Fitness questions and answers for December 5, 2006

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.

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

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.

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.They include World and National champions at one end of the performance spectrum to amputees and people with disabilities at the other end.

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.

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.

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.

I'm a male rider 35 years old, 72kg and 169cm tall. I have taken up cycling 5 months ago and was already reasonably fit from running. I have been training with a good mate who has been riding for a lot longer (6 years) and am doing 250 - 300kms per week over a variety of terrain. We both push each other hard on our training rides. My training partner weighs the same and is slightly taller - about 180cm.

As you are both the same mass, you both need to generate the same power to ride side by side (presuming that you have the same aero drag -- which you won't. It's likely your buddy's drag is higher due to him being taller). If your buddy is therefore beating you on the ride, then barring any mechanical differences in bikes (and you'd have to have a wreck of a bike, and your buddy would have to have the best bike, or you use a knobbly tyre MTB and your friend has a nice slick road bike) your friend simply generates more power than you both aerobically (e.g. uphill) or non-aerobically (e.g. sprints).

I'm 5'11 165lbs. 35 years old with average ability, and reasonable flexibility. My 30" inseam is very short, so needless to say I have a very long torso. Add to the mix, size 12US feet. (Yes, God must have a sense of humor.) My Litespeed is 57" large by most standards, but given my long upper body, its works. My Trek is a 56" with a 100mm stem, all the spacers removed, no real comfort issues at this point.

Is it logical that I would have the sense my cleats are too far forward on the road bike versus my time-trail bike? Given 5 years on the steep bike ('02 Litespeed Blade), should I try to utilize a slightly forward position on a road bike? I ride with a Powertap, and have found that I can produce more power at a lower perceived effort on the road bike in comparison with the TT bike, but my average speed is down somewhat. How do you best determine a balance between watts and aerodynamics?

Short summary to date: 24yr old male, been riding competitively for ~6years. Problems began with knee tendonitis 3+ years ago, progressed to fairly severe back pain this year. My self diagnosis was that I drop my right hip when pedaling under load, left leg pedals smooth- right leg sloppy, right knee locks back further than left when standing up straight, and left hip is higher when standing and looking in the mirror. I am a mechanical engineer, so my job consists of mostly sitting at a desk.

For the past two months I have been seeing a local chiropractor, and have made some improvements. During this time I have kept riding, but with a reduced workload and only low intensities. His diagnosis is that my right hip was twisted (can't remember internal or external), and the angle of the L5 vertebrae was too large (too much arch in lower back). Also, right hamstring is much tighter than left, but no leg length discrepancy (which I had suspected). He also did a muscle strength test, and found that my left leg was weaker in almost every direction of motion (surprising to me), and I have weak hip flexors both sides. His treatment has consisted of several adjustments and recently the prescription of a set of exercises to build strength in the weak areas and lengthen the tight muscles.

My bike is set up now according to Steve Hogg's recommendations for cleats, saddle setback/height, etc. I have two Lemond wedges stacked on each shoe thick side toward ball of foot, which has helped ease my discomfort to some degree since I used to pedal with my knees very close to the top tube. Everything else on the bike is set the same left to right currently. In the past I have tried different shims and footbeds, but none seemed to help. I am reluctant to shim either side now, since my chiropractor has showed me the X-rays which show no noticeable discrepancy.

At this point, I feel that I am making progress to even out the imbalances. The problem is that I feel worse on the bike! I'm not sure if it's a case of it must get worse to get better, and all the compensatory mechanisms must be reduced or eliminated before I can build balanced strength on the bike, I don’t know. My question comes down to this: is there anything that I can do while I receive treatment to ease the discomfort I encounter?

My exercise now is exclusively cycling and I'm time poor. Racing on Saturday, long hard ride on Sunday and heavy interval work (5 or 3 minute or 35second intervals) on a wind trainer for about 40 minutes each week night. No other health issues but cramps are bad. I take Magnesium tablets before the weekend rides and they help the cramps. Diet is excellent (except for the highly refined garbage I eat & drink when riding) and I always have lots of dairy products.