Fitness questions and answers for March 7, 2005

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 have had a fit for correct riding position on my bike, but I would like a second opinion.
Firstly, I am 55 and took up recreational riding seven years ago. I ride between 50-200kms a week, depending on the time of the year and what ride I am preparing for. I am 165 cm and weigh 82 kg and have a lower back problem (work related many years ago) which restricts my flexibility. When I was fitted, I was told to replace my cranks from 172.5 to 170 and replace my 90 mm stem to an 80 mm stem at a height from the centre of the front wheel to handle bars of 60 cm. I have replaced these parts. The other recommendation was that I get a new seat post that will put my seat back 50 mm behind the bottom bracket which will give me an angle of 72 degrees instead of the 74 degrees that I have now. I have stayed with my old seat post and with my lack of flexibility I still find it painful to stay on my hoods for long periods and only ever get to my drops if I am rolling downhill. I am considering fitting a 50 mm stem hoping that might solve the problem - would you be able to share your thoughts?
Also, I have Shimano Ultegra components of 1999 vintage. In 2001 Shimano brought out 5 mm and 10 mm wedges that fitted the STI levers to help people like myself and also females that have small hands and cannot reach effectively the brake levers when on the drops of the handlebars. I do not want to buy new levers at $450 for the sake of two wedges that would cost $20. I have noticed on your web site that you have wedges for different pedals for people with different leg lengths. Do you, or do you know of anyone who has a solution to the Shimano pre 2001 STI problem.

As difficult as it was, I took several weeks off, but the pain returned with minimal effort on the bike. I took several more weeks off and did some of my own research on the internet, deciding that my problems were due in part to flat arches, for which I was already using Sole and Superfeet footbeds in all my shoes (I've had problems with plantar faciitis for years, which is part of the reason I cycle instead of run).

I replaced my pedals and shoes to improve sole stiffness and the size of the contact platform (switched from Time Attack MB pedals and 3yo shoes to Kewin pedals and Sidi Genius 4 shoes), and put two LeMond LeWedges under each pedal cleat to cant my feet out slightly. I was also professionally fitted by two different 'experts' who each recommended moving my seat back slightly, but otherwise thought my position was very good.

Are the orthotics used in cycling shoes to treat flat arches different in design than those used for walking and running shoes? If so, in what way? Where can I find a person experienced in treating this kind of injury/problem (especially in the Seattle area, where I am moving in a week)? Do you have any more advice? I'm willing to do just about anything to get back to a situation where I can ride HARD - I can't imagine having to give up my bike! Thanks in advance for your advice and help.

I'm a 51-year old male who rides a lot but no longer races, although I do like to ride quite hard in group rides, etc. I now have access to an indoor trainer with a power meter attached, and would like to use that to check periodically on my fitness level as measured by power output (watts). Can you please tell me what in your opinion(s) would be a reasonable level of power output for a person like me? I'm 176.5cm tall and weigh in a range of 75kg-80kg depending on what month it is. Many thanks.

I have been following the forums on Cyclingnews for about a year now and cannot believe how many people are writing in about knee pain - especially aching in medial cartilage, and other inflammatory conditions. None of the experts on the site have mentioned the absolutely crucial dietary factor. No doubt bicycle positioning etc is critical but my experience and many people whom I have shared it with has shown that diet, especially fatty acids, is critical in a lot of non-obvious ways.

My background is as a highly competitive athlete for the past 27 years (I am 36 now) starting out wrestling, then rowing, then, since I was 19, in mountain bike racing and now road racing. I am currently an occasional competitor due to time constraints. Professionally I am a scientist in the area of environmental toxicology and have spent the last seven years studying nutrition from a cellular point of view as a hobby (versus) medical. I have come to a number of conclusions based on my research and personal experience. I was told nearly nine years ago that I had cartilage damage under my knee caps that would prevent me from cycling without extreme pain unless I had surgery. This was confirmed by three of Australia's top physiotherapists and Brisbane's supposedly best knee surgeon. No one even suggested that diet might have an impact. I quit cycling as I couldn't afford the surgery at the time.
A number of years later I came across some research (sorry can't specifically remember the source) about the role of Omega 3/ Omega 6 Fatty acid balance on inflammation and the extreme cellular toxicity of trans fats. To cut along story short I cut trans-fats from my diet completely and boosted Omega 3 through supplementation, as well as taking a comprehensive organic multivitamin, multimineral, phytofactor supplement. I began consuming 11 to 15 grams of high quality protein every 2-3 hours along with an attempt at a well balanced diet. The result has been astounding. I have NO knee pain for the first time since I was 18 and now have eliminated the joint aches and pains that I have always assumed was normal for a high performance athlete. I can go out on a 140 km weekend ride through the hills around Brisbane, easily keeping pace with riders who train twice as hard and twice much as I do and I am the one who finishes the ride feeling good. This has all happened, I believe, through paying close attention to nutrition, especially the fatty acid balance and high doses of anti-oxidants. I am extremely passionate about this and wonder why the 'mainstream' professionals are not putting much more emphasis on the role of fatty acid balance in the diet for athletes, especially for joint health? Any comments/replies on this would be appreciated, and I hope you post this for the benefit of other thirty-somethings who have been told they need surgery, and may not.

I had been using a stem that was way too long and as a result got a terrible pain on the left of my spine at the back of my neck (above where the trap meets the neck). It kept me off the bike for weeks and I couldn't turn my head at all. I bought the Kit Laughlin book you suggested this week and we'll see how we go. Now here's the thing - when I turn my head from side to side I hear a crackling noise in my ears. Obviously it's not audible to anyone else and I would describe it as the noise a crisp packet makes. This is due to the neck problem and I've never heard of a similar symptom in your fitness column. It's still giving me a fair bit of discomfort, any ideas?

G'day Andy, My apologies for the delay in replying but I had to ask a friend in the neck business about the source of your 'neck noise'. He says that it is likely to be one of two things, or a combination of both. Both posit a stiff neck and upper back. If this is you, the first reason is possible micro tears of associated musculature as you turn your neck and the second is noise from the joint surfaces of the facet joints of the cervical vertebrae if they are compressed and tight. Re the Kit Laughlin book; given your condition which one did you buy? You would probably be better served by ' Overcome Neck and Back Pain' than by ' Stretching and Flexibility' for the moment at least. If you can free up your upper back and neck then the noise should diminish or disappear.

I am a 31-year-old, 5'10", 163lb, Category 1 racer. Recently I developed pain at the top and under the kneecap of my left knee. As I pedal, I can feel the kneecap "bumping" over the top of something. This happened a few years ago to my right knee and I seem to remember the term 'chondromalacia' being used. I was told by the doc that my quadriceps were out of balance and to do leg extensions with limited range. This worked, but now the problem is back on the other knee

I would like to add a few comments to Steve Hoggs' comments about Saddle Chaffing. I am an ultra-endurance racer who has done several 24 hour mtb races. High end shorts do not necessarily equate to less chaffing. I've tried many of the more expensive brands/models only to settle on the mid-level from Voler & Pearl Izumi because they were affordable and fit well. I do use ample amounts of Bag Balm, which seems to last longer than many of the other products for chaffing. It's much greasier, but that is what makes it work. I would also suggest trying other saddles which are more narrow than your current one. Some riders seem to think a bigger saddle is better for endurance, but the larger saddle creates unnecessary contact area with your skin. This can cause chaffing on the inner thigh. Lastly don't shave the area that gets rubbed. Shaving causes tiny cuts on the skin, so that the area is already irritated before you even ride.