Here we are, officially into summer and heading into some amazing riding.
There's been many, many hours on your legs and body in general, and recovery during the height of the season is as important as ever. We must always keep in mind that exercise stresses the body and provides the stimulus to make positive adaptations. However, those adaptations do not take place with out hydration, nutrition, and REST. Additionally, to keep the gains going, we must go into the next training session appropriately recovered so we are able to perform the workout effectively. Cyclists tend to be "do-ers" and sometimes have a tough time slowing down. Remember that not all recovery needs to be, or should be, active. The number one way to let your body absorb and adapt with all that great riding is SLEEP. And just RESTING is right up there on the list. Sometimes just sitting peacefully with your eyes closed for 10 minutes can be as or more beneficial than trying to squeeze in some form of active recovery like foam rolling or percussion gun work. That stuff is important, but so is just taking time out for yourself. Of course we must provide the building blocks for that rebuild, namely through enough food and plenty of water. Here's two great listens: Colby Pearce on Fasttalk: https://www.fasttalklabs.com/cycling-in-alignment/the-most-effective-recovery-strategies/ CTS Recovery Podcast: https://trainright.com/christie-aschwanden-strange-science-recovery/ And then there's the thought of the recovery ride. For the most part, I'm a proponent, especially if the athlete finds it therapeutic and maintains their weekly routine. However, it needs to be SHORT (60 minute max, typically) and EASY (think riding in your street clothes to go get a coffee or some ice cream). If you use a power meter and/or a heart rate monitor, you should be in Zone 1 for the ride, with no surges. It should be noted that there is very little scientific evidence that recovery rides actually provide any additionally recovery, but anecdotally, many find they do something positive for them and don't seem to be detrimental.. Many find this very, very hard to do and if that's you, you may be better off skipping it all together. Unless you're on a rail trail, a recovery ride on while mountain biking is typically not possible. Additionally, group rides are often not going to work. An indoor trainer or, better yet, rollers, is a great idea if you find yourself tempted to punch it periodically while outside, or if the terrain in your riding area doesn't support an easy ride. Most of all, recovery rides should not be a source of extra stress. If you find yourself short on time and/or energy, then skipping these and focusing on rest and getting to bed early will probably be much more beneficial. Here's a good listen from some of my favorites, the good folks at FastTalk: https://www.velonews.com/training/fast-talk-ep-68-the-big-picture-the-three-types-of-ride-you-should-do/ And a quick watch from the great folks at GCN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO4dkIJikPU So make sure your recovery includes SLEEP and REST, balanced nutrition with plenty of calories, steady hydration, and if you're doing a recovery ride, make sure it's truly easy. Until next time, keep on keepin' on! Coach Brian
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Here in the North East, it's starting to hot up quite a bit. If not prepared, training and riding in the heat and humidity can wreck your day and potentially days to follow. Good news is that our bodies do adapt, but you must get out there and ride in the heat to realize these adaptations.
Here are some tips that can help you as you begin riding in the heat, and even after your body has experienced some positive adaptations. 1. Drink enough fluids during the day. It is widely agreed upon that everyBODY needs a different amount of fluids per day, and many outside factors can impact this quantity. For me in the summer, I know I'm right around 6 quarts a day to make sure I'm in a good place. I use a gallon jug of water at work to be sure that I'm taking in enough water. Sometimes trying to count bottles or glasses can be misleading, and it's better for the environment to refill. As I wrote, everybody has different hydration requirements but it's widely agreed upon that athletes need more water during hotter temperatures. 2. Drink enough during training and racing. It's hot...you're going to sweat more. It's impossible to "stay ahead of it" as we often say, but you can minimize your losses. 3. Eat enough during the day and during rides. The hotter weather sometimes suppresses your appetite, so watch your intake. It's important to keep your energy levels high as you may be increasing your volume and/or intensity as the days are longer and the weather is nicer. Side note--check out this article: Lose Weight by Eating More 4. Take advantage of the neutral support in races and rides. Stop at the aid stations, top off your bottles and/or hydration pack, dose yourself with some cool water, and get some calories if the duration warrants. Just do watch your time at an aid station if you're in a competitive event. It's not a smorgasbord...go into it with a plan of what you're going to grab, grab it, and get out. 5. Stop on a training ride to refill. You can often find delis and the like that will gladly refill your bottles with another purchase. I'll often bring a little pack of drink mix with me on long rides to help with the taste of tap water. If you live in super hot areas like Flagstaff, AZ, there will be coolers of ice cold water outside of each restaurant--it's the law apparently! No matter what, carry some cash (some small shops still have a minimum purchase for credit cards) and fill up. Again, you can be efficient and not lose too much time. I've also been wearing my hydration pack more frequently on my longer rides so I can avoid stopping during these past couple of years. 6. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. This should be the case year round, of course, but the summer offers us some great treats. Watermelon is very high in potassium, one of our essential electrolytes. And the water content of most fruits and vegetables is very high and will serve your body well. 7. Keep tabs on your sodium intake. Since I mentioned electrolytes, make sure you're taking in enough of the electrolyte that is lost in the greatest quantity in our sweat: sodium. Check out this great article: Are you getting enough electrolytes? 8. Cool yourself during and after workouts. The recovery process is sped up the faster you can cool your core. It's also great for the joints and muscles. A cold shower, or a sit in a cold stream can do wonders. The stream idea can be used mid-ride, too. If you have access to a cold plunge, that's the DEAL! I've found these techniques to be VERY effective. 9. Apply lotion and sun screen. If your body's resources are being used to heal damaged skin, it's less energy that you can spend on repairing the damage done by racing and training. 10. Eat foods that agree with you. Find those trigger foods and avoid them when in the height of training and racing. Again, if your body doesn't digest well, it can't use those resources and nutrients for your cycling goals. 11. Take time for yourself. Training in general takes its toll on our bodies, and riding in challenging weather conditions can take us into even further deficit. Try to eliminate stress as much as possible and take a little time for yourself each day. Just sit and be calm, even if for just a few minutes. You can't add hours in the day, and stressing over not being able to train like you want won't change anything. 12. Keep smiling and have fun! Remember why we ultimately all do our great sport! Work hard and enjoy! Coach B.L. "It's hard to hit the ball when all you can think about is striking out." ~ Unknown If you're reading this, there's a good chance that you spend hours and hours on your bike, both inside and outside, training to reach your goals. We upload our data to Strava, Connect, and Training Peaks, looking at the metrics that are important to us. Most likely, you know your weekly volume and/or distance, and may go well beyond this with your average speed, maximum speed, elevation gain, average power, normalized power, kilojoules, average cadence, intensity factor, training stress score, variability index, and on and on.
When was the last time you sat down and trained your brain? We ride hard and purposely go out in adverse conditions and call this developing our "mental toughness." And while this is true and can help us to cope with difficult events and less than ideal environmental conditions, most of us can spend more time training one of, if not the greatest limiter: our brain. At some point, and unfortunately for most, it's at many points in our cycling career, we experience times of self doubt and mentally "cracking."
And the list goes on and on. I found a great resource to at least get you started on properly training your brain. Sports Psychology for Cyclists is a wonderful read, co-authored by Dr. Saul Miller and Peggy Maas Hill. It's not just the theory behind what is becoming more and more popular in all levels of sports these days, but techniques with drills to practice these techniques. It takes time and effort, and is perhaps not as much fun as going out and riding your bike, but the results will speak for themselves. The book has a great flow switching back and forth between the authors, with many anecdotes to help the reader see the connections. If you find this intriguing, there are also some great resources available on Youtube that are worth checking out. Here's a few for example: It's All About the Mind: The Psychology of Cycling Applied Practice in Sport PsychologyThe Psychology of Suffering - How to Handle the Pain Take your next rest day to train your brain! Cheers, Coach B.L. BJL Coaching and Cycle Craft teamed up again this winter for our seventh annual Winter Trainer Sessions. The block of ten classes is now complete and was a success. Congratulations to all who attended and chose to get in a solid mid-week workout on the dark and dreary winter nights. And a special shout out to the folks who were able to attend and complete all ten classes: Chip (been there all 7 years) Andrew Geoff Scott Kevin Cathy Tony Well done, ladies and gentlemen! Our final class was extra special this year, as we had a guest speaker, Lisa Fleming, who presented on Nutrition for Endurance Athletes after the class was complete. Lisa is a personal trainer, nutritionist, and health coach. In addition to numerous certifications and specialties Lisa has a BA in Sports Medicine and an MS in Sport and Exercise Psychology. Currently Lisa is the tier 4 manager at Equinox Summit where she leads small a team of elite personal trainers and nutritionists who focus on optimizing performance. Lisa gave us a super presentation, and was kind enough to share the slides (see below). If you are interested in learning more about this very crucial component of endurance athletes and how it can integrated into your own training, give me a shout (BJLCoaching@gmail.com), and I'll put you in touch with Lisa. Happy riding! Coach B.L. Have you set your goals for the 2016 season yet? You don't need to be a hard-core competitor to benefit from setting goals. Not everyone enjoys setting goals, and often hesitation is due to a fear of failure. Once a goal is "on paper", there it is...it's real. One might not achieve their goals. Failure to accomplish a goal does not make one a failure. By not meeting a goal, we can often learn much about ourselves. Training and racing without goals is certainly feasible, but it's a fairly sure way to make sure you'll never reach your potential. Goals help drive us, help coaches to create training plans, and give us an idea if we "did it" or not. This is a very good article on this very topic that was published in Velonews.com several years ago, and it's worth revisiting as the season really starts to get underway. A cycling coach can help you set realistic and attainable goals. However, goals certainly can be a bit of a reach. And while some folks find motivation by posting their goals on social media, goals can also be private between you and your coach. I do recommend, however, getting your family and support group on board, so they have an understanding of why you do what you do. So if you haven't set your goals yet for this year, read this article, give me a call, and let's make them a reality! Coach B.L. Set goals the SMART way to achieve real success
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Coach B.L.Coach B.L. is the head coach at BJL Coaching and an avid racer and cycling enthusiast himself. Archives
April 2024
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