Bike legs gone dead

[Deleted User]

I don't know what is going on here. I have been cycling to work for about 2 months now. It is about 15 miles each way, but takes about an hour, with all the stopping and starting. I usually do 4 days of riding, with a rest on one (working) day of the week.

Recently it has been getting harder. I seem to fluctuate between feeling strong, and doing a good fast ride, and then feeling exhausted for the entire ride. This has only started happening in the last two weeks. Could it be due to my introducing a short run at the weekend?

[Deleted User]

Could it be that you brakes are stuck on?
















Sorry couldn't resist!

[Deleted User]

Grrrrrr

cougie

Hmmm - are you getting carried away and racing one day, only to suffer for it the next ?

Might be overtraining - try going easy for a while to see if you get through it.

[Deleted User]

That was my first thought - but otherwise I feel fine. My legs are weak-feeling, but I don't have any other fatigue, I'm eating and sleeping well and all that.

Perhaps I should switch my focus for a bit and see what happens - I might x-train with a bit of swimming instead and see what happens

[Deleted User]

A thought:
Check your heart rate every morning before you get up. If it's 10 bpm higher than usual then you need to take it easy. You may find that the days you find the ride hard are the days you pulse rate is also high in the morning. Your body may be telling you that it's tired.

Otherwise, maybe you're not eating enough chocolate?! :-)
mmmmmm chocolate.... 'Scuse me, I'm off for a snack...

Tweetie

Stickless

Tiredness can be cumulative, and can sneak up on you. Even kids: they take a week to catch up at the end of term. Quite possible you could manage the routine for six weeks, but then you've rather spent your reserves.

Possibly try resting a week (i.e. not cycling in to work), and then maybe 3 days a week cycle, "resting" two, see if that is tenable. Or else stick to your present schedule but accept that every sixth week is a rest week.

You can't go on forever plundering reserves. You may toughen up to it, but it sounds like you're not there yet.

[Deleted User]

I think it might be cumultive fatigue or something like that, although I did find the ride home last night was ok, and back to the normal speed/effort. I then stupidly cycled round to see a friend, adding an extra 40 mins onto my daily cycle (2hrs 40mins!). Needless to say, today I am spent, so I am resting.

Daz

Chris, I think your introduction of running (albeit just a short run) may be part of the cause. You obviously do a lot of cycling, and trying to introduce running into your programme is using different (weaker) muscle groups. Are you not a runner as well though?

Also what sort of pain is it? Is it muscle fatigue or something more to do with lactic acidosis?

I used to do plenty of cycling to and from work at my previous address, incorporated with swimming and running. I also found I had on and off days. I think it helps to keep a check on either (or both) your HRM and Speedometer. Some days I would be cycling around 20mph feeling great and wanting to go faster, others I couldn't (prob due to a previous nights run or swim!). It's important on the 'better' days to hold yourself back. That way you will be able to pass the reserve energy on to the 'weaker' days.

It might be an idea to take one day a week off from cycling. Tuesday or Wednesday would be a good choice. If you want to do some form of exercise then you could try swimming, gym work, or just something not so strenuous like yoga, stretching.

Def should concentrate on stretching the leg muscles before and after, particularly the hamstrings which are much shorter in cyclists legs than runners legs and therefore more susceptible to injury or muscle imbalance (and fatigue).

There are a couple of ergogenic aids you can try which might help out. If your problem is due to lactic acid then try supplementing some sodium citrate, sodium phosphate or sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarb and phosphate can come in various forms (eg andrews liver-salts) but you may have stomach problems until your body adapts. Take small amounts at first and build up to 3-4 tsps a day during periods of muscle soreness (through lactic acid).

Sodium Citrate is by far the best as you 'can' buy it in pure form and there are no side affects. But unless you get your girlfriend/wife to buy it over the counter as a systitis (spelling!?) cure, then I have no idea where you can get it from......actually may post a seperate thread on this! But I know that there has been plenty of research going on regarding its beneficial effects on aerobic activity and the body.

One other thing you could try is creatine which I've been on this year. There is still no evidence after 8 years that this stuff is harmful, despite the occasional athlete complaining about cramps. I have found that my muscles can take far more exercise and recovery much more quickly while on a small dosage (one week on and one off). There is the problem of a slight increase in water retention, but as long as you keep exercising this makes no difference. It only applies to anaerobic athletes who don't burn it off.

Hope some of this helps....

D

[Deleted User]

Some interesting things to think about here. I took a gentle day in the pool yesterday and I feel a little better today. I was a predominantly a runner before I started cycling, and now doing triathlons, I should really train in all three areas. However, time being precious as it is, cycling has become 90% of of my training, as well as my commuting. My first race is in 3 weeks, so I'm going to have to ease up a bit anyhow to get rested before the racing begins.

Daz

Good luck with the tri. Which one is it?

Yes I have to try and balance the three too but find it very difficult. I live in a rough area (traffic-wise).

[Deleted User]

The first one is the Eton supersprint - luckily because it is so short training isn't too important. I'm only really racing against training partners!