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The Benefits of Cold Exposure for Cycling & Life

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In recent years, the topic of ice baths and cold exposure have become incredibly popular in the fields of sport, health, and fitness. Beyond the social media videos of people jumping in lakes and tubs full of ice, however, is a discipline that isn’t just for show. It can have a profound impact on your well-being and cycling performance, and this article is going to show you why.

cold exposure

(Image Credit: Adobe Stock)

What Is Cold Exposure?

Cold exposure refers to the practice of deliberately subjecting the body to cold temperatures for varying lengths of time. This can take many forms, including cold showers, ice baths, immersion in natural bodies of water, or even exposure to cold air. Each of these has their own unique benefits and disadvantages. 

Cold Showers

Cold showers are one of the most accessible and moderate ways of introducing yourself to the cold. You can control the temperature if things get too intense, and you’re also only periodically exposing each part of your body to the cold as a result of the directed nozzle. Ending your normal shower with a cold 30 seconds to a minute is a great way to get started.

Cold Bath/Ice Bath

A cold bath or ice bath is a significantly different experience than the shower, because your body is actually submerged in the cold for a given length of time (you don’t actually need ice, your coldest water setting will be plenty). It is best to only submerge your lower body in the beginning, as things get even more intense when the upper body and neck are submerged.

Natural Bodies of Water

Being out in nature and embracing the cold is one of the most invigorating experiences a person can endure. It is also, however, one of the most dangerous. You truly have to surrender to Mother Nature and be able to handle the fact that you have no control of the things outside of you. This mental aspect, though, is also one of cold exposure’s biggest benefits, regardless of setting.

cold exposure

(Image Credit: Adobe Stock)

Benefits of Cold Exposure

The benefits of voluntarily subjecting yourself to the cold are far-reaching, indeed. Prescribing somebody a cold bath, for example, dates as far back as Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, and the classical Greek period (specifically between 460 BC and 370 BC). Cold baths were believed to stimulate the body’s natural healing mechanisms – which turns out to be true. 

Stronger Immune System

Cold exposure is a stress on the body that activates the immune system. Your body responds to the stress by executing a series of defensive processes, similar to fighting off an ailment. This marginal stimulation is similar to the slight tearing of muscle fibers during exercise, which grow back bigger and stronger. The outcome in this context is better disease resistance and immunity.

Brown Fat Production

Brown fat is not like body fat (adipose tissue/”white fat”). It is a metabolically active tissue that helps you regulate your temperature by using body fat as fuel (like a furnace). People who work outside or do regular cold water immersion have higher levels of brown fat, making them more comfortable in the cold, and also serving as an important indicator of health and longevity. 

Improved Circulation

The human body contains a vast network of blood vessels, upwards of 100,000 miles worth (that’s enough to go around the Earth 4 times). When the cold water hits you, everything inside contracts, and blood rushes away from the extremities and towards the core. As you’re warming up, everything dilates, giving this entire network an internal workout and massage.

Waste Removal & Recovery

The flushing of blood helps facilitate recovery through the removal of waste byproducts (such as lactic acid) and the delivery of nutrients to tissues throughout the body. Also, by strengthening your circulatory system through the adaptation to this stressful stimulus, you will be better prepared to recover and perform in future rides, workouts, and other training.

Mood & Alertness

Cold exposure has been shown to produce a staggering increase in noradrenaline and dopamine by 530% and 250%, respectively. Noradrenaline (norepinephrine) is responsible for arousal and alertness, while dopamine is known as the pleasure hormone, and is released when we are doing something that makes us feel good (and also depressed when we are feeling…depressed).

Mental Resilience

Cyclists know how tough our sport is, and how important the capacity to deal with discomfort is. Voluntary cold exposure allows a person to consistently and systematically override their fear response and learn how to handle stressful situations and sensations. Not only is this beneficial for your riding, but for every other area of stress management in life, as well.

(Image Credit: Adobe Stock)

How Do I Do Cold Exposure? 

Start slow. As we’ve already established, getting into cold water is a stressful event, and needs to be taken seriously. Many people say they don’t like the cold or even hate the cold, and that cold exposure is something they could never do. Well if that’s you, you’re not alone…but you can do it. Here’s some quick technique tips followed by a few pieces of beginner advice.

Technique Tips

Breathing is your biggest friend when doing cold exposure. When you get into the water, everything contracts, and your breath will want to become short and shallow. If this continues, you will panic and get out. Focus on forcing in a big inhale, and then slowly exhaling with as much control as possible, no matter how uncomfortable. 

This will signal your body to relax and surrender to the cold, where you can then focus on managing the discomfort through control of your mind and focus on your breath. You’ll notice as you practice that the less control you have over your breath, the harder it will be to stay in the water, and vice versa.

Recent studies have shown that 11 minutes TOTAL throughout a given week is enough to achieve many of the benefits of cold exposure. This doesn’t mean 11 minutes at a time, but spread out over the course of 7 days. Daily 2 minute exposures in an uncomfortable, yet tolerable, temperature is a great goal to aim for.

Beginner Advice

A cold shower is one of the easiest ways to start. End your shower with a cold shower by turning the tap as cold as it can go (or in between, if you’re really hesitant). The low back and buttocks are the least sensitive, so they can be good places to start. Try 10-15 seconds (or longer). Slowly increase this time until you can do 2 minutes on cold with water covering your entire body.

The next step would be a cold bath. Keep in mind that this will be substantially more intense than the shower. Fill the tub with your coldest water. For your first time, only fill half way so just the lower body is submerged. Try to stay in for two minutes. You can progress to full body submersion to the neck when you feel comfortable. Take your time.

Natural bodies of water should not be attempted until you have built up a high level of confidence in the tub. You should also never be alone. Especially if it is fall/winter time, the water outside will be even colder than the tub (approx. 2-3℃ to 7-8℃, respectively), and you will have other things to deal with like wind, noises, etc. Safety is the most important thing.

After you get out of cold water (shower, tub, or otherwise), try to avoid hopping right into a hot shower or wrapping yourself in blankets. Much of the strengthening and immunity benefits comes from your body working hard to warm itself up through shivering, which also releases a molecule (called succinate) that stimulates the production of brown fat.

ice bath

(Image Credit: Adobe Stock)

When Should I Do Cold Exposure? 

For cyclists, and athletes in general, there has been some controversy about when cold exposure should be done for the best results. There is evidence showing that immersion in cold water is an effective recovery tool after endurance and high-intensity training (which cycling would fall under). But is after always the most ideal?

When we look at the question scientifically, it’s actually pretty straightforward. When you exercise, you damage the tissue in a minor way, which causes inflammation in the body. These inflammatory markers serve as important signals for the body to repair the tissue and adapt to the stressors that you’ve applied to it. Cold exposure, as we’ve determined, reduces inflammation.

This can work both for and against us. If we are competing in a multi-day event or have to recover quickly between sessions, doing cold exposure immediately after a ride or bout of training can help us recover through reduced muscle soreness, restoration of muscular power and improved perceived feelings of recovery. 

If, however, we are just on a normal training schedule where we aren’t competing, there aren’t time constraints, and we’re looking to reap the long-term benefits of each training session, the protocol is different. Cold exposure should then be done before or significantly after (4+ hours) our training so we don’t inhibit the inflammatory/adaptation process from occurring. 

Closing Thoughts on Cold Exposure

Having cold showers and immersing yourself in cold water is proving to be a phenomenal way to promote long-term health, mood elevation, and athletic performance. Overall, it is an accessible tool that we can all try, experience, and learn from. Something to help us take control of our well-being, ride pain-free, and enjoy the sport of cycling and life as a whole. 

This Breathing Technique Will Make You A Better Cyclist

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If you take the time to learn how to breathe properly while cycling, your performance could go from zero to hero in just a few short sessions. We don’t think about breathing technique because our bodies are designed to try and keep breathing no matter what, and this can lead us down a road of dysfunction we never even knew we were traveling on.

People think that in order to increase your lung capacity for cycling you just need to push yourself harder, faster and longer on the bike. More hills, more sprints and never-ending rides. Sure – this will increase your fitness, but the thing stopping you from reaching optimal lung capacity on the bike could be the way you breathe in and of itself…

Today we’re going to tell you about THE breathing problem to fix if you want to become a better cyclist, and how it will serve you in ways not just on the bike – but in every other part of your life. Breathing is obviously essential, and learning how to do it better is never a waste of time. So strap in, take a deep breath and keep reading!

breathing for cycling

Source: John R. Perry/Pixabay

Am I Breathing Properly?

“Should I breathe through my nose or my mouth while cycling?”

“How many pedal strokes should I inhale and how many should I exhale?”

“Are intervals the best way to increase my lung capacity on the bike?”

These are all fine questions to ask, but will be a complete waste of time trying to answer if you’re not taking in air properly in the first place. Unfortunately, this is not only the case for most cyclists, but for most people in general. This results in poor performance, high stress levels and even mental health problems like anxiety.

Because of our modern lifestyles of sitting on couches, working at desks and driving in cars, the majority of the population has developed what is called a faulty breathing pattern. This simply means that the manner in which they breathe is not optimal for the way their body is designed to function. This most commonly represents itself in the form of chest breathing.

Chest Breathing

When someone is a “chest breather”, you’ll see their chest and shoulders rise when they inhale. There won’t be any belly movement, and in some cases you can even see the belly go in (called an inverted breathing pattern). Somebody who breathes this way is constantly sending a stress signal to their nervous system, because they are forever only getting submaximal oxygen intake.

Someone who only breathes through their chest can only take in about ⅓ the amount of oxygen their body is capable of inhaling on a given breath. Throughout history, limited oxygen would have been the result of having some sort of stress to respond to – this is partly responsible for the evolution of our “fight or flight” response, but we shouldn’t be in this state all the time.

This is exactly the state perpetual chest breathers put themselves in, and it’s a major contributor to a person’s stress levels and in our specific case, poor cycling performance. Not only that, this pattern of breathing overworks muscles in our neck (scalenes) and rib cage (intercostals). People who have chronic neck and chest tightness almost always have a faulty breathing pattern.

How To Breathe While Cycling

You may have determined by now that you are in fact one of those aforementioned chest breathers, but not to worry! Even though this has by now become a very ingrained and practiced breathing pattern in your body (like, over 20,000 times a day kind of practiced), it doesn’t mean we can’t change it through a little focus and concentration.

Breathing for cycling, and good health in general, should be governed by your diaphragm. The diaphragm is a thin, dome shaped muscle that separates your abdomen from your chest cavity, and is the muscle responsible for what is called belly breathing.

breathing for cycling - inspiration vs expiration

Source: Alila Medical Media/Adobe Stock

Belly Breathing

Belly breathing allows you to take in full, deep breaths that keep your nervous system calm, aid in digestion and allow you to perform to your potential during exercise and sport. When you contract the diaphragm, it flattens its dome shape, providing space for the lungs to drop and expand. It also creates a vacuum which pulls air into the lungs (pictured above).

The term belly breathing came about because of the rise and fall of the tummy during the breath cycle. However, contrary to the common cue, “breathe into your belly”, air does not actually enter into the abdomen. Fun fact, the movement comes from your organs being pushed down and out against your abdominal wall. 

Having a fully functioning diaphragm while riding is going to send your cycling performance through the roof. Our seated and often hunched over position on the bike can encourage the stiffness and decreased movement in our diaphragm that we see similarly in desk workers and sedentary people, so it may be a conscious effort in the beginning to get things working smoothly.

Breathing Techniques For Cycling

Most important is to start becoming aware of how you breathe, on and off the bike. The more stressed you are, whether that’s by daily life or by exertion while cycling, the more likely you are going to revert to a chest breathing pattern. Increase your awareness throughout the day, and start consciously trying to breathe with your diaphragm as opposed to your chest.

As previously mentioned, chest breathers often have tight, overworked chests, necks and abdomens. Stretching these areas can help them to relax so that the diaphragm, which is a deep, central respiratory muscle, can start to move, work and regain its pliability and overall functionality. Stop sucking in, free your belly and let it rise!

We recommend Dynamic Cyclist to anyone looking for a comprehensive training, performance and injury prevention platform designed specifically for cyclists. Their follow along video routines are led by world class coaches who give you the right cues to breathe properly while exercising, which carries over to the bike and how you perform during rides!

If you’re interested in giving them a try, you can sign up for a 7-day free trial HERE.

Recovery for Cyclists: The Importance of Rest Days

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Exercise can be addictive, whether it’s training for a race or an outlet to clear your head. Once you get into a training schedule and it becomes a part of your everyday routine, it can be hard to take a day off. However, rest days are just as important as training days, and need to be part of recovery for cyclists.

You can come to crave the rush of feel-good endorphins that the brain releases during exercise. That combined with feeling the physical benefits of exercise can make you feel like a day off would be a step backwards, but that’s not the case. Giving your body time to recover will make you stronger in the long run, and overtraining does nothing but harm.

Why you need recovery days

When you’re training on a consistent basis, you actually put stress on your body and breakdown your muscles. Over time, and through combination of training and rest (periodization), your muscles are repaired to be stronger than before. This is when you begin to feel more fit and you can produce more power for longer on your bike.

Without adequate rest, you can experience burnout, a lack of energy, and decreased motivation. Scheduling rest days, and ensuring you take them, is equally as important as time on your bike.

How much is enough

How much rest needed will be different for everyone, so you have to learn what your body needs. A general rule is to ensure that at least one day a week is a rest day. However, this doesn’t mean you have to spend the day on the couch. All it means is you need to give your body time to recover and rebuild for the next week.

What you can do to aid your recovery

Fuel

No, this doesn’t mean carb loading. Of course you want to ensure you have enough carbohydrates to replace glycogen stores from training, but there’s more to it than that. Make sure you have protein to repair damaged muscles as well as fruits and vegetables to get a dose of vitamins and minerals. This isn’t just true of rest days, but recovery should start right after your rides with plenty of water and a recovery drink.

Stretch & Roll

Although it’s not typically a recovery technique, stretching and rolling your muscles on rest days is one of the most effective ways to prevent injury. Be sure to focus on the muscles that are shortened by the posture on a bike, like the hamstrings. For more information, check out the “10 Best Stretches for Cyclists.”

Sleep

Sleep is important for even the most basic functions of the body. It’s also the prime time to undergo protein synthesis, which is the process that makes your muscles stronger. Eight hours is widely recognized as the magic number, but if get a little more it won’t be a bad thing. If you simply can’t get eight hours at once, then a nap is a great way to make up for lost time.

Active Recovery

As mentioned previously rest days don’t have to be days spent on the couch. In fact, active recovery can be a great way to get the mental release you need, while not taking a toll on your body. A walk, swim, or other easy activity will get your body moving and your muscles loosened up, but won’t be too strenuous on your tired muscles.

There can be recovery rides as well, but you have to be disciplined not to push yourself too hard or go for too long. You should remain in zone 1 or 2 for the duration of the ride, and focus on just spinning your legs.

When you’re on a training schedule, it can be discouraging to miss a few days when life gets crazy, or you get sick. Let’s just say right now, it’s going to happen. Life gets chaotic, and when it does, just make the most of the recovery time, both physically and mentally.

Balance Your Training With A Stretching & Mobility Program

Are you tired of suffering from pain and discomfort while cycling? Look no further than Dynamic Cyclist This comprehensive resource addresses the most common muscle imbalances and adaptive muscle shortening that lead to pain and reduced performance on the bike. With just 15 minutes a day, you can follow along with the video programs to alleviate tension and improve posture, so you can ride pain free and reach your full potential on the bike. Don’t let muscle imbalances hold you back – click here to try 7 days free! 

How to Train Smarter (Not Longer!)

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Achieving better fitness with a limited schedule can be difficult. To get stronger within your time constraints, you must be exacting in your methods of both training and recovery. This is the best way to make the most of your time and effort. Here are some tips to help you train smarter and get faster.

Ride Hard

There is no sense in riding easy if you have only a few days per week to ride to improve your fitness. Three very hard days on the bike should get you passable fitness to get you through your local group rides. More than three very hard days on the bike could burn you out if you do not get a week of recovery every four weeks or so. A very hard day means blindingly hard, so hard that you probably want to quit, have tunnel vision or maybe even release your bowels in your chamois. If you have never tested this dark, dark place, now is the time to try it.

Interval TrainingHow To Improve Your Fitness Without Training More

Set out with a plan of specific intervals for your extra hard days. This way you cannot cheat or have the power fall off by the end of the ride, or if you do cheat, you will know it was blatant. High intensity interval training has proven to be quite effective in increasing fitness with short workouts. Remember the last paragraph; you must be prepared to really slay it on the bike to make the most of these workouts. Start with small sessions once or twice a week and build up.

Sleep

Without sleep, all of your hard training, all of the hours you suffered on the bike are for nought. Sleep is when you make your real gains. It is when your body compensates for the training stress you put it through and adapts to the load. It is always incredibly important, but if you are burning the candle at both ends with work, family and other obligations on top of training, quality (and large quantities) of sleep will keep you afloat in all aspects of life and let you make fitness gains.

Nutrition

Again, with the focused approach that is necessary when you are short on hours, your nutrition needs to be completely dialed too. You will not be doing huge volume, so you do not need large quantities of food, but you need to make sure you are getting the highest quality food. Good nutrition will fuel your workouts to the best of your ability along with fueling proper recovery.

When you are pulled in many directions, it is easy to fall into a routine of quick and dirty food. If you want those fitness gains bad enough, you will need to figure out a way to get the best nutrition possible. It will make every pedal stroke that much better and mean that much more in the long run.

Drink lots of water (with electrolytes, not purified water, whether it is distilled or reverse osmosis) to keep your blood viscous and flowing. It will deliver nutrients to your muscles more freely and keep your heart’s work to a minimum.

Cross TrainingHow To Improve Your Fitness Without Training More

With limited time, sometimes a full training ride is difficult to squeeze in. On those days, cross training may be a quick way to maintain fitness that you are trying to hold onto or increase. If you can keep it cycling specific, whether it is in the weight room, skating or nordic skiing, that is great. If you have other activities that fit into your schedule, like running, that is fine too, although it will not have as much of a positive impact on your cycling musculature.

Recover Hard

Recovery should be happening whenever you are not training, although that is probably a stretch when you have a busy life. When you are recovering, do it full on. Get your feet up, keep hydrated, eat well and keep the external stress down. An additional recovery tactic is compression gear. You can wear it when you are at work under your normal work clothes.

If your time is limited and you want to make fitness gains, everything you do has to be full-on: your riding, your sleep, your nutrition and your recovery. Make it a routine that works and you will make the most of your time.

5 Great Muscle Recovery Foods

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Post-workout recovery has different meanings for every individual. This could include activities such as ice baths, stretching, or just elevating your legs. One of the most important recovery aspects that tends to get neglected is proper nutrition after exercise. What you eat and when you eat can help your body recover quicker and replenish lost energy stores. Eating the closest thing available or what you’re craving is not always the best option but these muscle recovery foods will be sure to have you on the road to feeling great and having a stellar next ride. muscle recovery foods

5 Great Muscle Recovery Foods

Not sure what you should be eating post-workout? Here are 5 great muscle recovery foods to have you feeling great on your next ride.

#1 – Quinoa:

Image result for quinoa

One of the most important energy stores to replace after a ride are carbohydrates. As a general rule of thumb, you should try to begin to replace lost carbohydrates within twenty minutes of your ride. Quinoa is a great substitute to rice because it is highly nutrient dense. It has 6 grams of protein per cup and contains all 9 essential amino acids; something no other carb source can claim. The one amino acid that particularly helps sore muscles is lysine, which quinoa is high in. Quinoa provides carbohydrates, high amounts of protein, and even anti-inflammatory properties so it should be a regular “go-to” for your after workout meals.

#2 – Salmon:

Image result for salmon

In addition to replacing carbohydrate stores, you will want to consume protein. Salmon is a great choice as it contains bio-active peptides; a small protein that has anti-inflammatory properties and helps joint function. Another great benefit of salmon is the amount of omega-3’s found within it, which help with muscle soreness and reduce swelling. In addition, omega-3’s influence the metabolic response of muscles to nutrition as well as the functional response.

#3 – Avocados:

Image result for avocado

These small green fruits sure pack a punch! With twenty-two grams of fat in just one cup, it can be used as a healthy alternative to not-so-healthy traditional toppings like mayonnaise. The fat is also monounsaturated which means it’s the healthy kind that you want more of in your diet. These healthy fats support good heart health, immune system recovery, and vitamin absorption, particularly vitamin C,E,K, and B. With all of these qualities, avocados are also great for brain health and can help improve memory and learning capabilities.

#4 – Berries: Specifically Blueberries and Cherries (if you call them a berry):

Image result for blueberries

Berries in general are high in antioxidants but blueberries and cherries in particular have a high ORAC oxygen radical absorption capacity . This means that they neutralize free radicals which form as a result of exercising. The overall thing, in blueberries in particular, that can help muscle recovery is the phytochemical content which has been studied, albeit with loose benefits found, to see if it helped muscles after a strenuous exercise

#5 – Water:

Image result for glass of water

Drink water after riding is a no-brainer but drinking enough is often an overlooked challenge. Ideally you don’t finish a ride super dehydrated but it does happen. It’s important that the first thing that you start to get back into you is water, be it on its own or through a recovery drink to help get other quick nutrients right after. One of the reasons that being dehydrated can hinder muscle recovery is that it reduces blood plasma volume. This in-turn makes it difficult for energy and nutrients to reach the muscle.

There of course are more than 5 muscle recovery foods but if you include these foods in your diet on a regular basis after your rides, you should feel a difference later in the day as you won’t be exhausted. Additionally, you will have improved energy levels as well as less soreness the following day along with just how good you feel on your next ride. Eat right, feel great!

Alcohol And Training And Its Effects On Recovery

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alcohol and training

After a hard day on the bike, you feel like you can reward yourself with a beer (or three). You are a little dehydrated from the ride and a little hungry, although you feel great. What effect does alcohol and training have on your body? What does it do to your recovery? And how will it affect your ride the next day?

Alcohol and Training Basics

The cognitive effects of alcohol are well known to everyone: impairment of coordination, decision making and sensory perception. Beyond the cognitive effects, there are other effects that alter metabolism, muscle function, thermoregulation, cardiovascular function, and neurological function.

Metabolism

Alcoholic beverages have calories that your body uses for energy, but they also alter your metabolic processes. It impairs glycogen synthesis, blocking your muscles from their energy source. Insulin production increases, further inhibiting glycogen synthesis and storage.

Muscle Function

With less accessible glycogen, muscles have less available energy. Additionally, alcohol and cramping have a correlation although the exact mechanism is unclear, although dehydration associated with alcohol may play a role.

Thermoregulation

Alcohol is a diuretic, forcing the body to urinate out excess fluid. It is also a vasodilator, leading to increased fluid loss through evaporation. A night of drinking is usually a sweaty night. Less fluid leads to increased cardiovascular effort and decreased evaporative cooling. This leads to an elevated core temperature.

Cardiovascular Function

The dehydration leads to lower blood volume, higher viscosity, and more effort for the heart. This leads to less efficient delivery of oxygen to the muscular system and decreased performance ensues.

Neurological Function

Alcohol is a depressant, leading to slower cognitive ability. It impairs absorption of B vitamins, which are critical to neurological function, along with zinc, which is critical to immune support. It also impairs sleep quality, a critical time for the body to repair itself.

Performance Effects of Alcohol

Small amounts of alcohol have limited affect on aerobic performance. Over the threshold results in a more dramatic decrease in aerobic performance. In an endurance sport like cycling, any small loss of aerobic performance leads to big losses out on the road.

Larger performance losses occur through inhibiting the regular thermoregulatory processes. A higher core temperature leads to greater loss of fluids through sweating. Less available blood volume because of sweating causes higher cardiac stress and effort. This results in decreased efficiency due to less oxygen getting to the muscles and higher energy requirements to keep the blood flowing.

Lower available glycogen means less energy for the muscles. This leads to less time to exhaustion and when you do ingest more carbohydrates, the synthesis to usable adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, the fuel for your muscles is inhibited.

Recovery Effects of Alcohol

The biggest recovery effects of alcohol and training are through disturbed sleep. Limiting sleep limits the time that your body can repair itself and perform important brain functions. When you sleep, your body produces human growth hormone (HGH), a powerful chemical that promotes cell growth and regeneration. Without HGH, your body would begin to fall apart because no repair processes would occur.

All of the effects of alcohol on performance also come into play for recovery. Your body is not working optimally, leading to diminished performance in all of the body systems – dehydration, compromised delivery of glycogen, an overtaxed cardiovascular system all lead to poor recovery.

This leads into training the next day. A hangover still exhibits symptoms of your body working sub-optimally. Your body is still recovering from the effects of you essentially poisoning it. One night of five drinks can lead to three days of recovery for your body from the drinking.

You Are Human

Humans drink alcohol; it can be social, it can be for the taste. Consider the effects of alcohol and training and what effects it will have on you and your riding goals. Remember that unless you are on the razor’s edge of cycling performance, an alcoholic drink will not make or break your season. Go enjoy yourself, but not too much. Your riding requires it. You enjoy that too.

6 Extra Important Vitamins For Athletes

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Vitamins are essential organic compounds that humans need to consume or produce to continue necessary life functions. They are micro-nutrients meaning that only very small amounts are necessary, although, sometimes even those small amounts are difficult to come by through diet only.

There are six vitamin groups, two of which humans can produce on their own, and four which they must ingest. Because of higher metabolic rates, getting enough vitamins for athletes is critical; there is potential to use up the reserves quicker than the average person. The processes that vitamins perform are extra important for athletes because they not only sustain normal body function, but if those body functions are performing at their peak, they will allow the to recover and perform better.

6 Extra Important Vitamins For Athletes

Vitamin A

The story most closely told about vitamin A is that it helps you see at night. This is true; one sign of a vitamin A deficiency is night blindness. The retina needs vitamin A to see color and in low light conditions. Along with ocular health, vitamin A is an antioxidant, promotes skin health, provides immune support and aids cellular health and multiplication.

Vitamin A is stored in the liver and is fat soluble. Eating the liver of other animals has some of the highest concentrations of vitamin A. It is also available in adequate concentrations in a lot of vegetables, most notably carrots. Because it is fat soluble, it takes a while to flush excess vitamin A from the body making overdosing a possibility if you eat too much liver or take too many supplements.

B Vitamin Group

B vitamins are generally found in large quantities in animal products. Vegans and vegetarians generally need to supplement B vitamins to have adequate supplies. There are a eight different vitamins in the water soluble B group:

  • B1 – Thiamine
  • B2 – Riboflavin
  • B3 – Niacin
  • B5 – Pantothetic Acid
  • B6 – Pyridoxine
  • B7 – Biotin
  • B9 – Folic Acid
  • B12 – Cyanocobalimin

B vitamins are critical for cell metabolism. They make energy production possible at the cellular level. In turn your body can function as a whole. Each B vitamin produces different coenzymes and has a different chemical structure which is why the group separates into eight different sub-vitamins.

Vitamin C6 Extra Important Vitamins For Athletes

Vitamin C is commonly known for its immune support functions. It also aids in energy production and is an antioxidant. Most animals synthesize vitamin C on their own; humans are one of the few animals that needs to ingest it however. It is available in many fruits and vegetables which is why its deficiency, scurvy, was so common on long sea voyages. Without access to fresh fruits and vegetables sailors became deficient. It is water soluble making it more difficult to overdose on. That’s why you will see products like Emergen-C with daily servings of over 1000%.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is one of two vitamins humans can synthesize; it requires exposure to the sun. This is a complicated balance. Too much ultraviolet exposure is linked to skin cancer, but not enough vitamin D is linked to osteoperosis in adults and rickets in children. Lots of foods are fortified with vitamin D because of limited sun exposure. It is fat soluable, although overdosing would require a lot of supplementation. You would likely have a nasty sunburn well before you would overdose from sun exposure.

Vitamin E

vitamins for athletes

Vitamin E is the last antioxidant and also plays a role in neurological function, muscle growth, and gene expression. It is fat soluable and found commonly in many oils, nuts, and seeds. Too much vitamin E can lead to suppression of vitamin K and clotting problems. Not enough vitamin E can lead to neurological breakdown, reduced immune function and cellular destruction.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is the other vitamin that humans can synthesize on their own. It is necessary for blood clotting and calcium absorption. Deficiency in vitamin K usually comes with other disorders that impair the body’s ability to produce it. In adults, supplementation is not necessary unless there is another disorder.

Vitamins for Athletes

Vitamins in the right amounts help athletes perform at their best. Finding the right balance is necessary so you don’t under or over dose on these compounds that make life and athletic performance possible.

What’s A Recovery Ride And How It Can Make You Faster

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recovery ride

It’s a beautiful day and your legs are spinning easily and effortless underneath you. You’re not out for a land speed record and can enjoy the sights. You don’t run out of energy or water because you’re not riding long enough to do so. Why not do a ride like this everyday? It sounds like bliss. For some, this is every ride but for others the draw to ride harder and farther is always there so day in and day out they dig themselves into a deeper hole. They may find that it takes a little bit for their legs to come around and feel good. If this is you, you’re in desperate need of a recovery ride. This can be a challenge if you’re always trying to go hard so knowing when to do one and how to do one right will help to ensure that you get the most out of your recovery ride, and not just in the recovery department but in enjoyment factor as well.

What Is a Recovery Ride?

A recovery ride is a ride dedicated to riding easy and just spinning the legs to get the blood flowing. The increased blood flow without the higher stress on the muscles from riding hard will help to enhance and speed recovery. If you’re particularly tired from a day or three of hard riding, you will probably feel like crap at the beginning and not want to do anything but by the end of the ride you will feel great. It is a boost for the muscles as well as the mind.

The Importance of a Recovery Ride

If you’re looking to recover, why not just stay planted on the couch? The couch is good, particularly if you’re horizontal on it, but it doesn’t get your blood flowing. Doing a recovery ride after lying on the couch will get your blood flowing along with loosening up your muscles. Muscles at rest will tighten if they’re not used or stretched properly. A recovery ride will also keep your legs from feeling stale the following day. Ever take a day off and get back on the bike a day later only to find that you feel tired and unmotivated to ride? This falls within the premise of a body in motion stays in motion while a body at rest stays at rest. When you try and go against what your body is used to, it resists. A recovery ride keeps you riding but at a level that is low enough to not cause increased strain.

When to do a Recovery Ride

You should do a recovery ride about two times a week depending upon how much you’re riding and/or training. It should follow two to three days of harder riding and a single day even if it is a much larger ride than you would normally do. Think century, race, a ride you would maybe only do two or three times a month. You should also do a recovery ride when you set out on a harder ride but simply are too tired to keep going at the same pace. Sometimes it’s good to push through this with “overreaching” training. Other times it just digs you a deeper hole and doesn’t make you any stronger or faster. Simply spin easy for a much shorter duration instead of flipping it and heading straight home.

How to do a Recovery Ride

A recovery ride sounds easy; just ride easy right? Well yes but there’s more to it than that. You should make a concerted effort to spin your legs more than you normally would. Also, when going up any climbs, go extra slow and again, spin as easy as you can up it. If you have to get out of the saddle, do it gingerly and keep your heart rate and/or power down if you’re measuring it. Your recovery ride should range in length from 30 minutes to one and a half hours if you ride more than fifteen hours per week. Also, since you need to go so easy on climbs, seek out the flattest route you can find. In conjunction with this, you want the roads or trails to be mellow with few cars or other riders to avoid. Going slow isn’t fun when it’s on a main road. Find the nice country road or scenic bike path and enjoy.

Also a great way to ensure that you ride slow and resist the urge to go a bit harder is to ride with someone else who is also doing a recovery ride. Include a stop at a coffee shop too. This will help the ride to be focused around conversation and enjoyment, not going hard. Another great option for a recovery ride is to ride with someone who doesn’t ride as much and couldn’t keep up with you otherwise. Someone such as your significant other or friend who you have been trying to get into cycling. Ride slow and next to them. This will keep you at a mellow pace until they try and drop you up a climb; then let them do it. You’re on a recovery ride.

Chocolate Milk Vs. Sports Recovery Drink

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chocolate milk vs. sports recovery drink
This video may surprise you especially since so much research and development goes into sports drink. Sometimes simpler is better. Also, here is another study backing up these findings; “Chocolate milk and endurance exercise recovery: protein balance, glycogen, and performance.” One note of caution with chocolate milk however is that you need to make sure that your stomach agrees with dairy. If you have any issues, you will definitely be able to tell if you consume a lot of it, like a glass of chocolate milk, immediately after a hard ride when nothing else is in your stomach. If your stomach is good with dairy, go for it.

 

 

 

 

 

You Can’t Lick Your Elbow: SuperhumanWhich drink is better at helping you recover your strength after a workout: chocolate milk or a sports drink? Watch:

Posted by National Geographic Channel on Saturday, May 21, 2016

How To Curb Tired Legs

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tired-cyclistHow To Curb Tired Legs

We’ve all been on those group rides, where we became overzealous and thought we were speed bikers at the Kona World Championships. Then, spent the next few days paying the price, feeling like you were lugging around cement blocks; thinking, how can you rid yourself of these tired legs so you can hop back on for your next ride? Here are a few tips to speed up recovery after a tough ride.

Post-Ride Recovery Shake

It’s crucial to have a protein shake with some carbohydrates within 45 minutes of finishing your ride. Research has demonstrated that when combining carbohydrates with protein immediately after exercise it increases muscle synthesis. As we ride we break down muscle, and the body builds more muscle after activity as a process of adaptation to exercise. Forty-five minutes is the time frame when your muscles are most hungry for nutrition, and absorb readily to aid with muscle repair. In addition, it is a crucial period in restoring the glycogen (energy) stores we’ve depleted during our ride. It’s also been shown that endurance athletes rely on protein during long rides as a last fuel source once we’ve depleted our glycogen and fat stores. Recommended daily allowances of protein for males include 84-112 grams and 66-88 grams for females. Furthermore, some of my favourite mixes include soy milk with a scoop of vanilla, whey protein, mixed with some strawberries, and blueberries for the antioxidant effect. If I’m craving something sweeter, then I add a scoop of peanut butter along with protein powder, and some banana slices.

Stretch Before and Post Ride

Make sure you stretch your leg muscles in order to minimize the decreased range of motion due to sore muscles, which could lead to strains. Vital muscles to be stretched include quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, IT bands, hip flexors, and glute maximus. There are several stretching techniques one can use to achieve elasticity. The most commonly known is “static stretching”, which requires you to stay in a stationary position, and place the muscle in a stretch, typically in the opposite direction the muscle performs.

There is also “proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching”, which involves stretching the muscles with alternating sets of static stretching versus muscle contraction; with this style you would need a partner to assist you. A PNF stretching example includes a static stretch of the hamstring for 10 seconds, and 10 seconds of contracting the hamstring by pushing against the person’s hands/body, with a stretch-contract-stretch sequence. The advantage of this stretching is you see immediate gains in flexibility, more so than in static stretching.

Another form is “dynamic stretching”, which involves a person performing low intensity exercises involving that muscle action; for instance, walking lunges to stretch the hip flexors. These are best completed before a ride in order to get the muscles firing and geared up for cycling. Each stretch should be completed 2-3 times, for no more than 30 seconds each. It’s more effective to stretch these muscles once you’ve completed a 10-15 minute warm up, as well as immediately post ride. Research has shown minimal elasticity gains when performing these stretches prior to a warm up. “I Love Bicycling” has an article on some great stretches for cyclists with photos included.

Hydration Post-Ride

After a ride, drink plenty of water mixed with a cap of Pedialyte, per 8 ounces. Pedialyte contains condensed electrolytes, and aids in speeding up muscle recovery by hydrating muscles, and flushing out lactic acid. By drinking plenty of fluids with electrolytes, it helps your body eliminate the lactic acid through urine. In addition, it helps in hydrating your body in preparation for your next ride. There are formulas online, which can be used to figure out how much water is needed for your particular body weight and activity level. One way to check if you’ve hydrated adequately is by observing the colour of your urine. If your urine is yellow you’re still in need of hydration, but once it comes out clear or a pale yellow you are hydrated.

Ice Bath

A great way athletes minimize soreness and achy joints is by making themselves an ice bath. The advantage of an ice bath is allowing several muscles and joints to be treated at the same time. It is also the one ice treatment that has the deepest penetration effect of tissues. This treatment can be done in the bathtub of your home. Fill up the tub until it passes your thighs and dump in 1.5-2 bags of ice. In order for it to be therapeutic the temperature should be between 50-60 degrees. Granted, you’ll be freezing for the first 5 minutes, but afterwards you’ll be numb. If you don’t have a bathtub this can also be done by purchasing a 10 gallon garbage tub, and completing the same process. The ice bath can be completed for a minimum of 20 minutes, but no longer than 30, because then it has the adverse effect. If done for more than 30 minutes the body begins to think it’s entering a hypothermic state, and starts to dilate the blood vessels in order to increase body temperature. This is the opposite effect of the ice, which is intended to constrict blood vessels in order to decrease swelling and eliminate pain.

In following these four tips, it’ll help you avoid delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), which happens when you’ve pushed your body a bit too far. By speeding up recovery, we can gear ourselves up for our next ride, where this time we can imagine ourselves to be as fearless as Sebastian Kienle going into a headwind.

 

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