Fitness questions and answers for June 26

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 live in an area that has lots of flat open roads, and as you can imagine, roadkill is a common sight in those areas. I work in a job field that places a high level of caution when handling airborn pathogens. This caution has lead me to inquire on the concerns one should have when passing roadkill. Can pathogens be transmitted from a two day old decaying carcass to a human who inhales while passing by? As many do I'm sure, I hold my breath if I can until I've passed, but on exerting rides this isn't practical or possible. Are my concerns valid?

I was reading about allergies/EIA with interest, as it seems I have acquired EIA over the last few years, mainly in race situations, or extremely intense training situations. For instance, today I was working on 45 sec intervals, but was only able to complete 3 of them, because of the inability to breathe after each one, I think it was wearing my system down each time. I also had a mild episode during a race this past Sunday after a particularly hard counter-attack. (luckily I was able to hang on the back until I recovered once they caught me... waaah!)

Yes I do though the amount can vary compared to a road bike. A track bike is different because there is little requirement for high torque, low cadence seated pedalling ( no hills) and because of the need for quick standing starts. On a standing start, the rider is over the bottom bracket and much further forward than when seated. This means that there is a larger dead spot in the pedal stroke either side of top and bottom dead centre than than when on the seat.

I'm a 30 yo male and I've been riding a bike (road) for about 1 year now, I raced some crits (D-C grade) over the summer in Melbourne. I recently upgraded to a new bike frame and took most of the measurements across from the old bike to the new (saddle height, saddle to bar drop, saddle setback etc). I typically ride about 150-250kms a week and according to my computer, average cadence for my rides is normally around 92-97.

After another week or 2 of this irritation and searching your site quite a bit, I decided to try moving the cleat position of my left shoe slightly (about 3mm) back. I went on one quite long ride after this, however the pain seemed much more amplified. I decided not to leave the cleat in that position because of the increase in pain. I am hesitant to move the cleat further forward, as they feel quite forward at the moment according to Steve Hogg's formula for fitting them.

After the moving the cleat back to its original position, I tried moving the saddle forward slightly (about 4-5mm), but didn't adjust seat height yet. The 'test ride' in this position was only 2 days after the painful one. There was a lot less irritation there, however some discomfort still remained. I had a week off the bike, thinking it might be a good time to let any inflammation die down. Having gone for another ride in this same, seat forward position, the discomfort has returned. On the second ride, I think I noticed a tendency to have ride sometimes with a "heel down" position, even on the upstroke with my left leg, and was wondering about raising the saddle slightly to compensate.

Sorry for the long post, however I wanted to give you as much information as possible. I guess in summary, the pain is only in my left leg, it seems to be in the Achilles tendon or the knee, rarely both at the same time. My left calf does seem to be quite tight - a massage does it wonders. The pain only seems to be there when I'm riding the bike, or happen to be walking on stairs just after riding, its not apparent when walking, running, nor is there any sign of swelling, discoloration etc.

I have a question related to problems that might be caused by a rider having strabismus (crossed-eyes). In my case, I was born with severe strabismus that was corrected by surgery when I was an infant. As an adult, I do have some drift of my right eye (hypertropia or drifting up). My riding partners all comment about how I ride with my head tilted to the right. I believe this is caused by my eye condition. Here is the question: Because I ride with my head tilted to the right, can this cause neck pain? Have you ever heard of riders with this condition having neck problems? What can I do about it? Thanks.

The short answer to your question is yes - your strabismus is most likely the source of your neck pain. A very important function of our neck is to allow a level field of vision, and if your eye height is unequal, the spine will compensate through a combination of rotating and side bending to make them level. The joints in the spine have a maximum range of motion and often cyclists develop problems because their cycling alignment forces some of their cervical spine into maximum extension. To use our elbow as an analogy, straighten your elbow fully, them push it even straighter - not very comfortable, eh? This is essentially what some riders to the joints (facets) in their neck for hours on end. When we place the added stress of having to level your eyes into the equation, those joints (and ligaments, musculature, etc...) are being overwhelmed.

I am a 33 year old male who began biking in the last several months, I ride a Specialized Allez Elite bike with Look clipless pedals. I have always been a good endurance athlete with agility. I was a D-1 football player and have been a runner most of my life culminating in finishing the 2003 NY Marathon. I took up biking due to nagging IT band problems, plantar fascia problems, etc. and decided to become a biker to save my body.

Anyway, I live in Central Pennsylvania in a very hilly area of the state. I have worked up to riding 4-5 days a week, averaging 1-2 hours per ride. I decided two weeks ago to go on a 3 hour plus ride and half way through this, I began to feel a sharp pain on my left side underneath my left testicle but more towards the point where my groin comes up to my pelvis. Almost feels like hamstring even though it could also be groin. Anyway, I had to finish but was very very tight and painful and worried I was going to rip something so coasted on and off in to the end.

I am frustrated that this won't go away and am wondering if it is irritation from poor pedaling technique as I definitely feel myself putting force on the downstroke on the left side and I was Serotta Fitted on my bike by a professional in town who did note that my left leg seems to flare out when I ride which may be putting pressure on my groin/hamstring. Anyway I needed some advice on this and wondered if you had heard of anything similar in novice riders? Thanks.

My question relates to excessively high avg HR during races. This season, my form has been increasingly sporadic, one race I will be top 3 (RR) and the next RR I will get dropped (similar courses and field talent). I have looked at my HR files from the races and it appears that in all these races, even during descents, my HR fails to drop. This leaves me with an average HR over the course of 3-4 hours around 185 bpm, which is above my VT2. I have validated my HR monitor to make sure it wasn't mechanical error.

What appears is that during some races, once my HR crosses VT2, it never fails to come down. Almost like the accelerator is stuck. On a recent race, I gave one effort on a climb that lasted for around 7 minutes where my HR was 190. However, after the climb there is a freewheel descent and then just rolling flats. During this time I made sure to check my HR and even after 20 minutes my HR was still hovering at 180 even though my perceived rate of exertion was fairly low (I would say a 5 on a 10 point scale).

I am trying to pinpoint some causes to this (however difficult that may be) and wanted to see if there was any literature out that may point me in the right direction (i.e. diet, dehydration, over trained, sickness, etc.). I was diagnosed in college with exercise induced asthma but, at least initially, I don't think that this is related as I haven't had trouble breathing. I am sure this question is utterly impossible to answer, so I am more looking at a few areas that I could research. Thanks for your help. I, along with all the amateurs on this forum I am sure, really a appreciate the group's expertise and time in answering our questions.

Background: I am 34 and been racing for almost 17 years and never really had bike fit issues. Last year I crashed hard and ruined my frame. Differences in top tube and angle (73.25 to 74 degree) were handled with a different seat post and a different stem. The problem started with the cranks. I went from the old Dura-Ace low profile to the new 10 speed cranks. I found my ankle hit the crank on the 10 speed. Couple this with new Time pedals going from the old style Time Equip, I decided on a professional fitting.

For my whole life, my right foot has had a pretty pronounced pronation. I have orthotics in my street shoes. I have good flexibility from doing yoga for the last three years. My team is sponsored by a chiropractor and I have needed more than normal adjustments to my hips since the fitting. Before the fitting I only needed periodic adjustment and it was always to my right hip which mostly would get tilted up. I also needed to stretch my gluteus more than normal; I have since learned these were likely side effects from my right foot pronation that I had been riding with for all these years.

The bike fitting involved inserting some foot beds into my Sidi Genius shoes and the use of LeMond wedges. Two on the right foot to correct the pronation and two on the left side to make my knee track perfectly straight. This was a major change and I put some miles in knowing it was going to take some getting used to. I soon found myself with chronic foot pain across the top of my feet and across my ankles. I was constantly asking my wife to please twist and "crack" my feet to relive the pressure - more on my right side. I also found myself walking on the outer edge of my left foot and had numbness in my right leg. My chiropractor recommended removing the wedges since I never had foot problems before. This relived the foot pain but then my pronation returned. The foot beds seem to provide enough support to prevent my ankle from hitting the crank but I found my knee falling in (like it always has) and I suppose you are not surprised to find I had IT band issues within two rides. I also experienced pain on the underside of my right foot. I was diagnosed with a strain of my hip flexors and IT band but by the time I was able to see a PT it cleared up but the PT found my right gluteus medius and minimus are really weak - I imagine from all the years of having my right knee fall in. I am currently doing exercises to correct this. In the meantime, I am still having major problems with my bike fit on my right side.

To address your questions: I have a record of my old position - I still have my old crashed bike hanging in the basement with the old pedals. I am on a new frame but the major changes were the cranks and pedals. I thought about trying my old pedals but Time does not make them anymore so it seemed like a relative short term fix until I wore the cleats out. Thanks for the discussion on Q-factor and I agree it looks like pedals and cranks cancel each other out.

Since I wrote you, I had a fitting with my chiropractor. The results indicate I do sit square on the saddle and both my legs are equidistant from the seat post. I do not drop a hip. I assume that a leg length discrepancy would show itself through one leg being closer to the seat post then the other or not sitting square on the saddle? If not, my chiropractor will take x-rays if you thinks it prudent.

What my chiropractor did was remove the last wedge from under my right cleat and increased the size of the wedge in my right heel. The heel wedge stabilized my heel in the shoe and prevented my foot from pronating. I then raced a criterium that night (I know not the smartest thing) and everything felt awesome. My legs felt more supple and I could spin. Overnight, my knee pain was gone, my right hip felt "loose", and my foot pain was gone. The next day I went on an 140k zone 1/2 ride and everything felt even better. My right knee tracks fairly straight and my foot does not pronate and thus does not hit the crank. I have some muscle soreness but not localized quad soreness like before. It feels like I am using my hamstrings more again which likely accounts for the better spin and smoother pedaling. My right leg also no longer feels stronger.

In the opinion of my chiropractor, it is best to address the flat feet issue at the heel and not the ball of the foot. This definitely appears to be the case for me. Frankly, I am amazed at how many problems were created by some small wedges under my cleat. Given the last few days of riding I think I have resolved my issue - I will need to ride more to be sure. Also, so others may avoid the problems I have had, perhaps some discussion on wedging at the cleat or heel is warranted. I am not going to argue with success but I do not completely understand why this worked. My theory is that the wedge at the cleat created a force on the knee. As an example, just role your foot to the outside edge and you may feel a slight pull on the knee. Overtime, this problem also moved into my hips and then back. The pain in my foot was created by putting pressure down with each pedal stroke and effectively twisting the foot at the ankle ever so slightly due to the angle created by the wedge at the cleat. I suppose the use of wedges at the cleat arose since most force is transferred through the ball of the foot while pedaling but perhaps this is a false assumption since as you have pointed out in a previous article, stiff cycling shoes make the foot more comfortable. Should we be looking more to the heel to correct pronation problems? The only other solution I can think of is to wedge at my arch inside the shoe but the heel is where most orthotics do it.

This Spring I have been videoing myself on a trainer to improve my positioning and found that both knees tracked outward on the upstroke, with the right flicking inward on the downstroke, producing the heel wiggle. The video also revealed a rather violent hip and lower back rocking: the right side dropping and returning to level on each pedal stroke -- no wonder my back hurts when I hammer! From the rear I appear to sit on the saddle shifted to the right. My shorts show wear spots on both sides of crotch (meaty thighs), but the right side is forward of the left, which indicates my right hip is rotating forward, right? And while riding I find the same is true: it feels like my right sit bone is out of place, i.e. not on the meat of the saddle like the left sit bone. Since discovering this, I try scooch my right hip back to sit more squarely on the saddle, which feels weird now but I hope will become natural eventually. Or will I always sit cock-eyed? I found your left-brain-engaged-by-cycling article quite insightful.

Despite appearing to not have significant varus/valgus, in an attempt to even my knees WRT the top tube (right knee closer on downstroke), I experimented with varying LeMond Wedges left and right, plus shims for my shorter right leg. The wedges would seem to feel better immediately, but over a few rides felt less stable during harder efforts. I eventually removed the wedges and now have only 3mm of shim on right cleat, nothing on left side.

After reading your articles on rearward cleat placement WRT first metatarsal, I checked mine and moved the cleats back ~3 mm on the shoe so the first metatarsal is ~10 mm ahead of the pedal spindle with cranks level and heel level with pedal to the ground (video shows that is my actual foot position under load). My feet immediately felt more solidly connected to the pedals!! It has only been the one ride, so I hope the new cleat position proves out over time.

It is good to hear from someone with problems who has taken a thoughtful and methodical approach to diagnosing and solving them. A couple of observations: From your self description of your pedalling style, you are probably much tighter than you should be in and around the hips and lower back. Find a yoga or pilates class with a good teacher who has experience with clients with compromised low back function. Any time you put into this will be repaid with interest in improvements in how you feel and perform on a bike. Better function and symmetry off bike can only mean the same on bike. I think we need to get our structures adequately ( adequately means above average but only because the average is poor) functioning before we can even look like performing to potential on a bike.