Fitness questions and answers for September 11, 2008

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Basically, after some 4 months off the bike (moving house, changing jobs), I have returned to the bike, but appear to now have significant horizontal/laternal knee 'wobble' at the top of my right leg's pedal stroke - especially at medium load at 70-95rpm. This movement looks to involve the knee moving inward towards the frame at the start of the power stroke, and outward at the top of the return stroke.

At 100rpm+ and light load there is no significant lateral knee movement - At heavy load at < 70rpm (i.e. 'lazy' climbing) there is no significant lateral knee movement - When out of saddle it is normal; the problem only occurs seated - When using the clipless pedals of an ergometer in the gym with my trainers, there is almost no lateral knee movement - in any rpm range, and from 140-270 watt outputs. My 'natural' rpm range is 95-100rpm.

This 'wobble' coincides with a near constant ache starting "in" the right knee; off the bike or otherwise; it doesn't appear to be muscular (pain/ache is constant on or off the bike, and even after 3-4 days rest). If anything, the pain is located on the outside of the knee, and slight towards the back. Sometimes the very top of my kneecap is sensitive. Sitting at work it is more noticeable, and I have to make conscious efforts to sit perfectly and not tuck my feet under my seat.

My Physiotherapist thinks there's an imbalance in my hamstrings, and I need to retrain my style to bring the knee in before starting the power stroke to eliminate the 'wobble'. He notes that I have good hip flexibility and good flexibility in the knee itself. There is no 'roughness' in the knee's normal operating range, though he was slightly concerned about the resistance to vertical rotation/flexibility of my lower leg (though range itself was fine).

This may be quite simple. The most common reason for the lateral knee movement you describe is when the rider drops the opposing hip during the pedal down stroke of that side. Picture this - left leg extends on left side pedal down stroke while at the same time the left hip drops; in other words, the entire pelvis cants down to the left on the left down stroke. This coincides with the upstroke and outward movement of the right knee. Then on the start of the left side up stroke, the left leg unloads and the pelvis rebounds to the centre line coinciding with and causing the inward movement of the right knee at the start of its down stroke.

I am a 5'9" 155lb 45 year old male CAT 4 racer who has only raced 5 times this year with "finish with the pack" results. I ride about 200+ miles/week fairly consistently mostly as group rides with slow/moderate/fast groups to vary the workouts. Most week day rides average 1.5 to 2 hours regardless of pace/terrain. Weekends are mostly solo rides of 2.5 to 3.5 hours of mixed intensity or the occasional 4 hour group ride. On the long group ride I will do 3 to 4 extended pulls (5 to 10 minutes) to up my intensity.

First a bit of history; I have been riding for ever but have increased mileage/intensity for the past 3years after finally buying a newer bike. Getting the new bike setup to where I felt most comfortable and strongest took 2 seasons. I started out with a low seat position and had gradually raised it to where it is now (on numerous occasions I had been told that my seat looked low). After raising my seat it took a week or so for my body to adjust.

I would get knee pain behind my left knee that I did not get in the lower seat position. This season I have not adjusted any positions and have been riding outside since March with improving form until August when I took some time off. Despite no bike setup changes this season I had been noticing that after the long group rides where I spent a significant amount of time in as aero a position as I could (forearms on bars or hands on hoods/forearms parallel to the road pushing a big gear at 90+ rpm) I would develop a pain behind my left knee. Normal paceline riding for me is comfortably spinning at 95 to 100 rpm on the flats. Having ultra-poor hamstring flexibility (even though I stretch before, during and after and then stretch more I cannot touch my toes), I attributed this to a both the poor flexibility and a poor cleat position. After reading an excerpt on cyclingnews fitness about knee pain/cleat position I moved my cleats back a few mm, more so on the left leg, and this has greatly alleviated that problem.

What is at issue now is on my last weekend ride that was a solo effort of 4+ hours I developed a right leg problem. The ride was 70 miles out and back. The 35 out was with the wind and mostly down hill for the 1st 15 miles and relatively flat from there. I took full advantage of this and after warming up pushed a big gear at 90 to 95rpm. Upon the return into the wind I continued to try to push the biggest gear I could stay on top of at 90 to 95 rpm while getting aero to minimize the strong headwind. After 10 miles of this my right kneecap started to hurt along with my right quad from the kneecap running to the outside of my hip. I am wondering if I have just over did it or if I have a fundamental setup issue. I wear size 42 specialized BG pro carbon shoes. I am fairly bowlegged (about 2.5 inches of open space between my knees standing straight-legged, feet together). I use 1 specialized wedge in my right shoe to compensate for the bow-leggedness (this seemed to work best after trial and error). My right knee/leg/ankle has a tendency to wander (wobble) and the knee will trend towards crossing the top tube (tore up the right knee running x-country in high school many years ago). I use Keo sprint pedals with the red arc cleats. I would consider my cleat setup a bit behind the ball of my foot. My right foot is nearly a 1/2 size longer than my left foot. I realize that there is probably not enough info here to go on but thanks for any help or suggestions you can give me.

Firstly an explanation and then I'll get to your specific problems. You mention that you are really tight in the hamstrings. Hamstring flexibility is a major determinant of seat height in an individual sense. During the pedal down stroke, the hamstrings contract in part while they extend as a whole. That places a practical limit on seat height because if the seat is too high, it is usually noted first in the hamstrings when under load, though the exact location is an individual thing. Some riders feel it more just below the glutes and others behind the knee. What I'm saying here is that instead of listening to the various 'expert's who've told you that your seat has been too low, learn to listen to your body as it is a more reliable guide. You've noticed in the past that efforts in an aero and / or stretched position make this worse. That's because the hamstrings are more heavily loaded as you lean forward and down.

Thanks for the prompt answer. I will perform the trainer observations under load to look at my hip. You answer has prompted me to give a bit more information. I do have tight right hip flexors. I have had right hip flexor tightness to the point of significant pain during running which has been made better by stretching but not eliminated. I guess the best course of action for me at this point is to find that good structural health professional. Thanks for the help.

I ride most days of the week, but because of my schedule, cannot ride more than 1.5 hours on most days at a moderate level of intensity (hilly country, with my routine rides having a total altitude gain of about 600-700'). Yet when I go on rides of more than about 2.5-3 hours, I begin punk out. I drink water and energy drinks while underway, and snack every 15 - 30 minutes or so on oatmeal and fig bars, pretzels, and bananas. So, I wonder if I need to something differently to keep from feeling as if I'm on the slide to bonking. My guides in the past are all written with men in mind. Is it a mistake to assume that following advice written for men (as in the book Serious cycling by Edmund Burke) will work for me?

I also have seen some materials suggesting that men and women handle glycogen differently, however I've also been putting men and women on very similar training plans for years, and both the men and the women have been winning medals at nationals, completing double-centuries and doing all that sort of stuff that makes you think that training is working. So, in my experience at least, training advice for men generally applies to women cyclists as well.

My son is doing the NZ Ironman in March. He last did the event on a road bike, but now has a specific triathlon bike with an aggressive aero position. I believe the early part of his training can be done on his standard road bike, particularly for hill work. He could then adapt later to the aero position. He believes all his training should be done in the aero position. Who is correct? And if he can use his road bike how should the progression to the aero position work? When and for how long should he use which bike?

How long does it take to adapt to an aero position? First I think you have to define 'aero'. Aero is typically referred to as low and bent over, but that isn't necessarily always the case. No matter what the position is, I would recommend riding the TT bike 3-4 days per week, with about 14-16 weeks of riding the TT bike as such prior to competition. Focus on riding position, head position and relaxing the hips so they are neutral and not rotated forward. You want to create a more open hip angle so you can develop power. Head position often gets neglected, and can account for quite a large percentage of overall drag. You can still develop climbing power and time trialing power on separate machines - it just takes practice and dedication to each.