Fitness questions and answers for February 23, 2004

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.

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'd take a different view point to Steve on this. What matters during training is the power that you're producing and the duration that you ride for, i.e. the work done. During most rides outdoors (exceptions would include a pan-flat TT), approximately 20 to 30% of a ride (especially on hilly/rolling roads) is of a very low or zero intensity (i.e. power output tends to be very low or zero). This is caused by soft pedaling down hills, coasting, taking it easy on corners, having a short break (while coasting), etc. Thus, this time doesn't contribute to increased fitness as it's not at a high enough level to stress and cause an adaptation.

I'll mostly agree with Steve, but add a slightly different philosophical twist. He's entirely right that the body knows time and intensity, and doesn't know indoors from outdoors, as long as you have a source of moving air for your indoor sessions. One could argue that indoor training is more efficient in the sense that one doesn't coast down-hill, stop for cross-traffic, or wait for a buddy to change a flat. For riders who live near San Francisco, as I do, where nearly every ride is hilly and encounters at least some interference from traffic, a two hour outdoor ride might include 100 minutes of quality work, so a steady 1:40 on the trainer could be argued to be as effective as two hours outdoors.

I am a 35 year old male enthusiast, currently riding up to 300kms per week. I'm approximately 180cm tall, & weigh 85kgs. For some time I have been suffering from recurring saddle rash, but because I've increased my kms & ride frequency, it has become almost impossible to ride any more than 2 days consecutively, (at best), without staying off the bike for a further 2 days to allow the rash to settle enough to place my butt back on the seat for a relatively pain free ride. I've recently upgraded my seat to a "Selle Italia 3 spot gel", & purchased new nicks, on the advice of many "Experts", to no avail. Being summer in Australia also suggests training in high temperatures. What other things should I consider in this quest for relative normality?

Low carb diets are not suitable for more serious endurance athletes. You are correct that one must consume starchy carbohydrate to sustain extensive endurance training. I like to think of starchy carbohydrate as fuel. If you don't tank up before a long drive, you won't finish the trip. If you don't tank up after a long drive, you can't go anywhere the next day. If you tank up even though you haven't driven, the fuel ends up in a puddle around your waist.

I have a quick little question for you. I am a 19 year old Cat 3 who has been racing for 3 years now. From the start, I have had a little extra fat around my gut, and inside my quads that I'd like to get rid of. Based on the measurements of a Tanita scale, my body fat percentage is around 9%. I ride around 250-350 miles a week during the season. Off season I do at least 12 hours of activity, be it ride outside, ride the rollers/trainer, play raquetball, yoga. I'd really like to get ride of this last bit of lagging pudge, and increase my strength to weight ratio. I'd appreciate any insight.

I am a male, thirty-eight years of age and like to refer to myself as an intermediate road cyclist/racer. I have become aware of a problem that occurred during my last three 100km races, so I need a little help on this one. I start the race off in good spirit, drink regularly (every 10 minutes) my CHO drink and stay comfortably with the leading bunch (my start group anyway). After roughly one hour I start to tank up by chewing a third to half of a TVM energy bar. Now this is where the problem starts. Like clockwork, I 'bonk' within a period of five minutes after eating. My legs become dead weight and needless to say, can't stay with the bunch anymore. Sometimes I'm lucky and energy comes back closer to the end of the race, other times I'm 'keep going' mode the rest of the race. I am not diabetic, but I feel this is somehow related to blood sugar levels or such. I am seeing a dietician to sort out this problem but with no luck so far.