The Bicycling Thread

[955i]

Guys, L-B-L this weekend should be a great Monument. Amstel Gold and Fleche-Wallone were fun to watch and probably just a foretaste of what is to come this Sunday. I like this current group of racers.

[955i]

BTW, The Tour of the Alps was also a good week long stage race this time around. Good deal for Storer.

[wildbears]

[wildbears]

The Bidonshield will be standard equipment for The Tour this year....

[955i]

I read that the idiot in Paris-Roubaix who hit Matthew Vanderpol turned himself into the police.

[wildbears]

He didn't have much choice. They got it on film.

[wildbears]

why I don't ride carbon fiber....

[955i]

About four years ago, my son-in-law convincd me to enter a cyclecross race. During warmups, his brand new Ibex carbon bike broke in a section of moderate bumps. It was about his fourth lap through this section and it was not all that tough. I even made it through there with no problem on my aluminum Bianchi.

Ibex would not honor any warranty claim. They claimed he must have "misused" the bike. I guess it's unforeseeable that a cyclecross bike might be riden through bumps. His good local bike shop in Houston got involved with Ibex and he eventually got some compensation.

[wildbears]

[955i]

Don't you just hate that when it happens?

[wildbears]

The Edgewater Training Method, Revised for Strength Training

To build leg strength in addition to endurance, work the fast twitch muscle fibers under load.

Use zone 1 (out of 3) to warm-up.

Do intervals of heavy load, fast pedaling to engage the fast twitch muscle fibers. Use a fast "chopping" motion on the down-stroke beginning at 3 o"clock.

The rapid muscle contraction under load results in hypertrophy of the fast twitch muscle fibers and increased leg strength.

Include cool down at the end of the training.

Don't push yourself beyond your limits, especially when starting. And don't do it more than 3 x/week and allow 2 or 3 days between sessions for muscle recovery and growth.

Ensure adequate protein intake within 1 or 2 hours after sessions to allow muscle recovery and growth.

The "Chopping the Pedals" training can replace leg squats in the gym with heavy weights.

The technique is named for a high level cycle-cross rider that I rode with on the Edgewater, Florida bike trail.

WARNINGS (NEW):

1. This training can stress the knee joints. Back off if there is any knee pain!!! It can also result in significant muscle soreness (DOMS). Use extra caution if you do this out-of-the-saddle and you don't ride that way regularly.

2. Heavy lifting of the handlebars on steep hills, while in the saddle, may cause the perineum to extend downward and contact the saddle. Avoid doing this in the saddle on hill climbs if symptoms of PGAD develop.

Previously Posted

The Edgewater Training Method

1. Ride in the highest gear you can on level pavement.

2. As you begin to slow/tire, stand on the pedals and do a couple of revolutions to bring your speed back up.

3. Repeat.

Note: You may have to get out of the saddle on uphill grades. Coast or spin on downhills.

WARNING: You should be on the bike a month or so before starting this. Otherwise, you can damage your knee cartilage.

[955i]

I need to do some of this. As I have aged, my endurance (even at a good pace) has not suffered. However, my so-called "sprints" and hill-climbing ability has dwindled away to almost nothing.

[wildbears]

Another carbon fiber fork failure....

[wildbears]

Should You Go Keto If You Want to Get Faster?
According to research published out of Saint Louis University, people on a low-carb keto diet had a 7 percent lower peak power output in a high-intensity cycling test than those on a high-carb diet.
Researchers believe the keto diet may impair athletic performance in anaerobic exercise, like sprinting.
https://www.bicycling.com/news/a6437...cycling-speed/

[wildbears]

[wildbears]

[wildbears]

HIIT and Weight Gain

By Duchy Coaching

We’ve noticed a trend over years of coaching: those who do too much high-intensity struggle more with weight management.

Here are some explanations as to why this might be happening:

1. Kcal Expenditure Misconception
High-intensity workouts (VO₂MAX, Zwift races etc) leave riders feeling physically drained. However, the kcal burn from these short, explosive efforts is usually much lower than longer, steady endurance rides.
Example
1hr VO₂ max workout: ~750–850 kcal
2hr endurance ride: ~1,200–1,450 kcal
The gap between *perceived* effort and *actual* energy expenditure is the issue.
As Thivel (2018) found, “Perceived exertion during high intensity workouts was 30% higher than in moderate-intensity exercise, leading to post-exercise food intake that often exceeded the kcal deficit created by the workout”.
Eg: these workouts feel like they demand more refuelling than they actually do.

2. Cognitive Depletion → Poor Impulse Control
Demanding workouts require intense mental focus which depletes executive function. This weakens impulse control, making it harder to resist calorie cravings post-exercise (Bray 2012).

3. Subconscious ‘Reward’ Trap
Hard efforts trigger a psychological “compensation effect”: the brain interprets the effort as deserving a reward- even when the workout’s actual energy cost is modest (McFarlane2017)

SOLUTION: Don’t avoid high-intensity workouts altogether-use them strategically, and fuel around them with awareness.

1.Plan your post-ride nutrition
Don’t leave the decision making until after the session when you’re depleted. Prepare a balanced post-session meal ahead of time.

2.Don’t neglect endurance
Steady rides help maintain optimal body composition- as they trigger less post-ride craving, and align better with the body’s natural appetite cues.

3.Fuel hard sessions properly!

[wildbears]

Revison Pending

[wildbears]

[wildbears]

Increase Your Power Stroke....

Increase Your Pedaling Power Stroke Effort

Pros put power into the pedals starting at the 3:00 to 3:30 o'clock position of pedal rotation while mere mortals start at 4:00 o'clock.

To increase your input, use a kicking/forward motion as your pedal approaches 3:00 o'clock.

Rather than just a downward motion beginning at 4:00 o'clock.

You may end up with sore muscles early on.

[955i]

I've seen some interesting videos about this. One issue is the old "chicken and the egg" problem. Do pros get more power this way than amateurs do when amateurs do their thing. OR, do pros have more watts to give and therefore can start their stroke a little bit higher up? I think the debate is still unsettled.

[wildbears]

Maybe training using the "kicking" pattern results in earlier power to the pedals?

If you're not used to this, take it easy early on by staying in low gears, as you are stressing cartilage and using muscles that aren't used to it.

Expect some leg DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) in the beginning.