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Form & Fitness Q & A
Got a question about fitness, training, recovery from injury or a related subject? Drop us a line at fitness@cyclingnews.com. Please include as much information about yourself as possible, including your age, sex, and type of racing or riding. Due to the volume of questions we receive, we regret that we are unable to answer them all.
The Cyclingnews form & fitness panelCarrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University. Jon Heidemann (www.peaktopeaktraining.com) is a USAC Elite Certified cycling coach with a BA in Health Sciences from the University of Wyoming. The 2001 Masters National Road Champion has competed at the Elite level nationally and internationally for over 14 years. As co-owner of Peak to Peak Training Systems, Jon has helped athletes of all ages earn over 84 podium medals at National & World Championship events during the past 8 years. Dave Palese (www.davepalese.com) is a USA Cycling licensed coach and masters' class road racer with 16 years' race experience. He coaches racers and riders of all abilities from his home in southern Maine, USA, where he lives with his wife Sheryl, daughter Molly, and two cats, Miranda and Mu-Mu. Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+. He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like. Fiona Lockhart (www.trainright.com) is a USA Cycling Expert Coach, and holds certifications from USA Weightlifting (Sports Performance Coach), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach), and the National Academy for Sports Nutrition (Primary Sports Nutritionist). She is the Sports Science Editor for Carmichael Training Systems, and has been working in the strength and conditioning and endurance sports fields for over 10 years; she's also a competitive mountain biker. Eddie Monnier (www.velo-fit.com) is a USA Cycling certified Elite Coach and a Category II racer. He holds undergraduate degrees in anthropology (with departmental honors) and philosophy from Emory University and an MBA from The Wharton School of Business. Eddie is a proponent of training with power. He coaches cyclists (track, road and mountain bike) of all abilities and with wide ranging goals (with and without power meters). He uses internet tools to coach riders from any geography. David Fleckenstein, MPT (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Boise, ID. His clients have included World and U.S. champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his B.S. in Biology/Genetics from Penn State and his Master's degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University. He specializes in manual medicine treatment and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilization musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker. Since 1986 Steve Hogg (www.cyclefitcentre.com) has owned and operated Pedal Pushers, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem. Clients range from recreational riders and riders with disabilities to World and National champions. Current riders that Steve has positioned include Davitamon-Lotto's Nick Gates, Discovery's Hayden Roulston, National Road Series champion, Jessica Ridder and National and State Time Trial champion, Peter Milostic. Pamela Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an assistant professor of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of iron deficiency on adaptations to endurance training and the consequences of exercise-associated changes in menstrual function on bone health. Pam was an All-American in track while at the UW. She started cycling competitively in 2003 and is the defending Missouri State Road Champion. Pam writes a nutrition column for Giana Roberge's Team Speed Queen Newsletter. Dario Fredrick (www.wholeathlete.com) is an exercise physiologist and head coach for Whole Athlete™. He is a former category 1 & semi-pro MTB racer. Dario holds a masters degree in exercise science and a bachelors in sport psychology. Scott Saifer (www.wenzelcoaching.com) has a Masters Degree in exercise physiology and sports psychology and has personally coached over 300 athletes of all levels in his 10 years of coaching with Wenzel Coaching. Kendra Wenzel (www.wenzelcoaching.com) is a head coach with Wenzel Coaching with 17 years of racing and coaching experience and is coauthor of the book Bike Racing 101. Steve Owens (www.coloradopremiertraining.com) is a USA Cycling certified coach, exercise physiologist and owner of Colorado Premier Training. Steve has worked with both the United States Olympic Committee and Guatemalan Olympic Committee as an Exercise Physiologist. He holds a B.S. in Exercise & Sports Science and currently works with multiple national champions, professionals and World Cup level cyclists. Through his highly customized online training format, Steve and his handpicked team of coaches at Colorado Premier Training work with cyclists and multisport athletes around the world. Richard Stern (www.cyclecoach.com) is Head Coach of Richard Stern Training, a Level 3 Coach with the Association of British Cycling Coaches, a Sports Scientist, and a writer. He has been professionally coaching cyclists and triathletes since 1998 at all levels from professional to recreational. He is a leading expert in coaching with power output and all power meters. Richard has been a competitive cyclist for 20 years Andy Bloomer (www.cyclecoach.com) is an Associate Coach and sport scientist with Richard Stern Training. He is a member of the Association of British Cycling Coaches (ABCC) and a member of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES). In his role as Exercise Physiologist at Staffordshire University Sports Performance Centre, he has conducted physiological testing and offered training and coaching advice to athletes from all sports for the past 4 years. Andy has been a competitive cyclist for many years. Michael Smartt (www.wholeathlete.com) is an Associate Coach with Whole Athlete™. He holds a Masters degree in exercise physiology, is a USA Cycling Level I (Elite) Coach and is certified by the NSCA (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist). Michael has more than 10 years competitive experience, primarily on the road, but also in cross and mountain biking. He is currently focused on coaching road cyclists from Jr. to elite levels, but also advises triathletes and Paralympians. Michael is a strong advocate of training with power and has over 5 years experience with the use and analysis of power meters. Michael also spent the 2007 season as the Team Coach for the Value Act Capital Women's Cycling Team. Earl Zimmermann (www.wenzelcoaching.com) has over 12 years of racing experience and is a USA Cycling Level II Coach. He brings a wealth of personal competitive experience to his clients. He coaches athletes from beginner to elite in various disciplines including road and track cycling, running and triathlon.
Advice presented in Cyclingnews' fitness pages is provided for educational purposes only and is not intended to be specific advice for individual athletes. If you follow the educational information found on Cyclingnews, you do so at your own risk. You should consult with your physician before beginning any exercise program. |
Bike fit importance
Saddle position/knee pain
Cramp in calves
Change in pedals
Saddle issue for Steve Hogg
Upper body rocking
Saddle sores
Bike fit importance
I am interested in the importance/benefits of having a proper bike fit done before you start training and any general rule (obviously individuals will vary greatly) on how often a young teenage rider should be getting their bike fit checked.
Also does the gearing selected by pro riders vary greatly from what we can buy in the local stores? How different or similar should a young cyclists gearing be from that of a pros? Or does it not matter as the speeds reached would not be the same?
The reason I ask is that I am a rowing coach (and weekend warrior cyclist) and we (as rowing coaches in general) seem to take a very relaxed view to setting up our boats and selecting the right gearing for our athletes, especially teenagers.
I am hoping to provide some information to our schools cycling team - as well as to my fellow rowing coaches on just how important and closely looked at these areas are in other sports like cycling!
If anyone has a few moments to jot down ideas, that would be greatly appreciated.
James Coote
Auckland, New Zealand
Scott Saifer replies:
Thanks for taking an interest in taking care of your young cyclists. Bike fit is important for two reasons:
1) A decent bike fit makes riders able to ride farther and faster (period. Note I didn't add "more comfortably". It's just plain not possible to ride as fast or as long in a bad position). If your riders are competitive, this could be important.
2) A bad position combined with riding significant volumes or riding hard can cause injuries in just a few rides that can take months or years to clear up. It's better not to mess with this.
Kids who are growing rapidly may need to be re-fit to their bikes as often as once every month or two.]Fortunately, unless you're riders are training to race at a high level, just getting the saddle height and cleat placement about right will give decent power and freedom from injuries, so you don't need them to get expensive bike fits that often.
The bikes you can get at the local bike shop are very similar to those ridden by the pros, if your drop a bundle of cash. The pros will sometimes put on a bigger big ring in the front for a special event, but other than that they use the same gears you can get. In fact, kids who race are usually limited to using top gears lower than the pros so the gears that come on a bike from the shop won't be legal for kids for racing.
Fortunately, the bike of the pros are better than your local kid rider will ever need, even if he or she is racing so your kids don't need to spend near the pro-level to get an acceptable racing bike.
I hope this was helpful. If you have more specific questions, or you want to put the cycling team coach in touch with us, please write again.
Saddle position/knee pain
I've read with great interest the question and answers section of cycling news, and hope that you may be able to sort out a problem for me regarding saddle position and some knee pain.
I'm 48, male, been cycling for just over 18 months, cycle about 10-15 hours a week on average, enjoy Rondoneurs/Audaxes and Sportives, don't race, and do the occasional TT at my local cycling club. Although I don't race, I like being fit and cycling fast. I'll typically ride a 100 mile event at an average speed of 16 mph.
I'm 175cm in height, weigh 71kg, and have an inseam of 83cm.
I'll start with some history to my problem.
I've been riding a Fizik Arione saddle and Thomson setback seatpost for about a year. I used to ride with Shimano SPDs and MTB shoes. I arrived at a saddle height of 730mm (centre of BB to top of the saddle, measured along the seatpost) through trial and error.
Early on I experienced some lateral knee pain in my left knee, and the chap at the local bike shop looked at my feet, noted that I walked with my toes pointing outward, and have flat feet, and adjusted my cleats to suit the natural position of my feet. This fixed the knee pain, and over the last year or so I have ridden many long rides with no pains or knee issues.
I decided last September '08 to change to Speedplay Zero pedals and road shoes, and through trial and error, and talking to the Tech guy at Speedplay, dropped my saddle height by 6mm to 724mm. Again I've ridden centuries on this setup quite happily, knee wise.
I've now reached a point that I've decided that the Arione is not the saddle for me, having experienced increasing discomfort over distance. I've recently tested the Fizik Aliante and find this to be much more suited to my shape.
However, having fitted the Aliante, I'm starting to have some knee pains.
Firstly I fitted the Aliante so that the rail marks were the same distance from the edge of the clamp as the Arione. I made no change to the saddle height. I experienced some front of knee pain after a few turbo sessions and 1 hour road rides. Looking on www.cptips.com I learned that this pain could be due to the saddle being too low, so raised the saddle (about 1-2mm at a time).
I still experienced front of knee pain, so I raised the saddle again. In all I raised it about 8mm (which just didn't seem right). On a ride at the weekend I experienced extreme pain on the outside of my left knee, such that I had to leave the ride and hobble home on my own.
In trying to sort the problem I put the Arione back on (I have the setup for the Arione documented) and set it to its original position. Then I removed the Arione and fitted the Aliante as I had originally. I noted that the measurement from the BB to top of saddle for the Aliante was 727mm, 3mm higher than the Arione. So far what I've done to try and sort this out is to lower the Aliante saddle by 3mm to 724mm (same height as the Arione) and moved it back 1mm. I've yet to try this, that's tomorrow's ride.
I'd be grateful if you could advise if I'm going about this saddle change in the right way, or is there another method I should be using..
My apologies if this email has been a bit long winded, but I wanted to give you as much background as possible.
I hope that you are able to take time to consider my problem and offer some advise, and I look forward to hearing from you,
Andy Faden.
Steve Hogg replies:
Aliante and Arione are quite different in terms of depth, distance from centre of rail to nose, profile as viewed from the side and in just about every other way that you can imagine. What that means is exactly what you found; i.e. changing seats using a single measurement is not an accurate way to do it.
There is no accurate way to do this without quantifying where the rider is in space when mounted on their bike and then duplicating that body position in space with the new seat. Even then, that isn't a totally foolproof method. I've cut and pasted a handout below that I give clients when necessary. It will get you in the vicinity and then you will have to do the rest by feel. This isn't a perfect answer but the best one that I can give you.
Instructions for fitting a different seat (Copyright: Steve Hogg)
1. Lock up the bike in an indoor trainer and use a carpenter's level to make sure that the bike is levelled between axle centres. This is important as everything you do will only be accurate if the bike is level and stable. In addition to the carpenter's level, you will need a steel rule 300mm long and a marker pen
2. Measure the flat section of the seat rail and use the marker pen to mark the midpoint in the length of the flat section
3. Measure from the flat section to the top of the seat directly above the point you have marked at the midpoint of the seat rail. Record that measurement as seat depth
4. Lay the new seat upside down on top of the old seat so that the curves forward of the seat shoulders match up as closely as possible. The seat shoulders are the forward most part of the widest part of the rear of the seat. The curves are where the seat narrows as it comes forward from the shoulders. Match up the profile of the curves as best as can be done.
5. Note whether the nose of the new seat laid upside down on the old one are forward or rearward of the nose of the old seat currently fitted. Record the difference as seat nose difference. A plus number means that the new seat's nose is forward of the old seat. A minus number means that the new seat is rearward of the old one.
6. Measure from the centre of the bottom bracket (centre of rotation of the cranks) to the top of the old seat fitted to the bike. Make sure that the measuring edge of the tape passes through the mark on the midpoint of the seat rail. Record that measurement as seat height.
7. Measure from the tip of the nose of the old seat to the back of the handlebar. Make sure that the front wheel is facing straight ahead. Record this measurement as nose to handlebar
8. Remove old seat and fit new seat. Make sure that you mark the midpoint of the seat rail. Fit the new seat at the same seat height as the old seat making sure that you measure seat height in the same way. Look at your seat nose difference measurement. If it is a plus number, move the new seat so that it's nose to handlebar measurement is that much less than that of the old seat. If it is a minus number, make sure that the new seat's nose to handlebar measurement is that much more than that of the old seat.
9. Recheck seat height and then recheck nose to handlebar distance. This is as close as you will get by measurement. Any further adjustment must be done by feel. This method will only work as accurately as the measurements you take. Even then, I am depending on you to have enough awareness of how you should feel when pedaling to recognise that feeling when you duplicate it on the new seat.
Cramp in calves
I'm a 36 year old road racer, returning to racing after six years away. I did cyclocross over the winter and got a decent fitness so I'm carrying on into the road season.
I'm now building speed work and started doing chain gangs. On the last 2 I've had cramp 'twinges' in my calves. The first few rides were fine and I'm racing on the road and criteriums and the cramp doesn't occur. It only occurs on the chaingangs.
The chaingangs are in the evenings at 6.30pm and are fast - I have to sit in on some turns.
I have to pull out of the chaingang when the twinges start because I am fearful of them turning in to a full cramp lock the bunch.
Any idea of what can be causing them?
Ben Hookway
Dave Fleckenstein replies:
The main question here is what is the most effective way to lengthen collagen, the primary building block of connective tissue? I like to think of collagen as an unusual type of spring.
With stretching we are trying to lengthen, or deform the spring. While force is the most effective way to deform a regular spring (how hard we pull it apart), time is the most effective way to deform the spring of collagen. Healthy, mobile tissue generally looks like nicely combed hair under the microscope - all the fibres are aligned in parallel, allowing the 'spring' of collagen to be mobile in certain directions and resistant in others. Restricted tissue tends to look like fibres of a furnace filter - randomly aligned (which is actually the cross-linking of collagen tissue) and generally resistant to any motion.
My overall thoughts regarding stretching are as follows, based on research and my clinical experience:
1) Low load, long duration (LLPD) stretches are the most effective ways to permanently lengthen tissues - in simple terms, time is a more effective way to lengthen tissues than force.
An interesting observation is that there are certain tissues that we want to stretch and certain ones that we don't. The same way that time is an effective way to lengthen the hamstrings; prolonged slumping (either sitting in a chair or sitting on a bike) can also lengthen the collagen fibres of the disc and supportive ligaments of the spine. This results in a loss of integrity of the disc and premature breakdown.
2) 30 second stretches, contract/relax stretches, AIS stretching, etc., do not permanently lengthen tissue, but can result in transient improvements in flexibility.
My clinic is full of patients who have performed this type of stretching for years, notice a short term benefit, but no cumulative improvement. Why? Because I don't think collagen is affected with these stretches, the nervous system is. The nervous system plays an important role in regulating how tissue moves. These types of stretches affect mechanisms that regulate the tone of muscle tissue - how much contraction is going through tissue at one time. These can be effective ways to reduce spasm or provide short term increases in mobility.
3) There is an optimum amount of flexibility. If there is not some resistance present in the connective tissues, we don't transmit forces well - it is dispersed within the tissue. Indeed, some professional athletes that I have seen demonstrate marked tightness, but they are able to prevent those forces from transmitting to structures that are not designed to disperse stress. I think that these are the athletes who picked their parents well and have a physical gift. I certainly have patients that are too flexible as well, but it is generally not their hamstrings, hip musculature, and hip flexors that are too mobile. It is usually the musculature and structures' surrounding the spine and this is not good.
4) Flexibility is not something that should just occur when we are "warmed up," it should be present permanently. This enables us to move correctly throughout our day, through all motions. My general rule is that I want local spine stability (to protect and maintain optimum alignment of these highly reactive structures) and lumbopelvic musculature flexibility, so that our pelvis can move correctly and provide a well-aligned base for the spine.
So, what seems simple is not so simple, after all. In many of the studies that found negative results of stretching, tissues that should not have been stretched were lengthened, creating problems. I often see athletes selecting very poor stretching techniques, such as bending forward to touch their toes thinking that they are stretching their hamstrings when they are actually placing huge forces and stretch on the disc and ligaments of the spine. Studies that look grossly at applying one general stretch across a highly variable population will generally end up with inconclusive findings.
Steve Hogg replies:
By the sound of it, your training rides are at least as hard as your races. If you are tiring and moving to the big gears as many people do under pressure, then it is likely that you may be dropping your heels more than under normal circumstances. If this is happening and your seat height is a little too high, then you may be overextending under load and your calves protesting as a result.
If you are not moving to the big gears under pressure but pedaling freely, then it is likely that either your calves are too tight and should be stretched more OR that your cleats are further forward than ideal. Your foot is a lever but the fulcrum for this 'lever' is the ankle. What that means is that the longer the effective lever length; i.e; the further forward your cleats are, the more work the calves have to do to stabilise foot on pedal under load. Have a look at these links and move your cleats to the recommended placement relative to your shoe size. http://www.cyclingnews.com/fitness/?id=2004/letters07-26#Cleat
http://www.cyclingnews.com/fitness/?id=2004/letters10-11#BallIf following that advice on cleat placement means that your cleats have to move substantially rearward, you will need to drop your seat to allow for the greater degree of leg extension needed with a more rearward cleat position.
Ben then responded:
Thanks for the response. Everything you say makes sense.
1. Yes - the chaingangs are very hard
2. I had a new bike and had to lower the saddle
3. New shoes as well so I move the plates back.
I had another thought though which might be a bit odd. All this started after I bought and built a trampoline for the back garden for my kids summer. Bouncing on a trampoline must tight the calves - what do you think?
Steve Hogg replies:
Regarding the trampoline; maybe that has contributed but I suspect if it has, you would have had tight calves to start with. Stretch them long, not hard.
Change in pedals
I have recently changed from the old style Look pedals to the current Shimano 105 pedal. I remember that it is necessary to drop the height of the seat to accommodate the change in pedal height, but I cant remember how far I should drop the seat. Any ideas?
Mathew Smith
Steve Hogg replies:
It depends on what model of Look Delta pedals you have because there were slight variations in platform height. Dropping your seat and bar 7 - 8 mm should get you very close and then you can assess by feel. That assumes that your new Shimano cleats place your foot in the same relationship to pedal axle as you have had with the Looks.
Saddle issue for Steve Hogg
I corresponded with you a few years ago about some hip issues that, thankfully, seem to have abated. The latest is this: after my local training crit last week, I went really hard for the first time this year. After the ride on the cool down ride home, I could barely sit on my saddle. It feels like my left sit bone is bruised, way up in the back. The saddle is a Selle Italia SLR Gel Flow. Any ideas on a replacement saddle, assuming it is a saddle issue?
Mark Featherman
Steve Hogg replies:
The issue is more likely to be how you sit on the seat rather than the choice of seat. The sit bone or ischium is the origin of the hamstrings. If you are overextending the left leg under load, pain as you describe can be the result. The other common cause is that if your left leg is overextending, you may be dropping the left hip hard coming forward after top dead centre and loading the sit bone heavily. The question is why?
Possible reasons can be:
1. A measurably shorter left leg
2. A tighter left side hamstrings, glutes and hip flexors
3. A tendency to favour the right leg under load by dropping the right hip causing the left leg to overextend.
4. A tendency to sit with a twisted pelvis that causes either hip to be forward of the other
5. Can be related to 3. if the seat height is touch too high, then. Under high load, the great majority of cyclists drop their heels more than they would under lighter loads after top dead centre. This causes overextension and a common attempt to compensate for this is to choose a side to protect (usually but not always the right) by dropping of that hip which in turn causes the other side (usually but not always the left) to overextend.
6. To great a reach out or down to the bars or too forward a cleat position can lead to or add to a general lack of stability on the seat and be the trigger for a strong tendency to favour one side over the other
7. It is conceivable but not that likely, that you overemphasise the left leg by forcefully dropping that hip and jamming the ischium into the seat on each left pedal stroke.Does any of this strike a chord?
Mark then responded:
Thanks Steve. I got a new frame not too long ago and
1) Raised the seat a little
2) The bars are a little lower.
Should I lower the saddle and/or raise the bars?
Steve Hogg replies:
Initially, do both. That is drop the seat and raise the bar. If after your next race, there is no problem, try dropping the bar and then reassess again after the third race. If still no problem, leave the bar height as is. But if there is a problem, raise the bars back to their 'old' height.
Upper body rocking
I have just been told that my upper body (not my hips) rocks back and forth quite a bit when I ride in a paceline or up a hill on my road bike. I am not a beginner rider - I raced MTBs for years and have recently switched to road racing. I do not know if I do this on my MTB or not, but vaguely remember being told yrs ago that I was using my upper body quite a bit on a steep (road) climb. I do not experience any pain as a result of said rocking but am perceived by some as "not being a steady wheel to follow" although others have told me that I do (or at least my bike does), indeed, ride a straight line. Thanks.
Jill Aye
Steve Hogg replies:
There are three basic reason for what you describe and the answer may be more than one of them. They are -
1. Too high a seat height causing you to drop each hip on the pedal stroke on that side.
2. A general pattern of excessive tightness in glutes, QL's, hip flexors and hamstring. This may go hand in hand with jammed or restricted sacro iliac joints
3. Zero ability to stabilise pelvis on seat. This can be caused by 1, 2 or both but positional factors can come into play in the sense that any shortcoming in your position that destabilises you on the seat can cause excessive hip rocking. Even if this is the case it is unlikely to occur without some aspect of 1 and / or 2 being present.
Jill then responded:
I am pretty sure that my seat is not too high, in fact, it may be a tad high. I do have the classic cyclist's weak posterior chain along with the associated tight hip flexors, hamstrings, etc so this is a good reminder to resume stretching (again). Also, my husband says that my pelvis is not rocking, only my upper body (shoulders) from above the waist. Could it be a lack of core strength?
On another, totally unrelated issue, I was wondering if you could tell me the exact systems that would be affected by a fairly rapid (intentional) weight loss during my build period. At a somewhat muscular (for a female bike racer) 5'10" tall, I went from ~147# to ~139# in about 4 weeks. I also was experiencing a fair bit of stress (occasionally resulting in insomnia) during this time period which was compounded by always being hungry and cranky because I was on a rather extreme (for me) diet.
I was interested in finding out, from this description of what I did, you would be able to pick out exactly where I should? be struggling right now. I do realize that it my build period was NOT the time to be rapidly losing weight and that I should have done this over the winter.
Steve Hogg replies:
If your pelvis isn't rocking (which is what I incorrectly assumed) then it is a safe bet that your general functional stability is poor and there may or may not be associated issues with your position. It sounds like you are using whatever you can enlist to drag the bike down the road. Simply put, for steady state efforts, waist down for proprelling the bike, torso for breathing, and only the minimum tension in the arms and shoulders as is necessary to steer the bike.
Your description of what you're doing is that there is a level of alternate left / right effort in arms and shoulder complex. The best self help book that I've seen is Stability, Sport and Performance Movement by Joanne Elphinston. You could do a lot worse than get a copy and act on the info contained in there.
Regarding your second point - where you should be struggling post weight loss; do you mean in a physiological sense or a positional sense?
If you mean the first, Kelby or one of the coaches will give you more detailed and accurate info than this bike mechanic But if you're not eating enough and doing some volume, I'm not surprised your were cranky.
If you mean from a positional sense, it depends on where you lost the weight. If a substantial amount came off your backside, that can leave you sitting further rearward in a skeletal sense than you were before. If you feel less fluent in your pedal stroke, post weight loss, you may have to move your seat forward 5 - 10 mm.
If this is the case, don't lengthen your stem because all you are doing is re-establishing the same skeletal relationship to the bike as you would have had pre weight loss. This happens but I doubt that an 8lb weight loss would be enough for this though, unless it all came off your backside.
Saddle sores
I am 39, male and becoming increasingly frustrated with saddle sores. I ride about 5-6 times per week (including racing) at a minimum of two hours each ride. I am in my third year of cycling and racing and have suffered from saddle sores on and off from the start.
I have trialled several saddles to try and fix this problem but without any luck and was hoping you could give me some advice on this as it is now preventing me from riding on consecutive days, not to mention the discomfort. I recently spent over $300 on a San Marco saddle and initially I thought I was free from sores, however they have returned painfully.
Strangely though, the sores don't usually develop on both sides. But they do alternate. I apply anti-friction cream to myself as well as my knicks before long rides (the sores and pain end up worse after longer rides) and races but this does not work either. I religiously wash knicks (I have about seven different pairs) thoroughly after each ride as well as shower immediately after as well. You can imagine how frustrating this is becoming especially after 3 years and would appreciate any advice on this painful matter.
Peter Baz
Steve Hogg replies:
Saddle sores most often occur when there is excessive friction affecting the areas that contact your seat. Common reasons are - seat too high, poor quality or poorly fitting knicks that bunch up and most often, poor flexibility in hips and lower back causing constant rocking on the seat. If alternate sides are affected it is usually because the rider is self protecting one side by loading the other side. When that side becomes problematic, the whole sequence starts again.
How flexible are you in the hips and lower back?
And at the risk of stating the obvious, I had a gent complain about constant saddle sores some time back. The simple solution in his case was to stop wearing jockey shorts under his cycling knicks!
Dave Fleckenstein replies:
The main question here is what is the most effective way to lengthen collagen, the primary building block of connective tissue? I like to think of collagen as an unusual type of spring.
With stretching we are trying to lengthen, or deform the spring. While force is the most effective way to deform a regular spring (how hard we pull it apart), time is the most effective way to deform the spring of collagen. Healthy, mobile tissue generally looks like nicely combed hair under the microscope - all the fibres are aligned in parallel, allowing the 'spring' of collagen to be mobile in certain directions and resistant in others. Restricted tissue tends to look like fibres of a furnace filter - randomly aligned (which is actually the cross-linking of collagen tissue) and generally resistant to any motion.
My overall thoughts regarding stretching are as follows, based on research and my clinical experience:
1) Low load, long duration (LLPD) stretches are the most effective ways to permanently lengthen tissues - in simple terms, time is a more effective way to lengthen tissues than force.
An interesting observation is that there are certain tissues that we want to stretch and certain ones that we don't. The same way that time is an effective way to lengthen the hamstrings; prolonged slumping (either sitting in a chair or sitting on a bike) can also lengthen the collagen fibres of the disc and supportive ligaments of the spine. This results in a loss of integrity of the disc and premature breakdown.
2) 30 second stretches, contract/relax stretches, AIS stretching, etc., do not permanently lengthen tissue, but can result in transient improvements in flexibility.
My clinic is full of patients who have performed this type of stretching for years, notice a short term benefit, but no cumulative improvement. Why? Because I don't think collagen is affected with these stretches, the nervous system is. The nervous system plays an important role in regulating how tissue moves. These types of stretches affect mechanisms that regulate the tone of muscle tissue - how much contraction is going through tissue at one time. These can be effective ways to reduce spasm or provide short term increases in mobility.
3) There is an optimum amount of flexibility. If there is not some resistance present in the connective tissues, we don't transmit forces well - it is dispersed within the tissue. Indeed, some professional athletes that I have seen demonstrate marked tightness, but they are able to prevent those forces from transmitting to structures that are not designed to disperse stress. I think that these are the athletes who picked their parents well and have a physical gift. I certainly have patients that are too flexible as well, but it is generally not their hamstrings, hip musculature, and hip flexors that are too mobile. It is usually the musculature and structures' surrounding the spine and this is not good.
4) Flexibility is not something that should just occur when we are "warmed up," it should be present permanently. This enables us to move correctly throughout our day, through all motions. My general rule is that I want local spine stability (to protect and maintain optimum alignment of these highly reactive structures) and lumbopelvic musculature flexibility, so that our pelvis can move correctly and provide a well-aligned base for the spine.
So, what seems simple is not so simple, after all. In many of the studies that found negative results of stretching, tissues that should not have been stretched were lengthened, creating problems. I often see athletes selecting very poor stretching techniques, such as bending forward to touch their toes thinking that they are stretching their hamstrings when they are actually placing huge forces and stretch on the disc and ligaments of the spine. Studies that look grossly at applying one general stretch across a highly variable population will generally end up with inconclusive findings.
Peter Baz then responded:
Steve,
Firstly, Thankyou very much for replying and sharing your expert knowledge on this matter. From what you have said, and to answer you question, I would be confident in saying that hip and lower back flexibility is the main problem. Therefore, are there any specific stretches I could do to improve flexibility in these areas, and in turn reduce the friction, or movement on the saddle, eliminating this irritating problem? Once again, your advice is much appreciated.
P.S. I was told very early that undergarments were just not the done thing under knicks, so I have never really worn anything between skin and knicks.
Steve Hogg replies:
I thought it would be unlikely that you were wearing anything underneath but thought I had better mention it, just in case. As to stretches, Dave is probably the best man for that. My suggestion is to get hold of a book called "Overcome Neck and Back Pain" by Kit Laughlin. Not because you have mentioned neck or back pain but because it is a book designed to allow inflexible people to gain flexibility and starts from the premise that the user is very tight.
Another book of value that will help you modify movement patterns is "Stability, Sport and Performance Movement" by Joanne Elphinston.
Lastly, thank you for your thanks but any (very limited) expertise I have with saddle sores is 100% vicarious. Never had them and happy to stay that way. I can't stress enough that one of the major issues limiting a lot of riders is poor ability to be stable on a seat. The problem being we exert significant force on alternate sides with our legs which attach to our pelvis but we don't want our pelvis to rock.
When this happens, the rider cannot coordinate well at higher cadences and uses a lot of upper body and shoulder complex muscle in an effort to stablise themselves on the seat. This can only happen by diminishing performance. Be patient and methodical with your stretching and you will make headway. Dave Fleckenstein has a great post in the archive on stretching technique that I have taken the liberty of cut and pasting below.
