones, proportionally faster. It appears that racers choose their cadences to minimize muscle tension and thus delay fatigue.

From a training perspective, you want to include lots of time at typical racing cadence, including spinning 90-110 rpm, but also down to 50 rpm if you'll be doing hilly races. Even if you won't be doing hilly races, lower cadence riding is good for recruiting and training fast-twitch muscle fiber, which is very important for sustained and short term high-power efforts, such as time-trialing, riding a break away, chasing and sprinting.

Balancing aerodynamics and power

Hi,

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Anders,

If your heart rate rises when riding in the drops, then there is a problem with the position of your bars, or your flexibility or what is more likely, a problem with both. Ideally, when using an indoor trainer at a given load, your heart rate shouldn't change when moving from the brake hoods to the drops. That it does means that you are reducing your breathing ability or having to enlist more muscles to support your position on the drops.

There are two parts to your issue. The first is how effective your bike position is and the second is how functional are you.

Re your bike position, have a look at this link. There is a large amount of information there.

As to your function, if you don't experience regular back or neck pain, get hold of a copy of "Flexibility For Cyclists" by Fred McDaniel. It is currently hard to get so if you cannot track down a copy, try "Stretching and Flexibility" by Kit Laughlin.

If you do experience regular neck or back pain, read "Overcome Neck and Back Pain" by Kit Laughlin.

You will know when you are making progress when you can move from brake hoods to drop bars without your heart rate increasing.

Recovering from a shattered femur

Hi Fellas and Ladies,

I read some of your site and thought you might have some insight here.I shattered a femur as a paratrooper in the Army. After the docs used me as a guinea pig one leg is 2" shorter than the other. This is all in the femur so the mechanics are very different right to left.

The docs also failed to repair the ACL on that side. I've compensated with flexibility and strength gains in my hammies and glutes to the point where I can do a forced march with a 90lb pack but I still have a lot of play.

So, the question becomes should I go clipless and settle with being asymmetric or use clips with my built-up shoe? Should I shim or change the crank size on one side? Any input would be helpful. I'm back in the pool and trying to go for a triathalon.

Thanks,

David

Steve Hogg says:

G'day David,

Considering how few paratroopers there are in the world, I see a lot as clients! I get the impression that jumping out of planes with the combination of a heavy pack and a small 'chute isn't that good for the human body. And it is usually knee reconstructions ,other knee problems or back injuries that brings them to us.

Given that you are going to need a substantial shim stack on the side of the shorter leg, (and possibly other measures) here is what I would advise. Find a bike fitter with an adjustable bike with adjustable length cranks. Duplicate your existing bike position and crank length on the adjustable bike. Use clipless pedals and shoes. You will not sit squarely on the seat because of the 2" LLD. Keep shortening the crank on the shorter legged side until you are sitting squarely on the seat and both legs are able to pedal smoothly. What difference results in the crank length is the size of shim stack that you are going to need under your shoe.

The shim stack will be large and that then presents a problem with an increase in rocking torque. For a detailed explanation please look at this link: http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/04/foot-correction-part-3-shimming/

If you do decide to go to clipless pedals, use Speedplay. The reason I suggest this is that with the size of shim stack you need, rocking torque will become a problem on the shimmed side. The only way to negate or minimise rocking torque is to move the shimmed cleat further back relative to foot in shoe. Speedplay (with optional part no. 13330) offer more rearward adjustment potential than any other system. Also to that end, the current Specialized S works shoes have a more rearward cleat mounting hole position than any other shoe.

Once you have worked out an ideal shim stack with further rearward position of cleat to minimise rocking torque, my advice would be to have a boot maker heat and remove the sole of your shoe and fit a full length dense EVA foam build up of the desired height. Done properly, it will look like a factory job at a glance. A large shim stack will have multiple layers which can come loose where as a built up shoe is faultlessly reliable.

Re your question about differing crank lengths. Only consider this when it is the least worst of only bad options. You already have significant difference in femur (primary lever) length. That means that you will either develop less torque on that side or have to contract muscles harder to produce the same torque. Shortening crank length will reduce torque even more because torque is muscular force exerted on the pedal multiplied by crank length. Ideally, you want to function on the bike in as functionally symmetrical way as possible. The only reason to use a shorter crank is because all else has failed and a shorter crank in conjunction with a shimmed or built up shoe is the only viable option left to you to allow you to ride a bike.

Re your sloppy knee. I have one too but in my case it is an unrepaired rupture of the PCL and MCL that is 38 years old. I've got about 10 - 12 mm of fore and aft slop between tibia and femur but have built up VMO's and hamstrings to the point where I can perform deep single legged squats, have run marathons on it and so on. I would get it repaired but everyone who looks at it tells me that the chances of an operation making any long term improvement are not high. In contrast, my understanding of ACL repairs is that they are fairly routine with a very, very high success rate. Have you considered surgery?

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a five-time Missouri State Road Champion, racing for Dogfish Racing Team.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Physiological rationale for lower cadences while climbing, Knee discomfort in cold, Finding that ideal weight, Redlining while climbing

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Physiological rationale for lower cadences while climbing

Knee discomfort in cold

Finding that ideal weight

Redlining while climbing

Physiological rationale for lower cadences while climbing

Would anyone care to explain the physiological rationale for using lower cadences when climbing? Naively, it would seem that if a rider is optimally efficient at cadences around 90 RPM on the flats, this would be the optimal cadence when climbing. In fact, I find that I feel better continuing to pedal at higher cadences when on a climb.

I strongly suspect that these higher cadences feel more efficient to me because I've never trained to use lower cadence (so I continue to reinforce this preference each time that I ride). So, please explain the benefit of lower cadences while climbing; if I understand a rational justification I may be able to embrace lower cadences and become a better climber.

Best,

Dave

Scott Saifer says:

Hi David,

Higher cadences are better for climbing so long as the rider has the skill and coordination to do them. Many riders don't have those, so they climb better at lower cadences. Skill and coordination for higher-power spinning require focused practice, which it sounds like you have done.

The exception to the rule that higher cadence is better is of course climbs so steep that you won't have the gears to climb them at higher cadences with sustainable power. If any races you'll enter have hills like that, lower gears are a potential solution, but on hills too steep to spin in gears that it makes sense to have on your bike given all the events you'll do, you'll have to reduce cadence. Train lower cadence if you'll have to race lower cadence. It will never be as efficient as higher cadence in terms of fatigue generated per distance traveled at a given power, but training will at least decrease the rate of fatigue when you are forced to lower cadence.

Knee discomfort in cold

As I’ve gotten older, my knees sometimes ache or I feel a slight twinge in them during the winter when I am outside here in New Hampshire. Once I’ve been on the bike for a bit and warmed up, I don’t feel any discomfort or aches in my knees, nor do I feel anything post ride, it’s just before when I am walking around outside in the cold.

I’m wondering if an embrocation like Mad Alchemy applied to my knees would warm them up prior to a ride and be beneficial. Some general info for you that you might need to know – both bikes have been fit by the same person/ shop, no aches/ pains any other time of year and I’ve never done any serious/ lasting damage to my knees. I run 3x week on a treadmill for 30 minutes and I do specific leg weight training 3 times a week, but do not do leg extensions because I know they can adversely affect the knees.

Chris

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Chris,

Embrocations that increase the circulation of blood near the skin do nothing to replace a warm up for muscle function, but they could help with warming up the knees in the sense of getting you past your early-ride aches. Riding for a few minutes on a trainer or stretching before riding might also do the same. I'd suggest experimenting with each of those possibilities, and also being sure to keep your knees very warm and protected from wind when riding on cold days.

Finding that ideal weight

Hello,

I'm a relative newcomer to cycling, 6 months ago I bought myself a road bike with the aim of getting back into shape. I have no lofty aims of winning competitions, I'm just looking to not embarass myself complete when i take on a couple of 10 mile trials and a 100 miles sportif in April. I've always kept myself fairly fit through football but I've been pretty bad with my food in past, hence when i started cycling again seriously I was 93kg. I've now got myself down to 83kg and I feel stronger and now follow a much heathier diet. I was wondering what your view of my ideal weight should be? I'm 6ft and I'm 27 years old.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated,

Thanks,

Ian

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Ian,

You haven't said if your 10-mile trials with be hilly or flat. If they are flat and you are not concerned about finishing time for the sportifs, then your weight doesn't matter too much. Being lighter lets you go faster and dissipate heat more effectively, but if your goals don't involve winning, those are just comfort issues. If you want to ride up hill faster, being lighter helps to a point. For what it's worth, at your height, the vast majority of successful pro road racers are between 150 and 170 pounds (68-77 kg).

At the high end you find the sprinters and time trialists. At the low end the climbers. Below the low end, you give up power even for climbing. Above the high end you can lose weight without giving up TT or road sprint ability. My suggestion would be to keep riding, improve your diet and let your weight go where it goes. You will certainly be lighter and leaner than you are now, but I would not recommend a particular weight unless you are thinking of competing more seriously.

Redlining while climbing

I'm a 48 year old on again off again roadie who moved to Colorado from Florida this past July. I jumped in with a group riding east out of Denver doing about 45 miles to try and get back in shape. I can hang on the flats and little rollers but always get dropped on one particular climb.

I monitor my heart rate and find that when the hammers down I'm in the 160-168 bpm range, but when we hit the climb that I always get dropped on I'm usually at 186-188 before the top. My legs turn to ballpark franks and I've got to back it down to below 150 beats per minute to recover. Any advice to help keep me from redlining it would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Bob

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Bob,

You've been in Colorado long enough to have adjusted to the altitude so you're getting dropped on that hill because you are not in good enough shape one way or another to hang. You are simply going "as hard as you can" for right now, so we need to see what you can do to make more power or improve your power-to-weight ratio.

If you can trade pulls on the flats but you get dropped on the hills, I'd be suspicious that you need to lose some weight. If you'll tell me your height and weight, I can make a clearer judgement on that. (Or figure it out yourself: The vast majority of successful racers fall in a narrow band of weights, roughly 10 pounds either side of a line. If you are 5'10", the average pro your height is 150 lbs. If you weigh that much or less, you can potentially climb, if you have the aerobic power. If you weight more than that, long climbs are going to be your competitive downfall. Super-fit riders riding in lower categories might get away with 5-10 extra pounds. For every inch you are taller or shorter than 5'10", add or subtract 5 pounds.) If the guys you ride with are fit, you need to follow these rules to keep up with them.)

If you can sit in on the flats but not trade pulls, then you are lacking in aerobic power and need to develop that before you hope to climb with the big boys. That means several months of aerobic training, lots of long rides but not too much intensity.

As to advice to keep you from red-lining - That's easy: don't go so hard up the big hill. If you are blowing and then crawling over the top, you might even finish the climb quicker by not trying to stay with the group once they start going hard.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Single quad burn, Scoliosis, Adapting to having less time for proper training, Winter base training

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To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Single quad burn

Scoliosis

Adapting to having less time for proper training

Winter base training

Single quad burn

Hello

I have received some good info from here before and hoping you can help again.

I’m 55 yrs young and ride between 6000 -7000 miles a yr and have for 25 yrs. I still race both on and off road. Due to a broken right hip as a child, my right leg is a cm shorter than my left. I do not have any lifts in my “street/running” shoes. A couple of yrs ago I developed a bad case of hip bursitis in my right hip and It took most of a winter of physical therapy and cortisone shots to get over the problem. I was still able to ride my bike, just could not push the pedals hard (mostly zone 2/1 rides) after I got over the bursitis, I decided to add some shims to my right road cycling shoe, but didn’t mess with my mountain bike shoe.

Over the last couple of years ( and its getting worst and worst) I’ve notice that under harder efforts that my right quad loads up bad, to the point that if I’m doing intervals I have to stop, not due to breathing but because my right quad is hurting bad. Also my left quad is now 1 cm. smaller than the right… when I ride my mountain bike I do not have this problem which is kind of making me think I might need to take the shims back off, but I’m really confused in what to do.. I had an expert fit me as far as feet pedal interface and was wedged, and checked shim height, but I’m just not sure if that was the way to go as the problem is getting worst, to the point where I’m beginning to think that be completive might be over for me.

Thanks for any help/advice given

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Jeff,

You're not giving enough info for a definitive answer. If the right leg is more developed, it is doing more work. Please answer these questions when you have time.

1. What is the percentage breakdown of training time spent on road bike versus training time spent on mtb.

2. Do you have the same relative cleat position with each shoe / pedal combination? And please don't guess the answer.

3. Do you ride your mtb at as high an intensity as you ride your road bike?

4. When you say "I had an expert fit...........etc"; was that road bike only or both bikes?

Jeff replies:

Thanks for the quick response

I ride my road bike 80% of the time

I had my cleats set 9mm +/- back from the ball of my foot (size 43 shoe) on my road bike, but the fitter set them all the way back, I moved them back to where I had them (9mm) tonight just trying something!!, I use speedplay pedals on road bike. My mountain bike I also slid the cleat back after the fit; I use time attack pedals I have not changed them. I had the fit done this past October.

I raced my mountain bike quite a bit this past spring and did not notice the problem. Have not really ridden it hard lately

The fit was road bike only.

Jeff

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Jeff,

The problem is either over extension or under extension of the right leg. If it is over extension, typically the pain will be in the head of the quads just above the knee. If it is under extension, it will be in the belly of the quads.

The thing that occurs to me is that if you have evolved a compensatory response over years for not shimming the shorter leg, almost certainly by dropping or rotating forward the right hip, adding the shim may not have changed that leaving you with less leg extension than originally. Remove the shim as a trial and let me know the result.

The training plan for the rider lacking time

Hi

How can I maximise the use of time off safely. I hope I will get the occasional run in and maybe stationary bike session during work weeks. Is it possible to maintain bike fitness, perhaps see improvements with these schedule limiters?

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Stuart,

This is not an ideal work schedule for a serious athlete, but then no work schedule is ideal for a serious athlete so everyone works with what they've got. You can train more during your off-periods and much less during your work periods, but skipping riding for three weeks at a time is certainly not an option though if you want to do decently in Ironman events. I suggest a minimum of two rides, two runs and two swims every week, working or not. When you are working, they could be an hour or so each ride or run, and 45 minutes each swim and mostly at recovery pace if needed.

Then when you get to your break, take another easy day or two or three until you recover from work, if needed, before ramping up the volume. If you are relatively injury prone, take the first week of each break medium, maybe doing 2 hour sessions on the bike, 90 minute runs and swims. Then ramp up rapidly to whatever you have time for and is appropriate for an Ironman athlete heading for your event date.

The effects of a scoliosis on saddle position

If I ride with the saddle a little to the left (because of the scoliosis), it will create any issue with my left knee?

Thanks,

Enrico.

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Enrico,

Maybe, maybe not. Every case is different. I assume you are not sitting squarely on the seat and that is this is the reason for your question. If my assumption is correct, the best thing to do is find out why you can't sit squarely on the seat. It may because of the scoliosis but that begs the question 'What is the scoliosis a product of?'.

Has any health professional every suggested you have a measurable difference in leg length for instance?

Pointing the seat off centre to try and allow a rider to function more symmetrically in a functional sense is something that I do from time to time but it a last resort measure. Always it is better to find out and address the root cause(s) of the problem.

Can you give me more information as to what problems you are experiencing?

Regards,

Steve

Winter Base Training

I know that this is the season for questions regarding base training. All your answers have given me an ample amount of information regarding base training. However I still have one small question.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Khalil,

There is a difference. (Hey, you asked, "is there a difference").

There are some good things that happen physiologically that don't happen on shorter rides, so it is important that SOME of your base rides be single, long rides. If you get any fatigue on a two hour ride, doing 2 hours, recovering a bit and doing two more hours will have some special benefits. If you live somewhere that mid-day heat makes training difficult, splitting a ride can be beneficial.

In my experience, it pays to do one of your rides each week as a single, long ride. It also matters how many hours you accumulate for the week, but it doesn't seem to matter as much if the other rides are split or not.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: A reader posits the question – Why spend so much on a bike and not on a fit?, Off-season performance drop, Limiting high intensity training, Winter base training, Strength training for a club cyclist, Lactic threshold heart rate (LTHR), Leg pain on road bike but not on mountain bike, Cycling and male infertility

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

A reader posits the question – Why spend so much on a bike and not on a fit?

Off-season performance drop

Limiting high intensity training

Winter base training

Strength training for a club cyclist

Lactic threshold heart rate (LTHR)

Leg pain on road bike but not on mountain bike

Cycling and male infertility

A reader posits the question – Why spend so much on a bike and not on a fit?

Hi Scott,

I for one had a bike fitting done several years ago and then again when I got my S5 in September and cannot imagine buying a bike now and not getting one. In the first fit, shims were added to my shoes to compensate for a shorter leg, pedal spindle length was adjusted along with stem height and seat position, etc and while it took me a few rides to get used to the new position – once I did I noticed an immediate benefit. When I got my S5 in September, I’d been off the bike for two months because of an inattentive driver and this time I had another fit done as the shop had lost my data when they switched computer systems and also had a saddle fit too. The saddle fit was perhaps the best thing I ever did! Plus in the intervening years the fit process at this shop got more advanced using two cameras and Specialized Body Fit software.

New Hampshire

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the note. I bet Steve has more to say about this than I do. My thought is that the reason people don't routinely get professional fits are several: 1) They think they can do it themselves. They know how to loosen and tighten the bolts and know they sometimes feel the seat is too high or too low, so they figure they can make the necessary adjustments. 2) Ignorance. They don't know how much difference getting things really dialed in well can make in their enjoyment or competitive success in riding. 3) Personal or vicarious experience with lousy "professional" fits. A really good fit has to involve a lot of observation and interaction between the rider and the fitter.

A good fit has to include asking and answering the question, "How does that feel" over and over, or very close observation of the smoothness of movement or the absence of that smoothness. Over the years there have been many fitting "systems" based on formulae and percentages of this and that. The early ones had tables, charts, worksheets and pocket calculators. The latest generation of these "systems" use computers and cameras and motion-capture software, but all of them can give a lousy fit if there is anything special about the rider, such as a leg length discrepancy, a limitation stemming from a former injury, or just unusual proportions. Paying someone to put you in an uncomfortable position could turn you off professional fits for a long time. Hearing about a friend’s poor experience might do the same.

In defense (and mockery) of do-it-yourself fitting, when I was getting started as a racer I got my position dialed in to a point where I was comfortable, competitively successful and injury free. I did that by reading the fit chapters in half a dozen books by former racers, plus articles in various cycling magazines as they came out. I'm not sure, but I think it took about three years of trial and error. Then I went to a professional fitter who had a great eye for movement and fit. He put me on an adjustable sizing bike, and within about 15 minutes, never having seen my other bike, got me within a couple of millimeters of the position I had developed over all those years.

I'm glad you've had a good experience with professional fitting. I like to tell people that it's the final few hundred bucks you spend on a fitting and possibly trading out a few fit related parts that makes a $6000 bike feel like a $6000 bike. It will also make a $2000 bike feel like a $6000 bike.

Steve Hogg adds:

G'day Chris,

Scott's pretty much said it all and I don't have much to add. I'm booked out for some time ahead at all times of the year but a straw poll indicates that a minority of those people come without any real problems they are aware of (usually on a word of mouth recommendation).

In my experience the vast majority come because they have a problem that they, and sometimes others, cannot solve. So I suppose if a rider hurts enough…

Off-season performance drop

Hi

I have a question on performance that I can't fathom, I have been riding on and off for 20 years but only took to the bike seriously again about 3 years ago,

In season (March onwards) I tend to average around 30 km/h for training rides that vary from 60 to 140km, peaking with a season best this summer of 32km/h on a hilly 140km course. I was training about 8 hours a week with one or two sets of hard intervals a week in season.

I have stopped intervals over the off-season for October and November but I still ride about 5 hours at lower intensity (with the occasional jump). I have been doing some "core" gym work once a week although I have avoided doing any “high intensity” work.

My average speeds for the same rides have plummeted to 26kph. I am trying not to panic, trying to focus on base training in the belief that once I start intervals and focusing on training above level 1/2 in the new year that all will be well. Is this a normal physiological response in the off season?

Thanks,

Guy

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Guy,

Yup, it's normal to see big drop in ride-average speeds when you take a rest month and start base, especially if you are comparing rides where you pushed the pace in season with rides where you are carefully controlling the pace in base season. By the end of base development though, your ride-average speeds on a controlled-pace ride should be similar to those of a hard ride in season, especially for the longest rides.

Limiting high intensity training

Should high intensity training sessions be limited? For example: I recently trained at 450 watts for 16 minutes. My previous best was 429 watts. I was on a good day and went 'all out.' It took an entire week before I could ride at my normal levels. Should I limit the number of time trials and personal best efforts? In other words, was this work out really helpful or would I have been wiser to limit my workout so that the rest of the week could include high training levels?

Tim S.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Tim,

Setting new personal records for speed and wattage is fun, yes? It's so fun it can be somewhat addictive. You set a new record and you want to go set more. The problem, as you've noticed, is that a really maximal effort of the sort that gets you a new record for a high-intensity effort is also a really tiring effort and compromises the rest of your training.

So, yes, you should limit those super high intensity efforts and think about the time of year when it is most appropriate to do them. You haven't said what you are training for or when your season starts, but it's generally a good idea to reserve those supreme efforts for the period a few weeks before your important races of events of the season, and then do no more than one or two such sessions per week. If they are so draining that you can't do other training for a week after, doing one per week is probably too much even. Develop a periodized training plan for yourself, and then limit testing and record setting such that you can indeed maintain your training, perhaps with one day per month dedicated to testing and record setting, or not even that if you can ween yourself off the rush.

Winter base training

Hi Guys,

My end of season results showed a loss in weight of over 5 kilos but 2 kilos of this was muscle. My watts per kilo had stayed the same due to the weight loss but max power was down. This was put down to not eating enough on the bike which I would agree with and probably not eating as much off the bike as I was consciously trying to lose weight.

I am now in the position to begin winter base training. My problem is this. I live in a hilly part of the UK, I can't go out of the door without going up, or down a 9 per cent climb. Due to the terrain I find staying in zone 2 (which for me is 138-148 bpm) very difficult. Some of the climbs have me up close to lactic threshold (which for me is 168 bpm), even though I feel pretty easy at this. My average heart rate on rides is still within zone 2 but I am aware that sections of the ride are above where I should be.

So, should I do the majority of my base training on the turbo trainer? Boring as it is it's pretty easy to put a film on and sit there for a couple of hours within the target zone. If I did 6-8 hours at this and then an unstructured road/MTB 3 hour ride per week would that be enough base training?

My goals for next year are UK based sportives in May and then the Marmotte sportive in July.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Alex,

My home turf and the area where most of my clients live is similarly hilly. We have a few flat roads we can get to, so maybe we're a little better off than you. Here's the deal though: I've had several clients who trained on hills every day get much stronger simply by maintaining the same training volume, but going to those few flat places or riding trainer for most of their rides, reserving the hills for one or two rides per week.

If you want to maximize your winter gains, yes, do stay in zone 2 for the majority of your rides for a few months, not on the average but second by second. That's not enough though. You'll also get stronger if you can make a steady effort for many minutes at a time on those rides than if you are constantly switching between climbing and coasting. That doesn't mean you have to find roads with zero per cent gradient. You just need to find roads where you can make a continuous effort at non-ridiculous cadences. If there is a flatter bit of road a few minutes long nearby, you could ride laps on it. Velodromes are good too.

If you really don't have either of those, you'll have to ponder your priorities. If you want to do well in your races next season more than you detest mind-numbing hours on the indoor trainer, get on that trainer. Six to eight hours of trainer plus one 3-hour outdoor ride per week should indeed be enough base training for the next few months. At some point you'd of course want to start doing longer rides once per week in preparation for your longer goal events.

Strength training for a club cyclist

Hi guys,

For a club cyclist who trains 12-18 hrs a week how helpful would it be to add periodized strength training to my regime? I have seen people that swear by it and the power gains they say they have experienced by doing it. And then on the other side of the coin, people that say it’s a waste of time and not to bother.

The only reason I am looking to do it is to gain leg strength that hopefully translates to watts on the bike.

Thanks,

Sam

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Sam,

Like all forms of training, strength training is only beneficial if it makes you a more effective cyclist. It must correct a limiter to make you a more effective cyclist. Strength training can do that in several ways depending on your current abilities and weaknesses. The research says that strength training drives the conversion of type IIx (untrained fast twitch muscle) to type IIa (aerobically trained fast twitch muscle). Type IIa muscle is your "power" muscle, used for time trialing, sprint acceleration and sustained efforts near VO2-max power of a few minutes duration. The same conversion can be driven by high-force riding, at least in the pedaling muscles. For riders who live in cold- or snowy-winter regions, training in the gym can be a much more pleasant way to get those type IIa fibers ready for the season than outdoor riding.

There are muscles that are used only under special circumstances in cycling, and which get tired or sore quickly when they are used, particularly early in the season. For instance, the pelvic stabilizer muscles of the low back are recruited much more during hard, out-of-saddle pedaling than during seated pedaling. Some racers will find that their backs get sore and tight after their first few hilly road races of the season because those muscles are not as strong as they need to be to sustain the loads of standing during such a race. Of course one could do uphill sprints through the winter and not have this problem, but a few months in the gym doing back-extensions on the "roman chair" or dead-lifts will also condition the back against that injury.

Up until about a decade ago, there was a common overgeneralization that caused a great deal of confusion about the value of strength training. Physiologists knew that power at lactate threshold and VO2-max were associated with competitive success in bike racing, but they didn't know what else they could measure that would turn out to be important. If they wanted to know if a training modality or nutritional supplement would be effective, they checked to see if it would have an effect on VO2-max or power at lactate threshold. Turns out weight lifting improves both of those, but only in untrained or poorly trained subjects, not in highly trained bike racers. Unfortunately, "doesn't affect LT power or VO2-max" was over generalized to "doesn't help bike racers". Some silly coaches even went so far as to say that since strength training caused hypertrophy and weight gain, it has to be bad for bike racers.

More recent research has improved our understanding of the effect of strength training. First, it has been show that riders who simultaneously (in the same week, not the same minute) train endurance and strength don't hypertrophy. They gain strength without gaining weight. Second, it turns out that while strength training doesn't boost VO2-max or LT power, it does boost endurance at VO2-max level power. In one study, the time that athletes could maintain VO2-max power increased from 3 minutes to 6 minutes after strength training. That the difference between setting up for the sprint in the second to last lap of the sprint and then not being able to hold position, vs setting up in the second to last lap and holding position through the last lap to be able to sprint.

Bottom line: Strength training done appropriately can help riders becomes more competitive. I recommend it for riders who will have time to ride at least eight hours most weeks in combination with their lifting. Extremely time-pressed riders who won't be able to ride eight hours and lift, I'd take on a case by case basis, looking at their strengths and weaknesses in more detail and only assigning strength training if strength seems to be a major limiter.

Lactic threshold heart rate (LTHR)

Thanks in advance guys, I end up getting so much good information from the responses. I had a question regarding my lactate threshold heart rate. I've always done the field test with a 30 minute TT where you hit the lap button 10 minutes in and get your average HR for the last 20 minutes on the effort being an approximation of your LTHR.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Joseph,

That field test is a terrible way to determine lactate threshold heart rate. I have one client who could ride almost an hour 40 beats above his lactate threshold as determined by measuring blood lactate. Riders who routinely train to hard develop the ability to sustain heart rates (but not powers) above lactate threshold. The test also obviously fails if you do it on trails or on the road, but which?

Set up your zones based on proper physiological test such as a ramp-protocol test with gas exchange or lactate measurement or a simple chat-no-chat threshold test done on a trainer or on a road with constant grade.

Leg pain on road bike but not on mountain bike

Hello,

I ride with a cycling club and on the road we do one or two rides per week of 80-100 kms at 30 km/h average. I was one of the best riders in the group but since half a year or so, I have quite a lot of muscle pain in my thighs. The pain starts almost from the start of the ride, in any small hill. Then it sort of subdues but towards the end of the ride it becomes very hard to ride at the same speed as the rest of the group.

My heart rate doesn’t increase much, it’s just that the legs won’t turn anymore and it’s impossible to ride up on the saddle.

In the winter we have done some mountain biking rides of around 50 kms. And there, I don’t have the problem. In fact I can ride one Saturday on the road with pain and getting dropped and the day after on Sunday mountain biking at the top of the same group. Most of the group actually finds the mountain bike ride harder and they cannot believe I have pain on the road.

As background, I have always been a roadie. I came bike to cycling 2 years ago after having stopped for 10 years and I am 36 years old.

The two reasons I can think of is: too hard gearing on road bike (I run 53/39 at front), too high saddle position.

Thanks,

Pello Morras

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Pello,

This is a simple problem, however the first thing you need to do is to identify exactly what is going on. The pain at the front of the thighs is likely hip flexor overload. Potential reasons in no particular order are:

1. Seat too far back combined with a low bar height.
2. Seat too far forward combined with a low bar height.
3. Bars far too low.
4. Seat too high (as you say) but this would only be the cause if your hip flexors are world class inflexible.

The reason that you don't experience this problem on your mountain bike is because of the more upright torso angle that is normally the case when riding a mountain bike.

I would suggest going through the possible reasons one at a time. For more info on each, have a look at:

Seat setback

Bar position

Seat height

Once you've worked your way through those, let me know how you are going.

Cycling and male infertility

Although not strictly related to fitness issues - my wife and I have been going through IVF treatment over the past 12 months in the hope of her getting pregnant.

I am an avid cyclist who competes at an amateur level - mostly criterium racing, I would estimate that I train upwards of 7 hours weekly on the bike, some weeks double this. Recent tests of my sperm count reveal a problem with my morphology although still within the range of the everyday male - are you aware of any research/studies which show that constant cycling (seated on a narrow seat causing heat to the that region of the body) may effect a male's sperm count.

Please say there are no ill effects of cycling so I can enlarge your reply and leave it around the house when I'm out on my beloved roadie.

Regards,

Chris

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Chris,

Plenty of very serious amateur and professional cyclists become fathers despite many, many hours of cycling, so we know for certain that cycling does not cause infertility in all cyclists. One study found that compared to sitting in a chair in the laboratory, riding a bike at low intensity in a laboratory actually decreases scrotal temperature. Unless you are wearing an awful lot of clothing while cycling, the breeze through that region should be keeping you testicles cooler even while pedaling is generating extra heat.

On the other hand, we know that a poorly positioned saddle can cause erectile dysfunction, numbness and a variety of other problems related to pressure on nerves or blood vessels. One study found that triathletes in particular had a 4.7 per cent rate of sperm morphology problems. Another found that the sperm of endurance trained runners were less effective in moving through cervical mucus than the sperm of weight lifters or sedentary controls. The two studies together suggest but do not prove that the running component of triathlon may be a problem.

Bottom line: we can't say that your cycling is not adversely affecting your fertility. If for some reason your body is not as good as others at keeping the testicles cool, your cycling could indeed be affecting the quality of your sperm. The bad news is that sperm production is a slow process: Heating your testicles today affects the sperm you produce for the next three months plus or minus. If you wanted to experiment with stopping riding to improve fertility, you'd have to do it for three months and then enough of your wife's cycles to get pregnant. My suggestion would be to be careful to keep cool in that region and keep riding, unless your marriage depends on you showing the right level of commitment to getting pregnant, in which case you have a tough decision to make.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Training for a 100 km mountain bike event with road training, More on single-leg pedaling, More on persisting foot numbness, Training volume, Athletes and false Anaemia, Types of Training, Cross training contributing to a pre-season base

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Training for a 100 km mountain bike event with road training

More on single-leg pedaling

A follow up to persisting foot numbness

Training volume

Athletes and false Anaemia

Types of Training

Cross training contributing to a pre-season base

Training for a 100 km mountain bike event with road training

I know most elite Mountain Bike riders train on the road on their roadie, however what about the average rider, I prefer to ride mtb, but it seems from what I have read and heard, training on the road will have better fitness outcomes. However what about specificity, the upper body strength requirement of mtb and the numerous nuances that riding an mtb requires?

Sure the Roadie can be a tough workout, in comparison; the mtb requires the whole body when riding through terrain (more time off the seat) as well as the on/off power pedal technique required for short steep climbs. I seem to spend a lot of time off the seat absorbing and moving around on the bike to negotiate the terrain. On the roadie there’s not much of this.

So my question is what are the weaknesses and advantages of training on the roadie compared to the mtb for a 100k mtb event? Assuming the rider has good off-road skills, will the specificity requirements for mtb mentioned above be countered by the gain in endurance etc from riding road? So overall, if all things being equal which rider will be better prepared for the event?

Thanks

Mark Kelly
Melbourne, Australia.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Mark,

I assume you'll be training five or more days most weeks, which means you'll have time to do both road and off-road training. You can get good benefit doing your road training on a MTB if it's the expense of the second bike you are worried about, but you'll race much better off road if you do the majority of your training on road.

Do enough off road to develop or refine your off-roading skills, and the specific upper body and off-saddle strength you need for negotiating challenging terrain, but then do your big-hour training on the road. The kind of fitness you need for endurance MTB events can only be developed through many-minute steady paced efforts, of the sort that are much more likely to happen on the road than on dirt, especially if the particular dirt is challenging your technical skills and upper body strength.

The better your off-road skills, the larger portion of your training time should be on-road.

More on single-leg pedaling

Hi all,

I was intrigued by Scott’s comment in the Nov 23rd Q&A on one-legged pedaling: 

“The research in that area suggests that if you find one-legged pedaling difficult, doing it will help improve your pedal stroke, but that once you are good at one-legged pedaling, continuing to do it will slow the further refinement of your two-legged pedal stroke”

Can you elaborate more on the downside of one-legged pedaling exercises? How does this hinder the refinement of the two-legged pedal stroke?

I have a bike set up with ratcheting cranks that largely gets used for indoor rides on rollers during the winter. From a technique perspective, I have no problem riding with the special cranks – though have to gradually build up my endurance on them as the winter progresses. As PowerCranks are essentially a “simultaneous non-stop one-legged pedaling effort”, would I now be better off riding without the PowerCranks?

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Tim,

The area of skill acquisition science that is relevant here is called part practice vs whole-skill practice. Part practice means thinking about and executing the different parts of a skill separately. Whole skill practice means just what it sounds like, practicing the whole skill as a unit.

Understanding the research on this topic is easier if you think of the acquisition of a new skill in three stages. In the beginner stage your body doesn't know which muscles to fire in what order and how hard to make a particular movement. Movements are jerky and inefficient. In this phase, part practice is very effective. If you were learning to corner a bike for instance, you'd think: shoulders low, outside foot down, hands on the drops, weight on inside hand, head up, eyes where you want to go, push with the toe to get your weight off the saddle, lean the bike... If you do all these things you end up in a decent position for cornering, but you can't corner fast because it takes too long to think through all the parts and get in position. This phase can be frustrating because you are still occasionally forgetting parts of the movement and having to try again to get it right.

In the middle, skill-refinement stage, your body knows what muscles to use and approximately what forces and coordination to apply, but it's not yet automatic. In the cornering example, you do all the things to get in position pretty quickly, but you are still figuring out just how far to lean the bike for different corners, when to start leaning the bike as you enter the corner and when you can start pedaling again. You're cornering much faster than someone who hasn't worked this stuff out, but not as fast as skilled descenders. You're also still very aware of the process and probably absorbed in learning. You feel what you are doing. It's a thrilling phase of learning because you can feel yourself doing better and better as you make small adjustments. Occasionally you make an adjustment in the wrong direction and have to back up again.

In the final, mastery stage, your cornering is smooth, efficient and automatic. You get into the right position without having to think about it, you initiate turns and pedal out of them without having to think about it. You descend like a pro.

Back to the research: The research says that part practice is most effective in the beginner phase where what you are learning is all the parts of a movement. As soon as you get to the middle, skill-refinement stage, whole practice becomes more effective, and the only time to return to part practice is when you need to re-model a skill. That is, if you've been doing something for a while, but doing it badly, you'd want to break it down and then build it up again from good pieces to break the bad habits. This is why run clinics that make people start over from body position or knee-lifting and such can be effective. The simplified way to think of the research results is to say that it has been found that "you get good at what you practice."

If you practice the parts of a movement, you get to be good at making the parts of a movement. If you practice a whole movement, executed smoothly and powerfully, you get to be good at the smooth, powerful execution of the whole movement. So long as you keep thinking of the movement in parts though, you don't get as good as you could at the whole, smooth movement. People who get too hung up on focusing on the parts, doing what they learned in class may arrest their own development in the skill refinement stage, becoming good but not great descenders.

Now, let's look at one-legged pedaling. Compared to the goal performance of smooth, powerful two legged pedaling, one-legged pedaling is a form of part practice. You are separating the full movement into pieces and learning them separately, with special emphasis on the upstroke. If you don't already know how to execute an upstroke, that could be beneficial. If you do, focusing on one legged pedaling is arresting you in the intermediate phase of skill acquisition.

You might like to argue that one-legged pedaling is not about skill acquisition. Rather it is about strength training or aerobic fitness development in the up-stroke muscles, and you'd be right that there could be a role for it there, especially if you are particularly weak in that movement or if those muscles tend to fatigue before others when you ride normally. If those muscles are as strong and have as much endurance as needed to support your riding though, the negative aspects of part practice can start to outweigh the special fitness-endurance benefits.

What does this feel like in real life? I had a pro client train many, many hours on ratcheting cranks one winter, hoping to be suddenly much stronger when the racing season came around. When he started racing, he found that his pulling-up muscles quickly fatigued, not because they weren't strong or aerobically fit, but because riding the ratcheting cranks had taught him to pull up in a way that was perfect when riding ratcheting cranks, but inefficient when riding regular cranks. Once he learned to pedal the two-legged cranks again, he was fine, but not especially stronger than he should have been.

(I've had a look at the website for one brand of ratcheting cranks and seen the many testimonials there. It looks like lots of people avow that they got stronger by using them, but no one has fairly compared how much stronger a group of athletes got using them compared to another group doing the same amount of training not using them. Also, the percentage improvements claimed prove that the riders were not well trained before they started using ratcheting cranks, so large gains would be expected with any sort of higher-volume training.

If ratcheting cranks or any other gizmo or supplement really made already-fit athletes stronger than they could otherwise get, everyone would have to use it or lose. Remember, the differences in strength, watts/kg, endurance etc between the people who win and those come in mid-pack are only a few percent. If a special product made everyone 10% stronger, anyone with mid-pack talent who used it would beat anyone who didn't. )

A follow up to persisting foot numbness

Hi Steve,

Thank you for the detailed response. It is interesting that you mention seat height issue. I am addmittedly a bit obsessive about this and bike fit in general. I have read all your work and most others on the subject. Throughout my cycling experience I have experimented with every saddle height formula I could find, but the one I have always started with is the simple "scrape the mud off your heel with the crank in line with the seat tube" method. And then maybe go a few millimeters higher. Of course, shoes and cleat types will vary slightly also. I should mention that I currently wear Specialized Body Geometry road shoes with Look Keos.

James Martin

Steve Hogg says:

G'day James,

I don't KNOW that seat height is your problem which is why I listed other potential reasons. If it is, it is likely to be millimetres not centimetres but I don't know that for sure either.

Use the seat height setting method outlined in the link I gave your for both your road and TT bikes and see where you end up in terms of seat height. My experience is that is the only real world valid method for setting seat height.

You have shorter left leg and I don't know whether you compensate for it or not on a bike because you've given no information about that. You also say that you 'drive my right hip deeper into the pedal stroke'. Doing so will increase the distance the left leg has to reach if you are not rebounding perfectly to a centred position on the seat. I know you say that you don't rock but on a daily basis I see that fit client's self perceptions are usually inaccurate. You may be right about not rocking but if you are sitting with your right hip forward a touch (and this is common) your left leg will have to reach further.

Everything you've said strongly suggests overextension of the left leg. No amount of 'blasting' the 'weaker' left leg in the gym will make any difference. It is only weaker because you are asking to much of it. Either the problem is poor innervation of the left leg, which is unlikely but possible. If that's the case, no amount of gym work will have any effect Instead you will need a good chiropractor or manipulative physiotherapist. OR the problem is overextension which is far more likely.

If overextension then either -
The seat is too high
OR
You lack sufficient compensation for the LLD in form of a shim
OR
You are not sitting as squarely as you think you are on the seat which may in turn be caused by a dominant left cerebellum (right side of body) motor pattern or self protective measures arising from lack of foot correction or too high a seat height.
OR
Any combination of these things.

I get the impression that your solution to physical issues is to apply more force. It's not working and I think a more analytical approach is necessary.

Training volume

Hello,

James Hibbard says:

Hello Khalil,

Congratulations on having some more time this winter to dedicate to training. In order to properly address all aspects of your question I really would have to be working with you as a client, but I will give you some general guidelines and warnings to the best of my ability. Do try to seek out a local coach who can help to guide you towards your goals next season.

First, “pro cyclist” winter training volumes can vary a great deal depending upon the individual rider’s targeted events and physiological parameters. Weeks ranging from twenty-five hours, to just over thirty hours would not be uncommon - with some professionals even nearing forty hours per week on the bike during the largest volume weeks of their base training.

The amount of aerobic work you undertake will be predicated upon your level of body fat gained over your ideal body composition, your physiological limiters, what type of events you are targeting, and how well you are able to recover. To illustrate this, think of how much less training volume a criterium focused rider who does not tend to gain excess fat, has late summer goals, and less than stellar recovery would undertake than a road racer who tends to gain weight, recover well and wants to race well in the spring. So assess yourself on these fronts and decide how much training you need to undertake.

You also mention intensity, and beyond the very general advice to slowly introduce intensity as the season approaches (which I am sure you already know as a category 1 rider) I am afraid that it is hard to prescribe any particular exercises without knowing you better.

What I would be most mindful of is making too great a jump in your training load as a result of having more time at your disposal. It sounds counterintuitive, but having more time to train can actually be problematic inasmuch as it allows for the possibility of overtraining. So just as much as you focus on training well, also make certain to be mindful of your sleep, diet, massage, and other habits that will impact your recovery.

Best of luck next season Khalil,

James

Athletes and false Anaemia

Dear Cyclingnews,

Gainesville, GA, USA

Kelby Bethards says:

Mike,

Has your hematocrit ever been in the "normal" range? The reason I ask, is that in a 4 year period, with multiple tests, I'd expect it to be normal at least one time. However, it is possible that it won't be.

That being said, the Hematocrit(HCT) and Hemoglobin are measured as a concentration, not as a "count" per say. So, in endurance athletes, like you have mentioned, it is possible that as an adaptation, the body circulates a higher plasma volume, thus diluting the HCT levels.

The diagnosis of false anemia, is one of exclusion, meaning other reasons, as you mentioned (blood loss, etc) need to be excluded. A common anemia that athletes often encounter is iron deficiency anemia. Were your iron tests all normal?

Kelby Bethards, MD

Types of Training

Hello,

Last week (November 23) there was a question on base level training in preparation for the racing season. I'm 19 and in my second year of college in England, I only have 8 week terms which means I have a 6 week holiday over christmas and new year which means I can train a lot. I'm just wondering about what sort of training I should be doing then. You mentioned stress due to high intensity training in the Q&A but I won't be under any stress during the holidays and I can easily fit 12-15 hours of training in a week, how much of this should be higher intensity and how much should be base training?

And when talking about higher intensity what exactly should this include? You mentioned hard group rides and I do a lot of those in term time with my university club, along with rides of a similar effort solo. I don't really do much easy base-level training (zone 2 rides etc.) or intervals, to what extent should I incorporate these in to my training?

I understand base-level training rides are important and I should do more of them I just wonder how much of my training they should make up, I've so far found that the hard group and solo rides have helped me improve a lot over this term.

Thanks very much,

Freddie

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Freddie,

High intensity training such as competitive group rides and races bring rapid physiological improvement but also an early plateau. Many riders start out doing mainly higher intensity training, make great gains, and then burn out well below their potential. To reach your potential you have to eventually do some training that mostly challenges your aerobic endurance. That is, zone 2 or base training. One proven approach is to do a rest period after the end of one racing season, and then only base until two months before the next racing season.

In the final two months, a high volume of base training is maintained, while two days per week base training is replaced by intervals or other harder work. The first month of transition to racing, the harder work is sub-LT and done in extended chunks, such as three intervals of 15 minutes on/ 5 minutes off at 92-96% of LT heart rate or power. In the final month before the start of racing, the harder work can be shorter intervals right around LT, such as six intervals of 5 minutes on, 5 minutes off at LT minus 3 beats to LT plus three beats, or staying as close as you can to FTP power.

Above is the general plan, but if the time during which you can do unusually large volumes of training happens to fall within the period when it is appropriate to do sub-LT or LT intervals, you should consider how much training volume you have gotten in to that point. When you increase volume by more than a couple of hours per week, you should decrease intensity. So if your inter-term volume will be a lot higher than your previous experience, take a few weeks of base-only riding to adjust to that before starting, or re-starting intervals.

Cross training contributing to a pre-season base

Hello all,

I had a small question regarding cross training during the base season. I was hoping that I would be able to do some jogging to add some variety this winter. I'm wondering if it would be correct to assume that if I were to throw in a small run during the week, it would still help contribute to my base buildup? Is there any rule for or against doing sort of a cross base training regimen?

Thank you

Martin G.

James Hibbard says:

Hello Martin,

You are correct that some aerobic cross training (such as running) during your base training phase will still contribute to your aerobic development. However (particularly as the racing season approaches) the more specific your training the better, as base training is intended to not just develop your cardiovascular system but also your pedaling efficiency.

Having said that, I like to have clients run or undertake some other load-bearing activity (as cycling can cause some bone density problems. See here for more information.

However, I like to have clients suspend cross-training prior to undertaking their largest volume months of base training. So, as the season approaches, I would encourage you to undertake only specific-on bike training.

Best of luck,

James

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: A follow up on muscle glycogen from last week, Base training program, Interval length, Persistent numbness in left foot

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

A follow up on muscle glycogen from last week

Base training program

Interval length

Persistent numbness in left foot

A follow up on muscle glycogen from last week

Panel,

There are tons of procedures and studies out there how to replenish muscle glycogen after exercise. But is there any way to do so [just like to refill liver glycogen constantly] while exercise? Or is it doable only while resting? And if yes, why? What’s the hindering point?

Do I comprehend it correctly, as soon as those 300-450 grams of CH are depleted in the muscles, my training/race will be supported only by fat, protein and liver glycogen [blood sugar]?

Thanks,

Cheers

Rob

Pamela Hinton says:

Hi Robert,

There is another more fundamental reason that muscle glycogen is not stored while riding. During exercise, hormones (e.g., insulin) that promote storage of carbohydrate as glycogen or fatty acids in body fat are suppressed. By contrast, "catabolic" hormones (e.g., epinepherine, cortisol) that mobilize stored fat and glycogen are increased. These hormonal responses make sense because it would be counterproductive to store either carbohydrate or fat when these fuels are needed to supply ATP for muscle contractions. A similar phenomenon occurs at the level of the muscle cell. When the cell is in a low-energy state, i.e., low ATP:ADP ratio, the metabolic pathways involved in the synthesis of glycogen from glucose are suppressed, as are those involved in fat synthesis and storage. At the same time, the pathways that produce ATP from glucose or fatty acids are activated, increasing the energy available to the cell. So, regardless of how much glucose is ingested and absorbed while riding, it will be used to fuel your muscles not stored as glycogen.

Scott Saifer adds:

Hi Pam,

In trained individuals the insulin reduction and glucagon increases during exercise are extremely blunted. Gyntelberg at al (1977) showed that in untrained, insulin drops by about 60% after an hour of exercise at 60% VO2max (~70% maximum heart rate), but only by 30% in trained individuals. Similarly for glucagon: It more than doubles during exercise in untrained and rises a mere 20% in trained individuals. At lower exercise intensities, the response is even smaller, and there's no reason to expect that at low enough intensity, a rider couldn't experience a full insulin response and glycogen storage. The more trained the athlete, the higher the power that can be produced without so reducing insulin as to make glycogen storage impossible. It is wrong to think of hormones as on-off switches. They rise and fall incrementally, causing incremental changes in the systems they regulate.

I suppose it's an open question which effect (glucose flow into powering the exercise or hormone shifts) dominates the control of glycogen formation. We know that riders who are close to fully glycogen depleted bonk, and that riders who do Brevet's can essentially ride forever without bonking. That suggests to me that they must either be not touching glycogen at all, or forming and using it constantly.

Base training program

Hello,

I am preparing for my first competitive cycling season and I am trying to build up an aerobic base over the winter. I have spent a tone of time researching the internet for how to structure a base program and almost everything I have come across suggests long steady Zone 2 riding. Some sources seem to promote doing only zone 2 riding for the duration of the base period, as anaerobic training will break down the physiological changes made doing base training - while others seem to suggest a combination of LSD riding days with one racy ride per week and at least one day of intervals. My question is, which way is correct? How should I be structuring my 10-12 hour training week during the base period? Purely Zone 2 riding? Or a mix of Zone 2 rides with more intense riding days as well? And would adding weight training (anaerobic) to my program negate my aerobic base gains? I want to make sure I'm improving heading into the season without over or under training.

Thanks in advance,

Jonathan

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Jonathan,

Neither way is correct. Wenzel Coaching recommends all zone 2 during base for most riders, and our clients do quite well. (For instance, we averaged more than 25 podiums per month last year), so we know all-zone-2 works. I also know of people who incorporate more intensity into their off season and do fine as well. There are some advantages to each method, and some disadvantages.

One disadvantage of the all-zone-2 base method is that when racing season comes around, a rider on this type of plan has not done any hard riding in several months. The first few weeks of racing going hard really hurts, and since their anaerobic endurance is detrained, they blow up quickly. Both of those effects pass within 3 weeks or so. Riders on this sort of plan need lots of reassurance: "Your legs will come around. Don't worry".

Hard riding does NOT undo the base development done by easier rides, but it does make riders tired. The major issue is overall stress level and recovery ability. If you have the ability to ride hard on some of your 10-12 hours and still recover well to use up all those hours, there's not much disadvantage to harder riding. For people who have stressful non-cycling lives however, I have seen consistently that riding harder greatly increases the chance of burn-out before the season arrives. The number-one rule of base training is to listen to your body: go train when you feel absolutely great. Go shorter and easier if you feel anything but awesome. If you can mix in the higher intensity rides and still feel awesome on most of your rides, go ahead and do it. If higher intensity leaves you feeling draggy for a day or two after, skip the intensity and go with an all-zone-2 plan.

Strength training done appropriately is a good supplement to your riding program. It can drive he conversion of type IIx (untrained fast-twitch muscle fiber) to IIa (aerobically trained fast-twitch). Type IIa fiber is what gives you power for longer, harder efforts like climbing or riding a break-away or TT.

Jonathan replies:

Scott,

First thank you for the quick response! Your answer to my question was very helpful and answered most of my biggest questions regarding structuring a base program. A few follow up questions: If I'm not planning on racing until April, how far in advance of my first race should I shift from base to high intensity training to avoid the "heavy legs" once racing begins? And then how soon before The race should I taper my training?

Also, regarding how to implement strength training appropriately, you mention conversion of IIx to IIa - does this mean is should be doing endurance type lifting of lower weights and extremely high reps to train fast-twitch muscle fibers? Or be gradually increasing weight and decreasing reps to build mass? as the latter seems as though it would be training slow-twitch muscle?

Just some background info:

Height: 6'0''
Weight: 165lbs.
Age: 24 years

Current base phase training schedule:
Monday: Spin-Ups and one legged pedaling - 60 minutes in the gym (step-ups, squats, leg press, plans, side planks, back extensions)
Tuesday: 45-1hr unstructured ride or day off
Wednesday: 2-3 hours Zone 2 base miles
Thursday: Spin-Ups and one legged pedaling - 60 minutes in the gym (step-ups, squats, leg press, plans, side planks, back extensions)
Friday: 45min-1hr easy spinning / recover ride or day off
Saturday: 2-3 hours group ride, varied pace over varied terrain, or Zone 2 base miles
Sunday: 2-3+ hours Zone 2 base miles

Thanks in advance,

Jonathan

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Jonathan,

If you want to be really on form for your first races, do all zone-2 until three months before the racing starts. Then do a month that includes zone 3, a month that includes zone 4, and a month of hard group rides and race simulations. That will have you ready to start racing with your racing legs already on. The downside of this plan, particularly for newer racers is that once one starts doing zone 5 work every week, the peak clock is ticking. Newer racers will usually have skills and tactical issues to work out in the first few weeks of racing, so I like to use the first few races to sharpen fitness and skills at the same time. That way the physiological peak overlaps more with the period when skills and tactics are adequate to generate good competitive performances.

You can challenge and therefore train fast twitch fibers with either short sets and heavy weights, or longer sets with moderate weights. The key is to get close to failure so that the brain is looking for the last few fibers to recruit to complete the workout. I prefer longer sets with moderate weights to reduce the chance of injury. The research says however that you won't add mass if you combine strength training with endurance training on the same muscle, no matter how heavy you lift.

Be careful with the one legged pedaling. The research in that area suggests that if you find one-legged pedaling difficult, doing it will help improve your pedal stroke, but that once you are good at one-legged pedaling, continuing to do it will slow the further refinement of your two-legged pedal stroke.

Your current weight puts you in the all rounder range, closer to the sprinters and TT riders than the guys who do well in the hills. You haven't said what your goals are, but if longer hills play a role in many of the races you'll attend, losing about 5 pounds will serve you well. If the races on which you will focus are true climbing races, losing 10-15 pounds would be better. Don't lose more however.

Interval length

Hi Scott,

In December my schedule will remain the same, except my Tuesday and Thursday sessions will be dedicated to zone 3 intervals. Everywhere I look it seems the recommendation is to do 3x10 at zone 3, with 5 minute rests between intervals, or something similar. However it seems to me that this is not the most efficient way to do intervals.

It seems it would be better to get a good warm up, then hit my zone 3 power number and hold it as long as possible. When I can no longer maintain the target power output, I will ride zone 1 power until I feel recuperated enough to do another zone 3 interval. I will again maintain zone 3 power for as long as possible. I would repeat this process until my hour was up, or I could no longer achieve the target wattage.

Is there something wrong with this approach? It seems to me it is the most efficient way of doing intervals and will lead to the greatest adaptation.

Thanks so much!

Blake

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Blake,
One might think, given how authoritatively some coaches assert their particular interval program structure that there was actually some research that had confirmed particular interval lengths or precise heart rate zone endpoints. Unfortunately that is not the case. No one has ever compared 12 minute intervals to 10 minute intervals, or 8 minute rests to five minute rests. This lack of testing is based on the perception among exercise scientists and more thoughtful coaches that it really can't make a difference.

I do sometimes assign a workout that sounds like what you are describing, mostly as a way to develop toughness by suffering through a hard session. Have you actually tried it? I expect that if you go long enough in zone 3 that you cannot continue, you're going to need more than a few minutes recovery to be able to do another interval of significant length, and that later in your interval you are going to hurt more than necessary for the training benefit you'll get from that workout. In other words, you could get a similar physiological benefit by doing shorter intervals with less suffering.

Persistent numbness in left foot

I have been riding and racing off road and road TTs for over twenty years now, beginning as a typical off-the-back beginner but progressing to decent Masters Expert through the years. I am now 52 years old, 6'1", and about 182lbs. I ride about 4000 miles per year and do a lot of high-intensity interval work both indoors and out.

As a respectable athlete in various sports since my youth, I have always been heavily right-handed/right-sided and conscious of a modest strength difference between the left and ride side of my body. However, in the past year I have developed a subtle but persistent numbness in my left foot, concentrated in the toes and ball of the foot. In addition, when totally on the rivet on a hard climb or time trial, my left quad loads up and fatigues significantly sooner than my right. It has, essentially, become the weak link in the chain and has begun to markedly affect my performance. It actually now feels like my strong leg is dragging the weak leg around through the pedal stroke.

Last winter in the off-season I blasted my legs in the weight room, attempting to "wake up" the muscles of the lazy leg. The presses, extensions, and step-ups seemed to help a bit but only temporarily. If I totally turn myself inside out on a time trial, the weak leg will feel slightly livelier and the numbness will subside a bit, but only for a day or two before it then returns. As I sit and write this, there is a subtle tingling in my toes of my left foot. I should also add that on cool days the left will go numb considerably sooner or at higher temperatures than the right.

I have been diagnosed with a slight leg length discrepancy (left is shorter), which causes me to drive my right hip deeper into the pedal stroke. Thankfully, however, up until now I suffer no pain or discomfort on any of my bikes, road, mountain, or TT.

I guess the bottom line is: should I seek the opinion of a specialist, thinking that i might have a serious circulation or nervous problem developing? Or is this just another one of those age-related ailments that I keep denying is happening?

Any suggestions you can offer would be most appreciated.

James.

Steve Hogg says:

G'day James,

By all means seek medical advice but a solution to your problem may simple. A common reason for the problem you have is overextension of the left leg. It is very likely that you are stabbing at the pedal late in the pedal stroke. This will load up the area of the foot above the pedal and often fry the quads as well. Usually at the heads of the quads immediately above the knee.

In your case there are 3 potential reasons that may cause this in any combination.

1. Your shorter leg hasn't been compensated for with a shim. Or the shim stack you are using is not large enough.
More info regarding that here.

2. That your seat is too high. This is VERY common. If the seat is too high, next to no one will sit symmetrically on the seat and equally overextend both legs. The vast majority will protect one side by dropping the hip on that side which of course, causes the other leg to overextend even further. You say that you are very right 'centric' (if there is such a term) which makes this portability even more likely. More info about this here and here.

3. That the absence of optimal foot correction in the form of arch support and wedging is causing you to overly favour the right side with the same consequences as in 2. More about this can be found here.

Lastly, have a look at the sole of left foot underneath the MTP joints (base knuckles of toes). If there is any callousing or thickening of the skin underneath the 2nd, 3rd and 4th MTP joint, that likely indicates that they are sitting lower than they ideally should and that the resulting nerve compression plays at least a part in your problem. If so, the solution is a decent metatarsal pad just behind the MTP joints to raise and separate them.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Aerobic Base, A follow up on max heart rate, High blood pressure, Nutrition

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Aerobic Base

A follow up on max heart rate

High blood pressure

Nutrition

Aerobic Base

Howdy guys,

I am a 36 year old entering my 4th season of racing in Colorado. I am a cat 4 and plan to upgrade to cat 3 this season. I am wondering if I am doing adequate volume to develop a good enough aerobic base to do a two hour zone 2 ride with no decoupling/cardiac drift by the beginning of December.

I ride about 7 hours a week, broken down like this:

Saturday - 4 hour group ride, zones 1, 2, 3.

Sunday - 1 hour trainer ride, zone 2

Tuesday - 1 hour trainer ride, zone 2

Thursday - 1 hour trainer ride, zone 2

I started this schedule the last week of October.

I do not have a power meter, but I will have one in less than two weeks, so I'll be able to compare HR to power. For now I am doing zone 2 according to HR, with no idea what my power is.

Would it benefit me to do some more intense intervals during my Tuesday and Thursday sessions? Do I need to?

Thanks so much for your time!

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Blake,

Your plan looks like excellent use of the minimal time you have available. There's a good chance you will be successful in reaching your rather unusual goal. (Most people want to go faster or make more power on increase endurance. I've never heard someone wanting to train specifically to reduce decoupling before). The one thing I would add to your program is that you make sure to switch to zone 1 rather than zone 2 if you feel other than highly motivate, energetic and generally good.

A follow up to Heart Rate and thresholds

To follow on to Nick Gibbons Max HR question, I have done 3 professional sport tests (VO2Max) and after each test the assessor have given me a MHR of 183bpm (same assessor and company) although the print out show 185bpm. My last test was in June 2010. I vaguely remember somewhere that the reason given for my 183bpm MHR was that I could sustain 183bpm for a minute before hitting a higher bpm. Based on 183bpm MHR my training zones were given.

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Bryan,

I personally use the highest heart rate a person has ever seen as their max (excluding monitor glitches and bouts of tachycardia). If someone else wants to define max as what one can sustain for a certain period of time, I would not argue. One could even end up with the same training zones if one used slightly different percentages for the endpoints of the zones. The concept of zone training includes the idea that training anywhere in the zone has similar effects, so differences of a few beats in the zone endpoints should make no difference whatsoever in the fitness one gets from training in the zones, especially if one is smart about backing off when tired. For what it's worth, I use two separate sets of zones for more and less fit rides, and the more fit the rider is, the more time they spend at lower heart rates.

Theoretically, the zone endpoints represent some physiological transition. That means you should not base heart rate training zones on "highest heart rate you can maintain for x-time" tests. The results of those tests depend as much on motivation as physiology.

High blood pressure

Dear team,

Kelby Bethards says:

Hi James,

You present a common and rather confusing problem. I will keep this simple and concise.

Just answer some of you questions. Yes, exercise does affect your BP. It usually lowers it. And a strong pulse is definitely something athletes all gain, but during rest, an athletic heart will not "need" to beat as hard to perfuse the body, tissues, etc, unless BP is too high. That being said, white coat HTN does exist, but your home readings are concerning. Not for the immediate term, but over many years.

Celexa can have the side effect that you have noted, but the only way to tell is to stop the medication, with guidance on a taper from your doctor. So, in the meantime, you would need another anxiety medication, unless you can get by without for a drug free trial. There are others, so do not give up hope.

The genetic component is one we can't control. I know a few racers on the team I run that do have HTN and take a BP medication and do fine with this.

However, make sure you doctor understands you are an athlete before she prescribes a BP med, so she chooses the correct medication. So, it is possible, to be perfectly fit and yet have the genetic cards stacked against you. We call that "essential hypertension", which to me means, we (the medical community) essentially don't know why it happens.

So, in short, don't give up hope. If the Celexa is the problem there are other meds that help. IF you have HTN, due to genetic factors, it is treatable (and important to do so). AND, you can still race.

Kelby Bethards, MD

Nutrition

Dear Scott,

There are tons of procedures and studies out there how to replenish muscle glycogen after exercise. But is there any way to do so [just like to refill liver glycogen constantly] while exercise? Or is it doable only while resting? And if yes, why? What’s the hindering point?

Do I comprehend it correctly, as soon as those 300-450 grams of CH are depleted in the muscles, my training/race will be supported only by fat, protein and liver glycogen [blood sugar]?

Thanks,

Rob

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Robert,

The ability of the gut to absorb carbohydrate is limited. The exact amount that different people can absorb depends of all sorts of things and can't be predicted particularly closely, but it's going to be on the order of 150-300 Calories per hour during exercise. If the muscles are using more carbohydrate than that during exercise, there is no way they can store new glycogen. Again approximating wildly, figure that at a mellow pace your body might get half it's calories from carbs and half from fat. An easy ride for a strong but not elite male might be 200 watts or 720 Calories per hour, with 360 coming from carbohydrate. Since that's more than the gut can process into the blood stream, even on an endurance ride like that it would be impossible to form glycogen while riding.

How much glycogen one can store in muscles depends on training history, genetics, body size, diet and possibly other variables, but no matter how much glycogen one has stored, when it runs down to a small percentage of initial stores, further exercise will be fueled by fat and protein. When an untrained individual runs out of muscle glycogen, they can't exercise any more in any meaningful way. A well trained cyclist who runs out of glycogen can keep going forever, but only very slowly.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Spinning, One leg bigger than the other, Comparing personal BikeFit with the Pros, Tabata session workload, Strength training, In depth from Steve: How does saddle position affect reach to bars, and drops?

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Spinning

One leg bigger than the other

Comparing personal BikeFit with the Pros

Tabata session workload

Strength training

In depth from Steve: How does saddle position affect reach to bars, and drops?

Spinning

Hi Cyclingnews,

I’m currently living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. There is some great riding in Cambodia but around Phnom Penh it is flat, dusty, busy and dangerous. Basically, it’s no good for training.

As a result, I have been doing most of my training on Spinning bikes.
I'm not feeling as strong as I might expect from the work I have been doing. Is it possible to get race fit purely on Spinning bikes? If not, what sort of balance is required?

Cheers,

Laurence

James Hibbard says:

Hello Laurence,

My concern about training exclusively on a spin bike is that many have a flywheel mechanism which can allow one to simply “float” through the recovery stroke. This stands in contrast to a set of rollers, or even a trainer, where one’s pedaling is quite similar to actual riding and one has to engage their posterior chain much more on the recovery stroke.

I am not sure about the logistical possibility of this for you, but for someone in your situation it would be best to have your actual bike and at least a trainer (if not a set of rollers and a trainer).

The rollers would be a great tool to work on your pedaling technique, while a trainer works well for longer and/or more power-oriented efforts.

Best of luck!

One leg bigger than the other

Hello,

I'm 22, 6' 3" and weigh 155-160 lbs. I have been riding/racing road for almost 5 years and cyclo-cross for 3 years. I have also been running for about 2 years. My problem is this; my left leg is smaller than my right leg and not in length. My left calf and quad muscles are noticeably smaller than my right. When I first noticed the difference I tried to change my pedaling style, thinking I favored the right leg more. But even trying the change there was still no difference. When I run I try the same theory, leading with the left leg and changing my stride to try and get both legs to do the same amount of work.

I don't notice that one leg is stronger than the other, they feel equally strong when I'm riding or running. After long hard rides I can feel my right (bigger) leg is much more tired than the other. Is there anything that can be done to get both legs at an equal size? Is this a common problem and is it a problem? Any information or tips on the matter would be a great help, thank you!

Sean

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Sean,

I see this from time to time. What it says is that no matter what you feel, you are functioning asymmetrically. Here's a few suggestions.

1. Have an x ray taken to determine whether there is a disparity in leg length. I know you have said that you don't, but there is certainty with a well taken x ray or scan. Anything else is conjecture.

2. It is much more common for cyclists to favour and overemphasise their right leg than their left leg and there are a variety of reasons for this. Read this link for more.

The Right Side Bias http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/04/the-right-side-bias/

3. Another common one is too high a seat height. If the rider is too high, it is exceedingly uncommon to sit squarely on the seat and equally overextend each leg. What happens is that the rider hangs towards their favoured side, usually but not always the right, and sacrifices the other leg which is usually but not always the left. This 'sacrificing' takes 2 basic forms. Working the left leg just as hard as the right but through greater extension usually causes pain anywhere from the Achilles tendon to the lower and upper back. The other, and what you may be doing, is not using the leg in danger of over extending as much. If this is the case, you will end up with a larger right leg than left leg. These links will give you more about this.

Seat Height. http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/

Addendum to Seat Height. http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/05/addendum-to-seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be-2/

4. Lastly, any tendency to self protect one side, whether consciously or unconsciously, will potentially lead to what you describe. A simple one being like a dropping arch on the right side. If the right arch collapses during the pedalling action more than the left arch, a common pattern of self protection is to do whatever is necessary, which usually involves shifting the pelvis on the seat, to protect the right side issue. This comes at a cost to power production on the left side. In addition as above in 3.

In your shoes, what I would do is, firstly - establish that you are sitting squarely on the seat. Don't assume you are because you feel you are. Most people don't sit squarely. Only the level varies.

Secondly, find a bike fitter using torque analysis. Velotron, Computrainer and others highlight differences in left / right power and torque output. Find someone who uses that kind of equipment and see what the state of play is regarding not only power output but the way that you produce it.

I would be interested to hear what happens.

Comparing personal BikeFit with the Pros

G'day,

As a long time rider and racer, I have watched with interest the changes in the bike fit of the pros over the years. And, thanks to your pro bike features, the various rider positions are listed.

I have kept track of the (12) riders whose height is the same as my own (180cm), and averaged out the measurements. When I applied this to mine, the obvious difference was saddle height, it averaged 2 cm lower then my own, so as a experiment, I dropped the height and adjusted the setback a few mils, the reach remained the same as were the cleats were kept the same, a little behind the metatarsal. The first thing I noticed was that my whole leg seemed to be more involved the usual, especially the calf muscles. My pedalling action, which I thought decent, became much smoother and I felt I was generating a more consistent power throughout the stroke, whether I was climbing or a rouleur. I could rotate my hips easier and as a plus, my lumbar quit aching for a change. There is a bit of tightness in my gluteus minimus and tensor fascia lata, but nothing that doesn't stretch out. The quads and hammies are fine.

I have retained this position for the past few weeks and I believe it has been of a benefit to me, I know it's not exactly the way it's done, but I'd be interested to read the reactions, either I have been fit badly over the years, or this is closer to how I should be sitting.

Many thanks

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Steve,

That's an interesting exercise you've undertaken and while I don't doubt your conclusion about improved performance in the slightest, your methodology of linking rider stature to seat height leaves a lot to be desired for individual application. Even so, by far the most common major issue (as distinct from minor) issue that I see with first time clients' positions' is too high a seat height. Over 80% of fit clients leave here with a seat height lower than when they arrived.

Too high a seat height is common because people set seat height on a new bike after a ride around the block on the flat where momentum plays a large part. Better to set it while riding uphill under reasonably hard load as a realistic test for how far the legs can reach with ease. Too many bike fitters set seat heights too high because instead of taking an individual approach to the task, too often the goniometer or a tech version of the same thing is consulted to conform to someone's ideal of what an average angle of bend in the knee should be.

Lastly, many riders when questioned will tell you that they have a strong leg and a not so strong leg. Almost always seat height is the major reason for this. If the seat is too high, almost no one will sit squarely on the seat and equally overextend each leg. They will compensate by hanging towards one pedal (mostly but not always the right one) and overextending the other leg (mostly but not always the left). So the right leg will be 'stronger' for those who hang to the right because it can reach the pedal with ease. The left leg will be 'weaker' because is over extending and the left foot skates around on the pedal to varying degrees.

Other consequential fallout is ITB discomfort on the side away from the favoured hip dropping side, the knee of the non favoured leg moving outwards on the upstroke and inwards on the downstroke, one shoulder being thrust further forward than the other and one hand going numb more than the other. Oftentimes other factors play a part but almost always too high a seat height is the major reason or major contributor.

Tabata session workload

Hi there,

Philip

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Philip,

If you are racing twice each weekend, you are getting plenty of high-intensity exercise for the week, so the Tabata interval sessions probably aren't really adding to your performance. If you do choose to do intervals of any sort though, it's generally a good idea to quit the workout when you can no longer maintain the power you made on earlier intervals. Beyond that point you are sort of practicing to go slower than you could, so if you goal is maximal 20 second power, go flat out and quit when you lose power. If your goal is more repeatable power, pick a power you can repeat 8 times for your Tabata set, and still quit the workout when you can no longer maintain the effort.

Strength training

Just completed a road race of 228km and felt I lacked pure strength. I could climb with people far less fit than me yet I couldn’t stay with them. I feel I am lacking strength what exercises would you recommend to improve leg strength.

Regards

Jason

Scott Saifer says:

You can improve leg strength by doing low-cadence, high-force pedaling such as long rides in zone 2 alternating 5 minute intervals at 40 rpm with 5 minute intervals at 90 rpm. Appropriately structured gym work could also develop pure strength, but nothing you've written suggests that pure strength is going to help you. Pure strength translates into sprint acceleration on the bike, which is not what you are describing as lacking. Strength work also improves anaerobic endurance or the ability to maintain an above LT power output, by a few minutes.

What makes you think the guys you can't stay with are less fit than you? If you'll describe the terrain and effort of the race up to the point where couldn't stay with them, perhaps we can help you figure out what you really need to work on.

In depth from Steve: How does saddle position affect reach to bars, and drops?

Hey guys,

I'm a 43 year old male, fast recreational cyclist (6,000 miles/yr.), 187 cm tall, 91 cm inseam, with a relatively short torso. Despite 20+ years of serious cycling, I still have an obsessive/compulsion thing about constantly fooling around with my position. During my latest round of experimenting, I noticed something weird. With the seat obviously too far forward, I had to have the bar fairly high (no more that a 2-3 cm drop), and rather close to the seat (about 52 cm seat tip to bar); any lower or further forward and my speed/power dropped dramatically. Conversely, when the seat was apparently too far rear ward, I had to get into a rather low and long position (at least 8-9 cm bar drop, and 58 cm seat to bar); if I sat anymore upright, my power dropped way off. (I did a few rides that way, and ended up with one of the few backaches I've ever had in my life!)

Isn't this the opposite of the way it's supposed to work? (Don't time trialist move their seats forward - or slide to the tip while pedaling - so they can get lower?) If so, does this just mean I'm an oddball - or does it indicate a serious flaw in my setup?

I adjusted the seat by moving it 5 mm at a time - alternating height and fore/aft numerous times - until arriving at what allowed me to pedal the fastest at a moderate, steady pace. Currently, seat height - BB to seat - is 80 cm., which is pretty much "heal-on-pedal", if that matters. (I had a few fittings done, all of which place the seat 1-2 cm higher, which I'm 99% certain is to high for me.) Fore/aft is tip of seat 9.5 cm behind BB, which is 5 cm forward of the point where I need to get into that extreme low position in order to generate full power. (This is also 15-20 mm behind where I can pass the "hands-off" test. I'm sure that test places me too far forward, as there is then enough pressure on my hands to make them sore and numb within a half hour.) Bar drop is 5 cm below seat, reach 55 cm tip to bar. (This is the most I can go at full power - just a cm lower and/or further, and my speed/power drops like a rock.

I know power is supposed to be lost when getting low, but is it normal for it to drop so sharply at a given point? Or can that also indicate a fit problem?) This position is definitely the most comfortable I've ever had. And, on my MTB I can better handle the rough stuff. It's probably about the fastest position I've had. On average the seat is now much further rearward and somewhat lower than the many other positions I've had over the years. I used the "hands off" fore/aft for quite some time, but after trying this position, that definitely doesn't feel right anymore. Any ideas?

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Paul,

You've covered a fair bit of ground there. Firstly, you sound really happy with your current position. So even though it will be hard for you to avoid the temptation; leave it alone.

To address your comments one by one:

Q: "With the seat obviously too far forward, I had to have the bar fairly high (no more that a 2-3 cm drop), and rather close to the seat (about 52 cm seat tip to bar); any lower or further forward and my speed/power dropped dramatically"..........(. you ask why?)

A: This is predictable. We need to balance the metabolic cost of maintaining a position against the metabolic cost of producing power. Each rider has a finite capacity and they can choose to use it for a low metabolic cost positionor a high metabolic cost position. The 'aero' line of argument often pushed hard by the marketing guys, can be summed up as "Yes you will produce less power but you will go faster anyway because of better aerodynamics". I think an overly high priority on aerodynamics is a major reason for poor performance in many riders / triathletes. If the seat is too far forward, stability is compromised. To produce power optimally, the rider needs to be stable. When too far forward the rider has to shorten up their reach to the bars to try and regain stability as well as invest effort in bearing weight because as the seat moves forward, there is a transfer of body weight forward with it, that has to be supported somehow. Three things result.

Firstly a lot of effort that should be going into pushing on the pedals is diverted into weight bearing. This is pretty basic stuff. A stable position is needed to provide a platform to resist the forces that pedalling generates. The higher the metabolic cost of achieving stability, the less available effort is left to propel the bike.

Secondly, because the seat has moved too far forward with a weight shift onto the handlebars that needs to be supported, a lot of this effort is upper body focused and enlists muscles that need to relax to allow full breathing. If they are carrying tension due to weight bearing, then they cannot relax to allow full breathing. There are 20 torso muscles used in breathing. 18 of them have postural implications. That means that they can be used to breathe with, but to do so need to be able to relax. Or they can be used to bear weight and / or resist pedalling forces with, but in so doing, they carry tension and cannot fully relax. Translation: you won't suffocate, you will just ride more slowly.

Thirdly, the shortening up of your upper body reach to the bars that you noted is a consequence of needing to bear too much weight forward but has the consequence of shortening your 'effective' torso length. Again, this is to the detriment of breathing efficiency because your lungs don't have as much room to expand into.

Your too far forward position needed a lot of effort to maintain the position and the reason that your power dropped off dramatically if you went lower or further forward again is that you pushed a poor poor position into a more extreme version of the same thing. Because your seat position was basically poor, you had to raise your bars and shorten your reach in an attempt to regain some modicum of stability.

If you are interested in the detail of this subject, here is 3 links for you.

TT Rider http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/07/tt-rider-rod-and-bikefitter-discuss-the-secret-of-speed/

Ironman Position - How Marketing Overcame Reality For Some http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/08/ironman-triathlon-position-how-marketing-overcame-some-peoples-reality/

And best of all, an expose' confirming what a lot of people have been saying for a long time but have been drowned out by the marketing effort devoted to pushing aerodynamics. It is about how Pro teams have found that too often they are paying big bucks in wind tunnel costs for an aerodynamic improvement only to have riders perform worse. http://www.bikeradar.com/racing/article/aero-position-isnt-everything-31165

Q: " Conversely, when the seat was apparently too far rear ward, I had to get into a rather low and long position (at least 8-9 cm bar drop, and 58 cm seat to bar); if I sat any more upright, my power dropped way off. (I did a few rides that way, and ended up with one of the few backaches I've ever had in my life!) "..........(you ask why?)

A: Again, this is predictable and normal if you want to push a rearward seat position too far. It is the exact opposite of your first situation. The key to understanding what happened is that pelvic angle has a large effect on how efficiently you can apply force to the pedals. You have pushed yourself way too far back BUT if you reach low enough and far enough to the bars you are forced to roll your pelvis forward enough so that you have good muscle enlistment and your power is good. Unfortunately your back can't cope. This highlights why using power as a single criterion is a poor basis for judging a position on a bike. The reason that your power output suffered when you sat up is that your pelvis was rotating rearward as you sat up. This changed the relative enlistment of the power producing muscles and revealed your seat poor position for what it was; a poor seat position.

Q: "Isn't this the opposite of the way it's supposed to work? (Don't time triallists move their seats forward -- or slide to the tip while pedaling -- so they can get lower?) If so, does this just mean I'm an oddball . . . or does it indicate a serious flaw in my setup?"

A: No, this is exactly the way things work if a position is pushed too far. The Ironman Position link that I gave you above is a large part of the answer to your question. But if a rider has to slide forward while making a TT effort, then there is something wrong with their position. I know that sliding forward is so common that it has become 'normal'. It is NOT normal. It is a human body deciding at a level below conscious thought that it cannot maintain a position on a comfortable part of the seat with weight borne on the rear of the pelvis while applying the pressure the rider desires to put out to the pedals. So it moves forward; either because the riders bar position is too low and has been set at low load rather than under pressure OR that the riders's seat is too far forward to start with leaving them with an unstable position. Under load the rider HAS to regain stability somehow and the only method left to them while riding is too shorten up. The aero bars aren't going to come to them, so the rider has to move forward on the seat. This common, but is not normal nor desirable from a performance perspective or a procreative perspective.

As to whether this indicates a serious flaw in your set up; of course it does. You were experimenting with poor positions pushed to the extreme in either direction of seat movement.

Re your comments about seat height, I agree completely. Most riders set their seat height too high which is excusable because in many cases they don't know what they are doing. And most bike fitters set their clients seat heights too high for the same reason. Rather than watching how the client functions under load they try and achieve a theoretically appropriate average angle of bend in the knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke. This is fine in theory, but takes zero account of how that client functions under load and is an exceedingly poor way for someone being paid to do a job to determine seat height..

As to your comments re the balance test and your power dropping dramatically if your bars are a touch too low -

The balance test was an attempt by me about 6 years ago to give questioners on this site a simple means to work out ideal seat setback. It is not a perfect description because so much depends on how functional the rider is, but it was the best written description I could come up with. One of it's shortcomings is that some unusually long legged / short torso'd riders can to end up too far forward and some short legged / long torso'd riders can end up too far back. In almost every case I have seen to date, the people in these categories whom the balance test fails have poor posture and limited functional stability. I assume this describes you and mean no aspersions if it does. I am trying to give you a genuine explanation. You're the best judge of whether what I've just said is accurate or not in your case. The reason your power drops off dramatically if you drop your bars even a centimetre is because you are probably close to the limit now with the bar height you have. Dropping it that little bit more pushes you over the edge.

Finally, you sound like you use power as a major determinant of the effectiveness of a position on your bike. I understand why you do this but be wary of using a single criterion for judging position. A good position on a bike is a compromise between often contending requirements. To ride well, over time and with minimal chance of injury, power is a poor choice alone. I think you must be pretty close to ideal when you say "This position is definitely the most comfortable I've ever had. And, on my MTB I can better handle the rough stuff. It's probably about the fastest position I've had."

If you are comfortable and have a reasonably good position you will produce good power over time. If you are powerful but not comfortable, either your power will drop over time or you will get injured. That is just the way it works.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Lack of sleep, Balancing work and riding commitments, A follow up by a concerned reader on unequal leg power from October 5

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. Remember, the more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Lack of sleep

Balancing work and riding commitments

A follow up by a concerned reader on unequal leg power from October 5

Lack of sleep

Hi,

My question is a general one that I, and probably others, have problems with when having a full-time job, family, etc. What do you recommend on those intense workout days when you are lacking adequate sleep? I can feel that my body needed an extra 1-2 hrs of sleep, and doing intervals, sprints, or even a training race is the last thing I want to do. Do you recommend taking the day off the bike altogether, do a recovery ride, or shorten the workout by a certain amount?

I'm doing all that can to improve my sleep, but when trying to stick to a training plan, it can be very frustrating when you aren't well rested.

Thanks,

Mark

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Mark,

I encourage all my clients to follow this rule: If you are well rested and feeling good, train long or hard as the program suggests. If you are feeling less than great, do a Recovery Ride of the full length of the suggested ride for the day. If you are really tired, replace the training with a nap. For my clients that regularly have trouble getting enough sleep for good recovery, we have the rule that they must sleep to train.

The training plan might say something like "Sprints (10) if you got 8 hours sleep last night, else Short Recovery Ride" or "Endurance Spin: 4 hours if you got 8 hours sleep last night, else Short Recovery Ride" and so on. When the body is ready for rest, rest will do more to make it stronger than any number of intervals, sprints, training races or long rides. Only replace a ride with a Day Off if you are rather tired or sick. Otherwise, an easy ride is better than no ride and better than a hard ride when tired.

Balancing work and riding commitments

Hi,

I used to do a lot of racing, however I've just started a new job as a waiter which means I work either 12 hour shifts or do split shifts e.g 1130am-1500pm and then 1700pm - 1200am, and I'm struggling to stay race fit. Do you have any tips which I could do to try and keep at my level?

Many thanks.

Tom

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Tom,

I've had a few waiter-clients. Waiting tables and bike racing is a tough combination. Being on your feet 12-hours a day is really not conducive to recovering from whatever training you manage to squeak in. Here's the general advice though.

On work days do an hour or two at most of easy spinning. Don't ride hard in the 8 hours before working. Standing, you won't recover from it well enough to get a training benefit, and going to work shortly after a hard ride increases your chance of getting sick. On non-work days, sleep in and then go as long as you have time and energy for. Only go long or hard when you'll have a good opportunity to recover before your next work day.

A follow up by a concerned reader on unequal leg power from October 5

Ben Lewis replied:

Hi Steve,

I’m a tutor for second year medical students in Muscular Skeletal Systems and just wanted to rationalize the following comment:

From October 5.

“To my knowledge, there is no nerve exiting C7 or nearby that goes to the legs. The innervation of the legs stems from much further down in the spine.”

You comment is correct, L1 through L5 and the sacrum. However, just remember that spinal cord lesions at C7 can still cause quadriplegia.

Kind regards,

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Ben,

The questioner was concerned about differing power outputs from each leg (left weaker) which he felt may be stemming from a previous C7 injury that had affected his left arm. Is it your experience that an injury of the type he describes can cause the symptoms he describes; weaker left leg?

It may be so, as I don't know. I see a lot of people with similar power imbalances that have had no injuries to the neck and the cases I've seen, other factors or poor bike position play a part. I thought it unlikely that his root cause was his injury, but if I'm wrong on that and it is possible, I'm happy to be corrected.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Weight training, Specific sprint training, Optimising your warm-up, Out-turned foot issues

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. The more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your question.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Weight Training

Specific sprint training

Optimising your warm-up

Out-turned foot issues

Weight training

Hi Cyclingnews,

My question is in regard to weight training for cyclists. Firstly is it beneficial for cyclists, more specifically sprinters? Secondly, which muscles should be targeted, any upper body? And thirdly how many reps and how should they be preformed for explosive strength? Finally which part of the year should I be engaging in weight training and can a day at the gym replace a day riding?

Thanks for the advice,

Jeffrey

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Jeffrey,

Yes, weight training is beneficial for cyclists, especially for sprinters. Target the power muscles (glutes, calves, hams, quads), the core muscles and the muscles of the upper body that you use when you sprint. Emphasize multi-joint exercises that require you to use small muscles for posture and coordination over machines that isolate particular muscles.

Start your strength training when you start your off-season training. Two or three days per week is appropriate for road cyclists. Track sprinters will do more. Start with short sets and trivially light weights for a week or two while you learn the motions and then build up. Adjust to lifting with four weeks or so of lifting that feels challenging but not hard. Then make it hard by extending sets and adding weight. Make all changes gradually. The exact design of the program is not so important as the philosophy of starting with plenty of anatomic adaptation time and then building up gradually. It's not unreasonable to be working towards sets of 50 or more reps on the power muscles.

I suggest riding at least 40 minutes on at least two of the lifting days if your schedule allows.

Weights and sprinting

Hi Scott,

Thanks for all the advice, but I was hoping that you could clarify a few thing. Firstly, which upper body muscles are used when sprinting; back, biceps, triceps, chest? And secondly, should I continue weight training throughout the racing season?

Thanks again,

Jeffrey

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Jeffrey,

To sprint effectively you need to be able to stabilize the pelvis against the huge forces you'll be developing below the waist. To do that, you need to be able to anchor yourself to the bars and make your chest and abdomen a nearly motionless platform. That means you need to be strong in the biceps and triceps and all the muscles of the trunk.

What to do about tapering depends on whether you are focused on a few races or trying to be strong for a few particular races. If you are a typical roadie who wants to be strong for an extended block of races, taper to one day per week of relatively light lifting a few weeks before those races start. If you are focused on one particular race, lift hard into the racing season, but quit weights entirely about six weeks before you main event.

Optimising your warm-up

To this layman, the exercise physiology texts seem to suggest that you reach an aerobic steady state within a few minutes of commencing endurance exercise. However, it takes me about 50 minutes to feel comfortable at my maximum sustainable output, and even as much as two hours to feel really great. What's going on in the interim, assuming I'm typical? Is there a way to expedite this warm-up period? If you must stop riding, such as before a TT, how long will a warm-up "last?" Thanks, great feature of the site.

Richard

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Richard,

There are many processes we know about going on during warm up, and probably some that we don't. At the least, body temperature is rising, blood vessels are dilating in muscles and constricting in the kidneys and gut, fatty acids are being released at increasing rates from fat tissue for use as fuel in muscles, and levels of various hormones are rising or falling.

As fitness level increases, warm up generally takes longer. It's not clear whether this is because more experienced riders are more sensitive to their being not entirely warmed up, or maybe the experienced rider body in some sense doesn't take the ride seriously until it's been going on a for a while. In any case, it's common for experienced riders to need 45 minutes or longer to feel completely warmed up. I recommend a standard 1-hour warm up for all racers except in hot weather or for races that will certainly start slowly.

I don't know of any way to speed up the warm up. There are rubs that promise to speed up warm up, but the real research on them says that are placebos at best.

Being fatigued will slow warm up, or at least delay the moment of feeling good, so if you seem to need much longer to warm up than other riders do, you might benefit from an examination of your overall work-rest balance.

Out turned foot

Hey guys,

I'm recovering slowly from a comminuted right hip fracture. I had surgery in Spain but it had to be revised back home because it was not done well. The first operation left my leg about 3 cm short and in varus (angled medially). The second procedure fixed these problems but the leg is externally rotated by 15 - 20 degrees. I am a month or two before I'll be able to use a wind trainer and the road is further away.

I use Shimano pedals with floating cleats. I expect the cleat will hold my leg in an internally rotated position and stop my heal contacting the chain stay. That would not be good for my knee at least and I can't imagine it would be a comfortable or powerful position. What are my options?

Thanks

David

Scott Saifer says:

Hi David,

Steve may have more for you on this, but I'll jump in and say that if you adjust your cleat to keep your heel from rubbing the crank, you'll probably end up toasting your knee. Better you should get some pedal axle extenders so you can let your foot take it's new neutral angle. Good luck.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.

Topics: Endurance Training, Preventing the post-weekend form backslide, Achilles problems, How do the pro's peak for a three week race?, Hamstring Soreness, Training intensity, finding the right balance, Adjusting your setup to a new road bike

Got a question for the fitness panel? Send it to fitness@cyclingnews.com. Try and include as much relevant information as you can think of. The more details you can provide the better the panel can tailor their response to your problem.

Emails may be edited for length or clarity, but we try to publish both questions and answers in their entirety.

To find advice that relates to you more easily:

Endurance Training

Preventing the post-weekend form backslide

Achilles problems

How do the pro's peak for a three week race?

Hamstring Soreness

Training intensity, finding the right balance

Adjusting your setup to a new road bike

Endurance Training

Panel,

I'm looking for some advice on the sort of training I might do to prepare me for a tour over about 5 days, through hilly country, doing between 4-6 hours a day on the bike (sealed roads all the way with little in the way of baggage, on my road bike). I plan to do this in about three months.

I am a 50 year old male in reasonable condition, doing regular rides of about one hour and light weight training sessions. I have problems with worn or slightly displaced vertebrae in spots including my neck and lower back, which have in the past caused problems with riding. Doing exercises advised by physios and maintaining general strength through gym work, I do not have any particular issue at the moment. I have been increasing the length of my rides recently and can comfortably do rides of up to four hours without problems. Obviously a multi-day ride may increase the likelihood of problems, due to accumulated fatigue etc. My question is, apart from the obvious approach of preparing by doing a couple of consecutive days at least of long rides, is there any preparation I could undertake that would reduce the chances of crocking at about day three?

Neville Worland

Brisbane, Australia

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Neville,

This sounds like two different questions rolled into one:

1) How should a mostly healthy 50 year old prepare for a 5-day tour of longish days and

2) How should a rider with known neck and lower back issues prepare for several days of hard riding.

I'm reluctant to write a detailed answer to the first question since I answered more or less the same question sometime in the last few months and you seem to be on the right track anyway: work up gradually to doing several days in a row of multi-hour rides, mostly at a very sustainable pace. When you can finish a six-hour ride feeling like you could do more, you'll be ready for your tour. There was as decent study a number of year ago that found that riders who trained 6 hours or more per week and 100 miles (160 kilometers) or more per week before a multi-day tour had far fewer injuries than those who trained much less than that. There'd be nothing wrong with working up to larger totals, but take that as your minimum target. Riding at least every other day, even if many of those rides are short, is far better than riding less frequently and skipping more days.

Since you are problem free as you ride currently, my main advice on the second question is to make sure you've got a great bike fit. If your position puts you close to the limit of what your back or neck can handle, it may not cause problems on a few hour ride, but may cause problems when you do multiple back to back long days. The problem for you getting a fitting, is that none of the "systems" for doing a fit really take into account your back situation, so you need to visit someone who actually understands biomechanics, or to educate yourself.

One way to test your current position is to challenge it. Can you ride the drops with your elbows significantly bent for an hour or so without pain or tightness? Check your back, neck, and saddle-contact patch. If that works okay, then your position should be fine for your tour. If you can't ride the drops for an hour without noticing it in your back or neck or saddle-contact area, you're likely to have problems on your long ride. If that is the case, write back for more advice.

Preventing the post-weekend form backslide

Hi,

I'm a 36 year old and I currently do 500 miles a month. My rides are usually around the 40 mile mark, and consist of mixed terrain. (some flatish routes, some hilly/climbing routes). I tend to bunch my rides, due to work commitments, and a typical pattern for me would be 5/6 daily rides in the mornings with then 3 or 4 days off. What I have noticed is my fitness level seems considerably diminished after a few days off the bike. The first few days back riding I seem to have lost a lot of fitness and it feels although I'm out of condition. More than just a case of stiff legs, I really suffer. Is this normal and is there anything I can do to reduce this effect?

Thanks in advance,

Marc Evans

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Marc,

Your experience is normal for someone following a pattern of training like yours. What you are describing is a reduced version of the weekend warrior effect. In 3-4 days off, your cardiac stroke volume decreases substantially so you have to sustain a higher heart rate to deliver the same oxygen to your muscles and produce the same power. The solution is not to take 3-4 day blocks of days off.

Riding at least every other day prevents the back-sliding to some extent, and riding daily of course prevents it entirely. The extra days of riding you do to preserve your fitness don't need to be long or hard, just long enough for a good warm up and nothing more. If you can get on a trainer or on the road and spin for 30-40 minutes on what are now your days off, reducing actual off days to one per week or two but with a day or more of training in between, you'll not only avoid the first-day-back-on feeling but also get stronger overall.

Achilles Tendons

Dear Panel,

Last year I developed severe pain in both Achilles tendons during a three-day mountain bike race (very noticeable when walking, too severe to run or cycle for any distance). It went away after about 2 months, after rest and light physio, and I forgot all about it. However, It all came back during the same event this year. I did other similar events in between with no problems. I've rested and had physiotherapy but still have mild pain (it’s now been 2 months since the event) and have also suffered a massive loss of confidence.

Any advice would be appreciated,

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Glen,

I'd be suggesting cleat position and seat height as the two most likely candidates, with the strong possibility of overly tight calves as well. I'd guess that a 3 day mountain bike race is at the tougher end of the spectrum of your riding?

If so, then when the going gets tough, inadequacies of our position that aren't noticeable day to day, begin to make their presence felt. If your cleats are too far forward, your calves and Achilles tendons will have to work very hard. If your seat height is too high and you are forcing the pace during a 3 day race with the extra heel drop that forcing the pace always requires, then the calves and Achilles tendons (and probably the hamstrings) are being pressured.

If you don't stretch and have calves that are too tight, then you have less margin for error with both cleat position and seat height.

The info on these two links should get you started on the path to not having this happen again, but additionally, if you don't stretch, now is as good a time to start as any.

Peaking for the Tour; how to keep your strength over 3 weeks

Since to be able to peak you need some rest to get rid of fatigue - how do the pros peak for the Tour de France’s 3rd week when there is no rest and a lot of fatigue?

Samuel

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Samuel,

This reminds me of the old joke about two backpackers who run into a bear in the woods. As the bear begins to charge towards them, one of the guys drops his pack and starts changing into running shoes while the other alternately looks at him and the charging bear. The guy who's standing with his pack on says, "What? Are you crazy? You can't outrun a bear!" and the other guy says, "I don't have to. I just have to outrun you!"

You are right, by the end of a 3-week Tour, all the riders are fatigued. The ones who are less fatigued appear to peak by comparison to those who are more fatigued. Oversimplifying, the ones who have been protected by their teams, who's aerobically sustainable speed is high enough that they could ride below lactate threshold more of the time, who have been able to ride more conservatively, not having to make their own bridges or chases, and who have the most toughness will be less fatigued than the others and will eventually ride away from them.

Hamstring soreness

Hi,

I have been experiencing a lot of pain in the belly of my hamstring muscles. After a day or two of recovery from a hard threshold session they hurt less. When I do these threshold efforts I usually notice the burn the most in the hamstrings. I have had a bike fit done so my position is at least reasonable. Are my hamstrings weak or should I look into another bike fit. I do stretch, but could do more. Any help would be much appreciated. I feel like this is really holding me back from doing more workouts.

Thanks,

Michael

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Michael,

If the hamstrings are overloaded, either the seat is too high or too far back. Or possibly both. Normally, if having the seat too high is what causes the hamstrings to load up, discomfort is felt either very high in the hamstrings or very low, not in the belly. This is not a 100% occurrence but it is more likely that your seat setback is too great as more often than not, when this is the reason for hamstring problems, it is the belly of the muscle group that feels the pressure.

The info on these links will also help; Seat set back, Seat height.

Training Intensity

Dear Panel,

I have always stuck to the "no more than 20%" intensity rule for total training time. Using Heart rate as a barometer, I either train at 135bpm or just below LT at 162bpm, not much in between for any length of time. My question is, my whole life I have designated high intensity days which are shorter, i.e. 30 minutes running hill repeats or 1 hour of intervals on the bike on the same day, and then no more intensity for a few days. Can I just incorporate some high intensity into most of my workouts not exceeding the 20% rule?

In other words, for a two hour ride can I throw in three 4 minute LT hill repeats for all of my rides and not exceed 135bpm the rest of the time?

I ask because I started doing this 3 weeks ago and it is working a little "too well" and I'm afraid I am creating an unwanted peak and the wheels are going to fall off soon.

Cheers,

Paul

Scott Saifer says:

Hi Paul,

I'm afraid no one knows the answer to your question. We do know that too much intensity leaves people tired and decreases the quality of training so that going hard every day to the point of fatigue is undoubtedly detrimental. I suspect that a bit of intensity every day is probably okay, so long as you are coming home still pretty energetic after each ride, and that your rides still end up being long enough to maintain your base.

When people do too much intensity for long term gains, they generally get faster and faster for 3-4 weeks, and plateau for another few weeks before falling apart. So, either you are now about peaked, or you have discovered a new model of training. How about letting us know in a few more weeks?

Adjusting to a new road bike

G’Day Ladies and Gents,

I took up riding about 4 years ago on a suggestion from my physio following a second knee clean up, damaged from playing too much cricket, both indoor and outdoor and I did run alot. The same sport has damaged my ankles; I also have horrible arm extension as both my shoulders have suffered pretty serious structural damage. I guess you could say I am bull at a gate and do everything at 110% without really worrying about getting injured.

Set Height of 740mm above the Bottom Bracket Centre (peoples opinion on how to do this measurement seem to vary)
550mm Bar Centre to Saddle Tip,
90mm drop from Saddle Top to Bar Top (I don’t think this is particularly extreme but some people say I ride a really low bar height)
Saddle Tip 70mm behind bottom bracket (I set it back this far as I am a ‘Toe Dipper’ in my pedal stroke, I think as a result of my ankles not really flexing a lot, but I could be wrong)
I ride 172.5 mm cranks.
I ride a Prologo Nago Evo or Prologo Choice Saddle, both are semi-round and I have no trouble being comfortable on them for 3 hours or more.
I am a hair under 6 feet tall,
I have an 82.5cm inseam measurement,
I weigh 65kgs
I am not a big gear thumper, I spin a lot.

Any Help or Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Brenden

Steve Hogg says:

G'day Brenden,

Firstly, please confirm that the discomfort was equally distributed between legs [edit: pain was equally distributed]. Do you still have your old bike?

If so, you can use it as a control providing you are using the same seat. Seat shapes and proportions vary so much that placing two different seats at the same setback can have the riders backside anywhere from the same place to quite different places relative to the bottom bracket.

As far as measuring seat height and seat setback goes, the measurements should be independent of bottom bracket diameter unless you are using an unusual method of measurement. Try this:

Grab your old bike and fit it to an indoor trainer and lock it up. Use a carpenter's long level to ensure that the bike is levelled between front and rear axle centres. Use a steel rule to measure the flat section of the seat rail. Typically this is 75mm long but can vary quite a bit. Use a marker pen and mark the midpoint of the flat section of the seat rail. Place the steel rule lengthways along the top of your seat. If there is a centre channel in the seat, move the rule to the side of the seat nearest you away from the cut out. Now measure your seat height from centre of bottom bracket to the underside of the rule laid along the seat and make sure that the measuring edge of your tape passes through the mark you have made at the centre point of the seat rail. This is a repeatable way to measure seat height, providing you use the same kind of seat. Measure on the left hand side of the bike so that you can accurately find the bottom bracket centre. Some cranks, including Shimano, use a blind crank with no hole on the right hand side and so trying to find bottom bracket centre is a guess.

The above will sort out seat height. As to seat setback, if it is too little, I would expect the entire quad group to feel the pressure, not just the VL's (unless there has been a change in cleat position / rotational angle). Let me know what happens and get back to me if the problem continues.

The Cyclingnews Form & Fitness panel

Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is head coach, CEO of Wenzel Coaching.com and has been coaching cyclists professionally for 18 years. He combines a master's degree in Exercise Physiology with experience in 20 years of touring and racing and over 300 road, track and MTB races to deliver training plans and advice that are both rigorously scientific and compatible with the real world of bike racing.

Scott has helped clients to turn pro as well as to win medals at US Masters National and World Championship events. He has worked with hundreds of beginning riders and racers and particularly enjoys working with the special or challenging rider. Scott is co-author of Bike Racing 101 with Kendra Wenzel and his monthly column appears in ROAD Magazine.

Steve Hogg has owned and operated Pedal Pushers since 1986, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. He can be reached at: www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+.

He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Pam Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an associate professor of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of energy balance on bone health. She has published on the effects of cycling and multi-day stage racing on bone density and turnover.

Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is a three-time Missouri State Road Champion.

James Hibbard progressed from the junior to the professional ranks as a rider and has over 15 years of competitive cycling experience. He is a former Collegiate All-American track cyclist, trained as a resident athlete at the United States Olympic Training Center, earned international medals as part of the U.S. National Team, and was a member of the powerhouse Shaklee and HealthNet Professional road cycling teams.

He has earned 13 National Track Championship medals, as well as numerous junior, U-23 and elite California State championships on both the road and track. Since retiring from full-time racing in 2005, James has focused on his development as a coach.

David Fleckenstein, MPT, OCS (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Eagle, ID and the president of Physiotherapy, PA, an outpatient orthopedic clinic focusing in orthopedics, spine, and sportsmedicine care.

His clients have included World and US champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his Masters degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University and is currently completing his doctorate at Regis University.

He is a board certified orthopedic specialist focusing in manual medicine and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilisation musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu.

Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology.