I Love Bicycling

I Love Bicycling is a website that is geared towards cycling for beginners with road cycling tips, training articles, nutrition tips, weight loss, how to’s and bike repair articles.

Training Tips

How to Prevent Muscle Cramps on a Ride

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Getting a muscle cramp or spasm while out on a ride or during a race is a terrible feeling. Not only is it painful, but it can take a toll on your overall performance. So, what can you do to prevent muscle cramps on a ride? Well, there’s a whole lot of opinions out there, but are they all valid?

When it comes to curing or preventing muscle cramps, there’s no easy answer. Sure, you can drink the latest trendy sports drink, but it may not be the best plan of attack. The truth is, despite years of research, cramping and fatigue in general are still largely poorly understood. We don’t know why some people are more prone to cramping then others, just as you can’t know for sure why they show up. It could be overexertion, nutrition, dehydration, or any combination of factors.

Although the ambiguity can be frustrating, here’s what you need to know to help prevent muscle cramps on a ride.

What Causes Muscle Cramping?

As mentioned above, scientists have failed to come to a consensus of what causes muscle cramping. Historically, it has been thought to be a result of dehydration. When you sweat you lose fluids, and with them electrolytes. Electrolytes are used to help the chemical firing of muscle fibres, so when they are depleted muscle spasms and cramps are the result.

Although this is still a commonly held theory, recent studies have shown that altered neuromuscular control may be the more probable cause of muscle cramps and spasms. Basically, the nerves that carry signals to and from your muscles and your brain get tired just the same as your working muscles. Those nerve signals begin to misfire. This neuromotor fatigue can send overlapping, uncontrolled signals to your muscles. The result: twitching, cramping, complete locking up of your working muscles or the feeling of ‘dead-legs’ and an inability to produce power.

How To Treat and Prevent Muscle Cramps on a Ride

Endurance sports like cycling are all about pushing yourself and testing your limits. Unfortunately, there are a number of factors that are working against you. First, there is mental fatigue that can take on very physical effects causing you to bonk or otherwise slow down. Other times your body literally steps in and kicks your ass in the form of cramping. It’s something every athlete has dealt with at one time or another, but here’s what you can do to try and combat it.

Routine Stretching

Routine stretching before, after, and during a ride can help prevent cramping altogether. If you feel a muscle starting to twitch or spasm, pull over and stretch it out with dynamic stretches (not static!). This can prevent a full-on cramp from forming in the muscle. Also, having healthy muscles that are flexible enough to maintain proper bike posture and position can help prevent cramping on those longer rides.

Hydration & Nutrition

Don’t fuss too much over electrolytes unless you are doing a long hard ride, and if you do, make sure it is a quality sports drink or make your own. Otherwise, water needs to be your best friend. It’s important to stay hydrated before, during, and after a ride to ensure your body has what it needs. Also ensure you are consuming enough calories to sustain your efforts on the bike.

Proper Warm-Up

Nothing like going all-out right off the bat to make for some painful muscles. Ensure you start nice and slow and warm up those muscles before pushing yourself too hard. If you’re doing a short distance race, go for a warm up ride before starting out so you can give it your all right off the start line.

Slow It Down

If your muscles are cramping and you can see your quads rippling with muscle spasms, time to take it down a notch. Don’t go too hard too fast, but put in the proper training to be able to push yourself without putting too much stress on your muscles. One of the most common links to cramping is in response to an unaccustomed intensity or load.

Nutrition and Athletic Performance – How Deficiencies Affect Your Riding

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Nutrition and Athletic Performance

Athletic performance depends on how well you take care of yourself, from your training, recovery, sleep, stress management, and nutrition. Nutrition is the area where there is the most information and common knowledge but the least adherence – do as I say and not as I do. It is difficult to live as an athlete in a world surrounded by non-athletes leading regular lives. Having some background in nutrition and athletic performance could help put you on the right track to righting your dietary wrongs.

Nutrients and Training

Daily recommended amounts of nutrients are based on the average person living an average life. You are not living an average life. You are riding a lot and because of all that riding, you are using more of everything – vitamins, minerals and macro-nutrients. Keeping up with your consumption is necessary to perform your best on the bike; energy consumption in skeletal muscles can go up to one hundred times the resting rate. Along with the macro-nutrients consumed in the exercise, you are consuming micro-nutrients at similar speeds.

Joe Friel and Nutrition

In Joe Friel’s chapter on nutrition in his seminal work The Cyclist’s Training Bible, he enumerates how much food you would need to consume to achieve necessary levels of nutrients without supplementation. To eat the daily recommended amounts of vitamins C and E it is mind-blowing; fifteen asparagus spears, thirty one avocados, four cups of broccoli, thirty three peaches, thirty prunes, twelve ounces of tomato juice, seventeen cups of spinach and a quarter cup of wheat germ.

Or you could take supplements that would save your digestive system the distress of such a huge quantity of food. Below is an exploration of why you would want to supplement your diet instead of relying on the food you eat and how each common deficiency affects your daily life and performance.

Vitamins

B Vitamin Deficiency

B vitamin (B1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 12 and folic acid) deficiency is common in vegan and vegetarians. The easiest way to eat B vitamins is through animal products – meat, dairy, and eggs. Without them, it is difficult to come close to the necessary levels of B vitamins.

This vitamin group plays a role in energy production, muscle repair and red blood cell production. Skimp on those processes and you are in for some bad days on the bike.

Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D is necessary for calcium absorption. Without enough your bones will weaken. That is not good news when you fall off your bicycle. It also regulates skeletal muscles and the nervous system. Again, not good things to weaken when you are trying to perform at your best.

Your body can produce vitamin D, but only if you get enough exposure to sunshine. It is a tough balance to strike when you need the vitamin D but too much ultraviolet light can lead to skin cancer. Fortunately you do not need to make the decision between enough vitamin D and cancer. Supplement your vitamin D AND use sunscreen.

Some places do not get enough sun, or if you ride early or late in the day you will not get enough sun to meet your vitamin D needs. In these situations it is critical to supplement with vitamin D; you have no choice if you want your body to perform at its peak.

Vitamin E Deficiency

Exercise introduces oxygen into your cells, and while it produces energy, it also causes oxidation (think rust on iron) in the cells. It is a destructive process. Vitamins E (and A and C, vitamins less likely to be at a deficiency) combats oxidation (as an antioxidant). Enough oxidatitve stress can cause serious problems with recovery and rebuilding of damaged cells. While you can train your body to recover to an extent, you also need to have ample antioxidants on board to stop the process before it goes over the edge.

Minerals

Anemia/Iron Deficiency

Red blood cells require iron to carry oxygen to cells for energy synthesis. If there is not enough iron, there is not enough oxygen and you will feel sluggish. This is anemia. It is not necessary to supplement iron unless you have confirmed anemia. Iron is available in meat and fish in the form of heme iron, which is more readily available than the non-heme iron in leafy greens, legumes, nuts and seeds. Be aware of a balanced diet and be aware of the signs of anemia.

Zinc Deficiency

You hear all the time about taking zinc when you are about to get sick or are around sick people. It is a powerful mineral that is critical to your immune system. It is present in over three hundred enzymes in the body. You do not need a lot of it, but that little bit goes a long way to protecting you from infections. If you start to get a sniffle, boost your zinc intake.

Calcium Deficiency

Calcium deficiency can lead to life-altering conditions relatively quickly. It builds bones along with regulating cardiovascular function, two broad and critical systems for a full life. A sweaty athlete depletes calcium levels more rapidly than a sedentary individual. Lots of foods are fortified with calcium; make sure you are eating enough. If not, supplement.

Dairy is not necessarily the best source of calcium. Protein synthesis requires calcium. Dairy has a lot of protein, so a lot of the calcium you are ingesting is going towards absorbing the protein.

Electrolyte Deficiency

Magnesium and Potassium are important electrolytes that conduct neurological signals throughout the body. If there are not enough electrolytes to conduct the signals, cramps result. More serious deficiency can cause failure of other body systems because neurological signals never make it to their destination.

If you are going to exercise and sweat, it is necessary to stay topped up on electrolytes. There are a lot in fruits and vegetables, but you should consider using a mix for your water. There are electrolyte add-ins that do not have flavor or calories. If you are riding in the cold, electrolyte mix is a good idea too, not only because you may sweat in your warm clothes, but because the electrolytes will lower the freezing temperature of your water.

Other Deficiencies

Calorie Deficiency

The image of a cyclist burned in everyone’s mind is incredibly skinny. Think Michael Rasmussen or Chris Froome. The truth is that they are at the razor’s edge of fitness, a moment away from going over into a very unhealthy place. They have doctors and nutritionists to look after them; you probably do not.

According to the study cited here, fifty percent of athletes did not eat enough to meet their daily energy requirements. That means they did not have enough energy to effectively complete their workouts along with performing tasks required outside of training. Not having enough energy is a tough way to get through the day. Make sure you are eating enough. Remember that being ultra-skinny does not equal being ultra-fast and definitely not ultra-healthy.

Supplement Your Diet

A good multivitamin should be able to provide you with the necessary vitamins for proper nutrition and athletic performance. Getting enough micro-nutrients for peak performance through diet alone is not only difficult but nearly impossible. Remember to get the right amounts of all nutrients; too much of anything is a bad thing.

How Important is Flexibility for Cyclists?

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You may not need to be able to relax into an advanced yoga position, or fold yourself into a human pretzel, but a certain amount of flexibility is important for all athletes. Cycling in particular can lead to short, tightened muscles because of the constant pedaling with little to no range of motion. Not only is the position on the bike restricting, but you also need to be able to maintain the correct posture to prevent injury. So yes, flexibility for cyclists is a very important element.

Why does cycling make your muscles stiff?

Besides the naturally occurring muscle soreness that comes from exercise and the buildup of lactic acids, cycling can cause body stiffness in other ways. First of all, if you stay in any one position, whether sitting or standing, for an extended period of time it can cause stiffness. You are in a bent-over, forward position for hours at a time, with the position itself acting to shorten the muscles. Yes it is great cardio and it will make you stronger, but the motion is using the same muscles over and over in the same way.

Think about when you are on your bike pedaling. You legs are never quite fully extended or flexed, limiting the joints range of motion. You are effectively contracting your muscles while shortening, rather than when you’re lengthening, which can in time lead to what is known as adaptive shortening. Most common in road cyclists is the tightening and shortening of the hip flexors and hamstrings, which can lead to issues in the legs and lower back.

Why is flexibility for cyclists important?

Flexibility, or rather inflexibility, can lead to unbalance in the body and even cause the body’s structure to move out of alignment. Failing to properly stretch and maintain flexibility can not only affect you performance, but it will inevitably lead to injury and discomfort.

1. Performance and Comfort

If you are concerned with getting into as aerodynamic position as possible on your bike, then you need to be flexible. To lean low down on your handlebars while driving power from you legs, you have to be able to get into the position in the first place. For example, tight or shortened hamstrings will make the aerodynamic position impossible and tight calves can limit the power of your pedal strokes.

Comfort on the bike does take time, but what you do off the bike plays a huge role. To improve your performance you have to work to reverse the cycling posture off the bike, and maintain a strong core. Regular stretching and cross training can be important in maintaining your overall health, as well as ensure you are the best you can be in the bike.

Flexibility for Cyclists

2. Injury Prevention

Maintaining proper posture on your bike can go a long way to prevent injury. The natural inclination is to round your back as you crane your head to look forward. Not only does this create drag, but it will eventually cause pain in your lower and upper back and neck.

Everything in your body is connected. So, to maintain proper bike posture you have to have adequate flexibility in your lower back, hips, glutes, and hamstrings. The flatter your back can be, the less issues you’ll come up against in your training.

As mentioned previously, the repetitive motion on the bike results in strength in certain muscles, but can cause the unused muscles and joints to become weak and vulnerable to injury. It takes stretching to maintain long muscles, as well as strength training to ensure your core is up to the task of keeping that proper position on the bike.

5 Beginning of the Season Mistakes Most Cyclists Make

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Whether you’re getting into training for the first time, or just getting back into it after a layoff (seasonal or otherwise), there are some mistakes most cyclists make. We don’t blame you, when you’re getting back into things it’s all so exciting that caution sometimes goes out the door. However, some little steps will set you up for not only a better ride, but a more successful season- no matter what your goals are.

6 Beginning of the Season Mistakes Most Cyclists Make

Not Checking Equipment

The sun’s out, and you’re in a panic to get out on the road. Motivation is heightened at the start of the season, which is great, but it can lead to a lack of preparation. You may head out the door in record time, but often times you’ll end up back at home with a sore body or a non-functional bike. Whether it’s a flat tire of a squeaky train train, these things can ruin training plans and even damper that motivation. The good news is, they are often avoidable!

  • Do a quick bike check / tune up – Check your tire pressure, ride around the block to check brakes and gear function.
  • Layer up – Early season riding can make for some unpredictable weather, so be sure to layer up with some quality clothing. Leg and arm sleeves and a light shell are great to include on every ride just in case!

Not Having a Plan

We all know that the key to becoming a stronger cyclist is to ride more, but proper training is slightly more complex than that. Having a plan of attack for your season will help you avoid burnout and wasted rides. Sticking to a few basic rules can help you avoid these common pitfalls.

  • Measure your effort – Whether you use a heart rate monitor, power meter, or just check in with how you’re feeling, it’s important to be able to measure your effort in some way. You don’t want to go too hard right out of the gate, but you also don’t want to go too easy and never reap the benefits of high intensity training.
  • Warm up – Always warm up at a moderate pace at the beginning of your ride.
  • Include variety in your rides – It’s important to include both high intensity rides as well as long slow distances. The variety you can add to your training routine, the stronger you’ll be.

Not Fueling Properly

Although cycling is a great way to lose weight, you’ll want to leave your diet at home. Under fueling your rides or eating the wrong food at the wrong time can halt your progress and make training a miserable experience. At the same time, over fueling and using a long ride as an excuse to each 3 cheeseburgers also isn’t great.

  • Don’t take your diet on your rides –  If you have weight to lose, restricting calories and controlling macronutrient intake is important, but don’t aim to do that on your rides. Eating the right things before and during your ride is important to keep up energy levels.
  • Manage your intake post ride – In the 30-60 minutes after a ride your insulin sensitivity is naturally elevated, making it a great time to consume carbohydrates and have them stored as glycogen in the muscles to fuel future workouts rather then as fat. This is also a good time to consume protein to stimulate muscle repair.

Not Using Group Rides Properly 

Riding in groups and the community feeling is one of the best parts of cycling. The ability to use the draft to increase your speed ,challenge yourself against others and embrace the social aspect of training can be a huge benefit. Group rides can improve your bike handling ability, push you to better fitness and even provide better safety on the road when done right. However when approached the wrong way, groups can do the opposite for a rider. The wrong group rides can be too fast, too easy, time inefficient and make riding more dangerous.

  • Pick the right group –  When first picking a group be conservative. If they advertise an average speed (eg 25-28kmh) you should be able to hold the low end of that range on your own without a huge effort. You can always push harder on an easier group ride, but if you overestimate your abilities you might find yourself pushing too hard or getting dropped. 
  • Focus on organization and safety – If your group ride is always leaving 20 minutes late, or don’t follow the rules of the road, then it’s probably not a great group to be a part of.

Worrying About What Everybody Else is Doing

If you find yourself focusing on what everybody else is doing, then you’re not going to figure out what’s best for you. It can easily make you doubt your progress and even damper your motivation. Stay  focused on the big picture, and drown out all the noise.

  • Stop scrolling – You don’t need to scroll through Strava or Instagram and see what everyone else is doing! If you do look to others for motivation, find someone with the same goals as you and recruit them as a training partner.

Tips for Biking in the Heat

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Summer can bring great riding weather, but sometimes it goes overboard and brings excessive heat as well as humidity which can bring your riding to a grinding halt.

The biggest thing to heat is how used to it you are, or acclimated.  Remember in the early spring when 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6°C) used to feel like balmy shorts and jersey weather? And now, during summer, you practically want a jacket and gloves for the same temperature. Your body becomes adapted to heat over time but if you try and ride in excessive heat before your body is ready for it you can pay dearly.

Whether you are adapted to it or not, you need to take the necessary steps to stay hydrated and cool before, during, and after your ride.  Doing so will not only keep you out of the hospital but also make your rides in the heat more enjoyable.

Biking in the Heat

Biking in the Heat

Acclimating

Getting used to riding in the heat is the first step to being able to ride comfortably and efficiently when the mercury goes up. Hopefully the temperature eases its way up but if it doesn’t, try avoiding the heat of the day and ride in the early morning before it warms up too much. If you are traveling someplace where it is considerably warmer or if you see in the weather forecast that the temperature is going to be hot, overdress on your rides now.  Wear an extra jacket or vest to add a few degrees to your body. Don’t go overboard but if you do, you can simply take it off and cool down. This is an easy way to prepare for riding in the heat without yet having the heat around to ride in.

Hydrating

Whether it is cold or warm you should always hydrate properly. When it’s cold your body won’t feel as inclined to drink as it is to eat but you should make sure to drink enough. When it gets warm those tendencies switch. You need to drink more than just water as your body needs electrolytes to continue functioning at the same level. Salt, or sodium, along with potassium, magnesium, and calcium will help your body to continue muscle function as well as other life essentials. Electrolytes allow your cells to absorb the nutrients they need (in short). Depending upon how hot it is and how hard you are riding, you should roughly be aiming to drink one 24oz. bottle each hour.  This should be primarily sports drink mix but can be supplemented with water.

Prior to riding in the heat you need to make sure you are hydrated going into the hot ride. Focus on drinking enough water and carry around a water bottle throughout your day and make a mental note to drink to thirst. This combined with having enough salt in your meals will help your body to be fully hydrated going into your ride. Half an hour or so before your ride you can start drinking small amounts of your sports drink mix. Drinking it before this is not necessary unless it is an electrolyte only drink that only contains electrolytes and no sugar or carbohydrates. Save them for the ride as your body will need and burn them then.

Following a ride you still need to make sure you hydrate. Having a super sugary drink such as soda or a strong sports drink can make your stomach upset so focus on water with electrolytes and some sugar and carbohydrates. A post workout recovery drink can be a good option which combines protein and other building blocks to help you recover from your ride.

Some good food options to eat during the heat are those that are simple and easy to digest. You will want to go lighter on the protein as well as fat as they are harder to digest. Some foods like homemade rice cakes give a good balance of water in the food itself so your stomach doesn’t need to pull water from elsewhere in your body to digest. At rest stops, foods like watermelon and cantaloupe give a big punch of water so stock up on these if they’re available.

Staying Cool

Along with drinking enough during your ride you will want to make sure you stay cool as well. This starts with wearing a jersey that is made of a light material that is also light in color. Having a lighter jersey will allow air to more easily pass through as well as to more quickly absorb and evaporate sweat from your skin which is how your body keeps cool. Having a lighter color jersey will keep you much cooler as it will absorb less of the sun’s rays by reflecting much more of its energy. Some riders find that unzipping their jersey all the way helps to get more air across their chest thus keeping them cooler. This can be true if you have a hot jersey but a lot of warm weather jerseys are designed to stay zipped up to wick sweat and keep you cool.

Some riders, particularly racers, in the heat will put ice socks on the back of their neck in their jersey. This may feel good but it actually does more harm than good as the extreme cold on the skin sends a shock to your body causing it to send blood to the core instead of to the skin where it can dissipate heat. The best way to stay cool is to continually squirt water on your head, the back of your neck, and shoulders as this will help to dissipate heat more effectively.

Riding in extreme heat can be dangerous so if it’s too hot, simply don’t ride. But if it’s not crazy hot and you are ready for it, biking in the heat can give you more days of good weather riding. Prepare ahead of time and make sure you bring enough water as well as know where your stopping points are mid-ride as well as what your options are if you need to bail out half-way through. Riding in the heat can also help to raise your VO2 max as well as help you shed some extra weight. Stay safe and stay smart and you can come to enjoy riding in the heat!

Improve Your Cycling With These Cross Training Sports

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We may be of the opinion that cycling is the single best sport out there, but sometimes widening our horizons can make us appreciate time in the saddle even more. While it remains true that the only way to get better at cycling is to ride more, cross training can help you get there. It can help fill in the gaps by building bone density and strengthening muscle groups that may be underused on the bike.

Whether your taking a break due to an injury or just trying to work some variety into your training plan, here are some of the best cross training sports to improve your cycling.

Hiking

Hiking is a great way to enjoy your surroundings at a relaxed pace. While you may be chasing segments on your bike, hiking makes you stop and take in the view. This can have a great stress-relieving impact on the brain.

Why it’s great for cyclists: Taking a stroll in the woods, especially if you tackle a mountain, is a great workout for your glutes, quads, hamstrings, core and hips. Those muscles sound familiar? They are also your mission-critical muscles used cycling, so hiking is a great way to build strength and endurance. It also helps build bone density as a weight bearing activity, but without the high impact of running.

Swimming

Who doesn’t want to go hit up the beach in the summertime? Whether it be in your nearest body of water or the local pool, swimming is one of the best ways to exercise while injured. It is also one of the more efficient strength and cardio workouts.

Why it’s great for cyclists: A weak core can lead to a whole lot of issues for cyclists, largely sharing up as lower back pain. As cycling naturally leads to underdeveloped core muscles, it is important to find another way to strengthen that area. If this is a challenge for you, swimming needs to be your new favourite thing. It is also a great way to recover after a hard ride.

Strength Training

Hitting the gym may not be everyone’s particular cup of tea, but even doing some strength exercises at home can be a great way to balance muscles. When done right, strength training can make you feel stronger, faster, and fitter both on and off the bike.

Why it’s great for cyclists: Cycling is a low impact activity, which means it’s great for your joints, but not so great for supporting your bone density. Strength training can help fill the gaps and build stronger bones and complementary muscles to have you feeling stronger than ever on your bike.

Running

Running is a great option if you’re travelling without your bike, or have limited time for a workout. It is effective in maintaining the condition of your cardiovascular system and gives you some variety in your training.

Why it’s great for cyclists: Running strengthens your bone density in a way that cycling doesn’t, and will keep you top climbing shape when you can’t put the time in on your bike.

Yoga

There are a lot of misconceptions around yoga, and you may scoff at the idea of it improving how you feel on your bike. However, more and more pros are using yoga as their secret weapon to get faster and prevent injury.

Why it’s great for cyclists: Yoga helps strengthen your core, which in turn can prevent lower back pain. It maintains a healthy range of motion in your muscles and joints, and will improve your flexibility and posture over time. Regular stretching and yoga will reduce your risk of suffering from the typical overuse injuries that plague cyclists. These include IT band syndrome, tight hamstrings, back pain, and knee problems.

3 Hidden Cycling Injuries and How to Fix Them

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We all know the wonderful feeling of cycling, but unfortunately it’s not always sun on the face and wind in the hair. Pedaling is a low-impact motion, making cycling one of the best ways to stay fit without putting stress on your joints. However, it’s also a highly repetitive action through a limited range of motion, which has consequences over time. Injury is a part of almost every sport, and cycling is no exception, but that doesn’t mean you need to hang up your jersey and sell your bike. Here’s what you need to know about hidden cycling injury and what you can do to fix them.

The Issue: Adaptive Muscle Shortening

Muscles do not naturally maintain their healthy or ideal range of motion on their own. In fact, it’s just the opposite, especially with the increase of 9-5 desk jobs. Muscles will change their functional resting length to adapt to the length at which they are habitually used or positioned. The process by which muscle fibres physically shorten is called “adaptive shortening.”

Cycling is one of the few activities in which muscles contract concentrically (while shortening), rather than eccentrically (while lengthening). The repetitive motion causes muscle fibres to shorten if action is not taken. Not only will shortened muscles impact your efficiency, comfort, and aerodynamics on the bike, but they will eventually lead to injury.

The cycling position is, unfortunately, more time spent in a hunched over posture that can compound already tight hip flexors, weak glutes and rounded shoulders. If you’re a weekend warrior, then it really is a case of when you will suffer an injury rather than ‘if.’ When you’ve spent most the week in a relatively sedentary position, and then hit the weekend with high levels of activity, you are taking chronically shortened muscles and forcing them to fire so quickly that it can lead to joint injury.

The Symptoms: Weak and shortened hamstrings are caused by the combination of the upper section becoming loose and weak while the lower section behind the knee becomes tight and never fully extends. This can show up as either knee or hip pain.

The Fix: The problem is a little more complex than just lengthening the muscles back to their natural state. It is a combination of stretching and strengthening that can reverse the effects of adaptive shortening, as it takes both range of motion and strength to bring muscle balance.

The Issue: Lower Crossed Syndrome

Lower Crossed Syndrome (LCS) is a neuromuscular condition in which there are both tight and weak muscles. Specifically, it refers to weak abdominal and gluteal muscles combined with tight iliopsoas and erector spinae muscles (see diagram). This is the most common underlying cause of anterior pelvic tilt, which is common among even professional cyclists.

The seat of power on a bicycle is the pelvis. When the pelvis is properly aligned the rest of the body can pedal efficiently. When the pelvis is misaligned and unstable, it is a recipe for not only lower back problems but hamstring problems too. An unstable pelvis leads to rocking. With each rock, the pelvis engages lower back muscles and hamstrings in ways that should not be involved in pedaling, overworking and straining the muscles unnecessarily.

The Symptoms:  LCS can become obvious in posture, as it leads to forward head posture, flat glutes, and a protruding abdomen as the pelvis tilts anteriorly (forward). The inhibited muscles, abdominals and gluteals, are never fully engaged in cycling, while the facilitated muscles, rectus femoris (quadraceps), iliopsoas and thoraco-lumbar extensors  are always engaged and often overworked. Constantly engaging those lower back muscles without proper support from a stable core often results in lower back pain for cyclists.

The Fix: The first step is to loosen the tight cross, which will quickly alleviate pain and discomfort caused by LCS. This is done this through targeting stretching, mobility movements, and foam rolling. The second step is targeted and deep stabilization exercises that will help build up the glutes and abdomen.

The Issue: Knee Pain

This one may not be so hidden, as knee pain is one of the most common injuries among athletes. In fact, a 2010 study of professional cyclists found that knee pain was the cause for over half of the time spent off the bike. As one of the most complex joints in the body, and in combination with muscle imbalance as discussed, it makes sense that it’s often one of the first places we experience pain.

To understand knee pain it is helpful to have a basic idea of what lies beneath the skin. In simplistic terms, think of the knee joint as a hinge where the quadriceps muscles pull the knee straight and the hamstring muscles bend the knee. The quadriceps run from the front of the femur (thigh bone) to the patella (knee cap). The patella acts as a pulley to increase the force generated by quadriceps which creates a greater torque on the tibia (shin bone).

To make matters more complicated,  the ITB runs down the outside of the thigh and blends into the outside of the knee. ITB stands for iliotibial band and is a well known potential source of trouble for cyclists, runners and active people in general. The ITB is also attached to your glutes (buttock muscles) and hip flexors. Often when looking for the source of knee pain we have to pay close attention to hip flexibility and control.

The Fix: Some types of knee pain require rest, but most are caused by muscular imbalance. Again, it takes a combination of stretching and mobility exercises to loosen tight muscles and build up the proper supporting muscles.

The Mistake Most Cyclists Make Stretching: Not Having a Plan

Most of us were taught that stretching for a couple minutes before exercise would help loosen the muscles and prevent injury, but this is not the case. Holding a static stretch for 10 seconds will do nothing to lengthen the muscle, and barely scratches the surface of what needs to happen in the structure of the muscle.

The only way to achieve muscle balance is to practice a variety of stretches over a prolonged period of time (at least 2 weeks), hold each for the appropriate amount of time, and complete in combination with some strength training.

It can be tough to accomplish all that on you own. Even with the best of intentions and a plan laid out by a physiotherapist, it’s easy to never do it at all, or stop as soon as the pain is gone. Stretching should be thought of as basic body maintenance, especially for cyclists.

As cyclists, we know how hard it is to stick to a stretching routine. We all want to spend more time on our bike, but maintaining a healthy range of motion and flexibility will, in the long run, keep you on the bike without injury. That’s why we’ve partnered with Dynamic Cyclist to bring you a stretching and strength program that is easy to follow, and is geared towards cyclists. They’re offering our readers a free 7 day trial, just click the link below to get started.

 

How to Maintain Proper Cycling Posture

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There are some cyclists that make riding look effortless and smooth. Although it may come naturally to some, it takes time and practice to achieve that gliding look, but it’s not just for professionals! If you understand the basics of how your muscles are working, both for and against you, then you can ensure you stay balanced and relaxed in the saddle. Maintaining proper cycling posture is important to not only your efficiency, but to prevent injury.

There is no “correct cycling posture” that is right for everyone. We are all built differently, so what will work for some won’t for others, but there are some general rules to go by. After ensuring your bike is fit to you and your riding style properly, then it’s time to start thinking about what proper cycling posture looks like for you.

Cycling Posture

Why is cycling posture important?

Being as efficient as possible is the easiest way to go faster while spending less energy, sound good? The first thing you want to focus on is staying as relaxed and stress-free as possible, tension is the enemy! Many cyclists will slowly tense up over the course of a ride, not only compromising efficiency, but demanding more than is necessary from their bodies. Letting go of that tension and relaxing into a natural position will work to:

  1. Increase efficiency
  2. Keep you comfortable
  3. Improve bike handling
  4. Easier breathing
  5. Prevent injury

What does proper cycling posture look like?

As stated above, this will look different for everyone, but here are some things to keep in mind:

Keep your shoulders relaxed 

Many cyclists will find their shoulders slowly creeping up to their ears while riding, which puts unnecessary stress on your shoulders, neck, and back. This can also get in they way when you need to shoulder check or move your head around. You will actually stay more alert by keeping you shoulders down and relaxed.

Bend your elbows

Riding with locked out elbows will make for a rough ride, so adding a slight bend will act as suspension and keep any bumps on the road from tossing you overboard. Keep your elbows tucked into your sides rather that out like wings. This will reduce the stress on your shoulders, and also result in less pressure on your hands and wrists (your wrists should NOT be bent).

Maintain a neutral spine

Left: Too straight, putting tension in the lower back, Center: Correct posture with core engaged and back relaxed, Right: Core unengaged and rounded spine.

 

You want your back to be relatively straight, but not locked or tensed into a line. The most common mistake is letting the back round outward, which can cause all sorts of issues over time. The best way to ensure you are keeping your back straight enough is to keep your core engaged. If your abs are just taking a free ride, your back will inevitable round out, putting pressure on your hands, shoulders, and crotch (which can be super painful).

Keep your knees in line with your foot

You do not want your knees to bow outward at any point during the pedal stroke. Not only is this incredible inefficient, but it will cause some painful knee issues. So, focus on keeping your knee in line with and over the ball of your foot as you ride.

How to improve your cycling position

If you think you are struggling with any of these aspects, it is worth taking the time to correct what you can to ensure you are comfortable and efficient on the bike.

Proper bike fit

First things first, everything has to be in the right spot to even make it possible for you to maintain proper posture cycling. If you’re not sure your bike is the right fit, or isn’t adjusted to you, then it’s worth looking into having a professional bike fit.

Think about it

Pay attention to your body when you’re on the bike. Where do you feel tension? In what ways is your body out of alignment or its natural range of motion? Focus on relaxing your muscles and breathing, and think about each aspect of your posture piece by piece.

Stay flexible

Flexibility, or rather inflexibility, can lead to unbalance in the body and even cause the body’s structure to move out of alignment. If you are not flexible enough to hold proper posture over the course of a ride, then you need to work on increasing your flexibility through stretching and strength training exercises.

Stretch

It is important to have a healthy range of motion and flexibility to move freely and efficiently. Stretching can aid in aligning the thick and thin muscles back into their ordered state after movement, as well as remove the lactic acid buildup that causes soreness. Regular stretching will also increase your flexibility, making that aerodynamic position more attainable.

Strength Training

The facilitated (overworked) muscles, like the quadraceps and lower back, do not need strengthening but stretching. Instead, it is the inhibited muscles that benefit most from strength training – the abdominals and gluteals. Because the core needs to be engaged to stabilize your spine and the movement of your legs, strengthening it off the bike is important.

Bike Handling Tips for Spring Conditions

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Early season riding conditions can be challenging. During the winter, a ton of grit and salt gets dumped on roads to keep them grippy and snow-free, and, come spring time, all of that stuff ends up in one place – the shoulder where you want to ride. Spring is also pothole season, as water seeps into cracks in the road and freezes overnight, opening up holes the size of the Grand Canyon on your favorite roads. There are a few simple bike handling tips to keep your skin off the road and your bike in one piece.

Take It Slow

This seems obvious, but it is easy to forget in the middle of one of your favorite descents. Slower speeds mean more time to react to what is in front of you. Slow down well in advance of corners so you aren’t braking hard while turning – doing so increases the chance of losing traction.

Move Into the Lane

Most of the road grit accumulates on the shoulder of the road, and you can avoid this by moving out into the travel lanes. Be VERY careful when doing this – think ahead, and don’t try to move out in front of a line of cars just before your corner. Wait for a large gap in traffic, and move out well into the lane, so cars aren’t tempted to try and squeeze by you. On long, switchbacking descents, I will usually just stay in the travel lanes to avoid having to move back and forth.

Relax

Hitting a small patch of gravel or wet spot won’t necessarily cause you to crash. Overcorrecting for a small skid of your back tire will. Staying relaxed and confident will help you ride through small skids instead of tensing up and turning the small skid into a huge wipe-out. You can build this confidence through other types of cycling – mountain and cyclocross riding will both give you the experience of feeling your bike sliding through turns, which will help you become a more confident road rider.

Avoid Obstacles

Be it potholes, glass, or ice, there is a lot of stuff on the roads that you and your bike would rather avoid. Your first key to avoiding this nasty stuff is to look ahead – the earlier you see something, the easier it will be to avoid. When you know what you want to avoid, doing so requires a bit of practice. Anyone who has managed to hit the only pothole on a clear stretch of road knows what I am talking about – your bike will tend to go where you are looking. If you are looking at that one pothole, there is a good chance you are going to hit it. Instead, work on keeping your eyes focused on the clear path you want to take, and your bike will follow.

Master the Bunny-hop

Sometimes, despite your proactive road reading and all of your best obstacle avoidance techniques, you just can’t ride around something. Often this has something to do with the 2 ton hunks of metal passing by on your left. This is when the bunny-hop comes in handy. Bunny-hopping is like jumping on your bike – both wheels lift off the ground for a split second. If you have never done this before, practice at slow speeds first. Clipless pedals make it much much easier and safer as well. When you do encounter something you can’t ride around, don’t try to jump too high – for potholes, your wheels barely need to leave the ground.

Keep these tips in mind when you head out on your next ride, and you will be well equipped to deal with whatever the spring roads will throw at you!

5 Cycling Tips to Master Hill Climbing

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Love them or hate them, hill climbing is an inevitable part of cycling (unless you somehow map out perfectly flat routes). So, when you’re sitting at the bottom of a daunting climb what is your go-to game plan? When you’re pushing your muscles to the edge of their ability, you can only tell them to “shut up” so many times – no matter how tough you are they are going to win that conversation.

The best thing you can do mentally is to learn to love climbing. If that’s a little too drastic, then at least go in with the tools needed to feel your best as you grind up the hills. There’s nothing more satisfying than conquering a tough climb–and we want to get you there!

Tips to Master Hill Climbing

Pace Yourself (and use your gears)

Attacking the hill may work if it is small climb with the crest in view from the bottom. However, if you go in too aggressively, sure you’ll feel strong at the bottom, but once you hit a certain point it’s easy to hit a wall. You overexert your muscles and skyrocket your heart rate rather than pacing yourself for the long game. If you find yourself often slowing to a crawl halfway through a climb, think about gearing down earlier and keep those legs spinning. You will then have the energy to “attack the hill” when you reach the final push over the top.

Stand Up Strategically

Should you sit or stand while climbing? It might seem like you’re more power standing by using your upper body weight, but it also requires 10 to 12 percent more energy. The net effect is more energy used and an increase in your oxygen uptake. However, it is good to get out of the saddle to stretch it out a bit and to incorporate different muscles, just save it for the steeper parts– and even then use it sparingly.

Focus

It may seem counterintuitive to try and find your inner peace while your lungs and legs are screaming at you, but the mental game is most of the battle. As you approach the hill, be your own cheerleader, and convince yourself that you love the climb. Focus on your steady cadence. Relax your body from the top down, starting with your eyes, face, neck, and moving all the way down to your toes. If you have a mantra, now is the time to start visualizing it!

Find Your Power Position

If you’re tackling hills with a tense upper body, you’re going to burn out a lot faster. The natural tendency as we get tired is to round the back and slump the shoulders forward, but to allow for efficient breathing, keep your back straight and your chest open. Position your hands on the brake hoods and relax your arms so your elbows sit slightly wider than your hips. Try keep your body free of tension, all the while tightening your core to stabilize your movements.

Practice Hill Repeats

Practice makes perfect. You’re not going to get better at anything by wishing it into reality. Climbing is tough, and it’s never going to get easier, but the more you challenge yourself the stronger you’ll get. Find a hill and spend some time going up and down. Half the battle is finding your rhythm with climbing. Once you do, you may find yourself even looking forward to the hills!

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