What does an avid cyclist do for her birthday weekend? Duh, wear her self out to the point where she can’t walk, of course.
Yay, my birthday weekend has finally arrived. What big plans might be on tap for this grand celebration? Dinner at The Wine Shop Friday night. 100 mile ride on Saturday. I get to school some co-workers on the mountain bike trails at the US Whitewater Center on Sunday morning. Then, I’m breaking out the BBQ /smoker and making a feast Sunday afternoon.
So really, I guess it’s not that much different from any other weekend. EVERY weekend is my birthday!
Friday, May 29, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
Hello, Glutes. It's Been a While.
So my position on my bike has changed. So what, right? It shouldn’t be that hard to get used to. After all, I’m still pedaling with my legs. It’s not like I’m using my arms. So why do my legs hurt so bad?
Two days ago was my first ride in the new position. It was weird. I was fighting myself. My body was shifting the whole time trying to force itself into the old position. I got worn out quick…although that could have been a result of riding with Christina. Our rides normally go something like this: we start slow, catch up on gossip and life happenings, then I hang on for dear life. She pulls me over the roads of North Carolina and I do what I can not to lose her wheel. Honestly I’m not sure what she gets out of riding with me, but she keeps inviting me along so I’ll keep going.
Anyway, the next morning my legs felt like lead. Clearly, the new position has engaged some muscles I was not using before. Namely, my upper glutes, and the upper outside quads. I’m sure there are clinical names for these muscles, but for now that’s what I’m calling them. I’m also calling them very sore. So sore that 20 minutes into my interval session yesterday, I had to get off the bike. I could not pedal anymore.
I expected to feel a few tweaks in my muscles, but this is way more than I had imagined. I’m not worried about it though. My pedal stroke feels incredible. Making circles is easier than it’s ever been. I love that. My neck was a little sore, but my shoulders were not, so that’s a step in the right direction as well.
I still have a long way to go before completing my 200 – 300 miles to get used to the new position. This is just a very early assessment. Tomorrow, I’m looking at putting a big dent in those miles. Somehow, I’ve been talked into a 100 mile ride. “Somehow.”
Two days ago was my first ride in the new position. It was weird. I was fighting myself. My body was shifting the whole time trying to force itself into the old position. I got worn out quick…although that could have been a result of riding with Christina. Our rides normally go something like this: we start slow, catch up on gossip and life happenings, then I hang on for dear life. She pulls me over the roads of North Carolina and I do what I can not to lose her wheel. Honestly I’m not sure what she gets out of riding with me, but she keeps inviting me along so I’ll keep going.
Anyway, the next morning my legs felt like lead. Clearly, the new position has engaged some muscles I was not using before. Namely, my upper glutes, and the upper outside quads. I’m sure there are clinical names for these muscles, but for now that’s what I’m calling them. I’m also calling them very sore. So sore that 20 minutes into my interval session yesterday, I had to get off the bike. I could not pedal anymore.
I expected to feel a few tweaks in my muscles, but this is way more than I had imagined. I’m not worried about it though. My pedal stroke feels incredible. Making circles is easier than it’s ever been. I love that. My neck was a little sore, but my shoulders were not, so that’s a step in the right direction as well.
I still have a long way to go before completing my 200 – 300 miles to get used to the new position. This is just a very early assessment. Tomorrow, I’m looking at putting a big dent in those miles. Somehow, I’ve been talked into a 100 mile ride. “Somehow.”
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Like A Glove
There’s been a lot of buzz lately about professional bike fittings – people paying lots of money to have someone tweak the position of their saddle or stem in an effort to maximize their power output and comfort. I was immediately skeptical. I’m pretty proficient with a hex wrench. Why can’t I just tweak it myself?
Then I happened upon this article on velonews.com. I thought I knew a good bit about bike fit until I read about Tom LeCarner’s fit session at Boulder Center for Sports Medicine. And that got me thinking - is it possible to ride a bike for several hours completely pain free? I mean, after all, it IS a bike. Not a Simmons BeautyRest. Your shoulders should hurt; your hands and feet should go numb; you should expect a lot of chafing and your butt should be sore. Right?
Apparently not. So, I decided to give it a try for myself. I asked around and found the best guy in the Charlotte area to fit me is Jim O’Brien at The Right Gear in Kannapolis. I made the appointment.
It’s hard to explain exactly what went on. He took about a million measurements across my body and asked lots of questions about my concerns. What were my concerns? Mostly, the large knots and pain in my right shoulder blade, my numb feet and the hunch in my back when I ride.
We started with new cleats (the old ones were completely worn out – one of them broken). He repositioned the cleat on my shoe so that the pedal spindle hit just behind the ball of my foot. Then I hopped on my bike and started pedaling. He watched me spin for a good 2 minutes before saying anything. Then he began asking me to assign a number to the amount of pressure I was feeling at certain areas – like my sit bones and soft tissue on the saddle. With the first adjustment, I felt a huge difference. He continued making adjustments to the saddle until I felt very little pressure on my soft tissue while in the drops. Next, we addressed the shoulders and neck.
The cockpit of the bike is where the major changes happened. I figured at the very least, I would have to buy a new stem, but Jim made it work with my current set up, which was nice, because honestly, I would have bought anything he suggested. He could have taken advantage of that, for sure, but not once did I feel like that was his intention. He took a bunch more measurements and by the time he was done he had lowered my stem by about 2 inches, but flipped it over to change the rise which brought the bars a little closer. He brought the brake levers higher up on the bars, the right one even higher up than the left. Why? It turns out my right arm is about a full centimeter shorter than my left, which means my right arm is constantly having to overreach most likely accounting for all the pain on my right side. Remarkable that I’ve been riding all this time and never knew.
I don’t really experience pain in my lower back, but I’ve noticed that I ride with a huge hunch in my back where most of my cohorts seem to have flat backs. I asked Jim about this and he mostly told me not to worry about it; that it’s likely I have poor flexibility in my hamstrings and pelvis. Increasing that flexibility will help a bit, but that I basically shouldn’t fight how God made me…unless there’s pain. But since there’s not, he told me to take a second look at Chris Horner’s position on the bike. He’s known for his curved back. That made me feel better and I will no longer fight my hunch, I will embrace it.
So, just sitting on my bike I feel better. Now I need to get out and ride a few hundred miles to see if it worked. I will report back to Jim after that time on how I feel and I will update this blog as well. But, as of right now, I’m recommending a professional bike fitting to everyone who hasn’t had it done.
Then I happened upon this article on velonews.com. I thought I knew a good bit about bike fit until I read about Tom LeCarner’s fit session at Boulder Center for Sports Medicine. And that got me thinking - is it possible to ride a bike for several hours completely pain free? I mean, after all, it IS a bike. Not a Simmons BeautyRest. Your shoulders should hurt; your hands and feet should go numb; you should expect a lot of chafing and your butt should be sore. Right?
Apparently not. So, I decided to give it a try for myself. I asked around and found the best guy in the Charlotte area to fit me is Jim O’Brien at The Right Gear in Kannapolis. I made the appointment.
It’s hard to explain exactly what went on. He took about a million measurements across my body and asked lots of questions about my concerns. What were my concerns? Mostly, the large knots and pain in my right shoulder blade, my numb feet and the hunch in my back when I ride.
We started with new cleats (the old ones were completely worn out – one of them broken). He repositioned the cleat on my shoe so that the pedal spindle hit just behind the ball of my foot. Then I hopped on my bike and started pedaling. He watched me spin for a good 2 minutes before saying anything. Then he began asking me to assign a number to the amount of pressure I was feeling at certain areas – like my sit bones and soft tissue on the saddle. With the first adjustment, I felt a huge difference. He continued making adjustments to the saddle until I felt very little pressure on my soft tissue while in the drops. Next, we addressed the shoulders and neck.
The cockpit of the bike is where the major changes happened. I figured at the very least, I would have to buy a new stem, but Jim made it work with my current set up, which was nice, because honestly, I would have bought anything he suggested. He could have taken advantage of that, for sure, but not once did I feel like that was his intention. He took a bunch more measurements and by the time he was done he had lowered my stem by about 2 inches, but flipped it over to change the rise which brought the bars a little closer. He brought the brake levers higher up on the bars, the right one even higher up than the left. Why? It turns out my right arm is about a full centimeter shorter than my left, which means my right arm is constantly having to overreach most likely accounting for all the pain on my right side. Remarkable that I’ve been riding all this time and never knew.
I don’t really experience pain in my lower back, but I’ve noticed that I ride with a huge hunch in my back where most of my cohorts seem to have flat backs. I asked Jim about this and he mostly told me not to worry about it; that it’s likely I have poor flexibility in my hamstrings and pelvis. Increasing that flexibility will help a bit, but that I basically shouldn’t fight how God made me…unless there’s pain. But since there’s not, he told me to take a second look at Chris Horner’s position on the bike. He’s known for his curved back. That made me feel better and I will no longer fight my hunch, I will embrace it.
So, just sitting on my bike I feel better. Now I need to get out and ride a few hundred miles to see if it worked. I will report back to Jim after that time on how I feel and I will update this blog as well. But, as of right now, I’m recommending a professional bike fitting to everyone who hasn’t had it done.
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