How to help my tired legs

[BrewMaster]

I have been riding a lot lately (or at least what I consider a lot) and my legs can't keep up with my desire to ride more and more. My plan is to ride 5-6 days a week at least 10 miles per day in CHSP, but I can't do more than 4 days straight without wearing out my legs.

I feel soreness in my legs and at the end of a tough 12 miles yesterday I felt like I didn't have anything left in my legs. The soreness is not bad, nothing like a good workout at the gym with weights, but I still feel it. It is mostly that my legs feel weak and this leads to slow and sloppy riding, especially on climbs.

I know the whole lactic acid build up thing is going on. How can I reduce this? How can I can have more energy so I can ride every day?

A friend recommended drinking Gatorade or Cytomax while I ride instead of the water I carry in my Camelbak. He also recommended taking creatine to speed recovery. Still another friend recommend amino acid supplements.

What do you folks use? Any positive or negative stories you can relay?

Disclaimer: I will talk to my doctor before banking on any advice I get from the yahoos on STR, but advice is appreciated. You are not libel for giving bad advice to someone stupid enough to take your advice.

[ocrider]

Drink recovery drinks. They have creatine and the amino acids supplements and other stuff to make you less sore. Drinking ctomax will help you be less sore to. Gatorade won't realy help your legs.

[Von-Skipp]

How about take an extra day off and have brew or two, Brewmaster.

If one day you have a hard ride with say lots of climbing or your just going fast, have a slower recovery pace the next day.

Gatorade and Cytomax can defintely help, but probably it will effect you more on that ride for sustained energy. Lately I've been using the Camelback 'Elixir' electrolylte pills. The flavor is not strong and not too sweet. Perfect for hot days and its refreshing. I highly recommend trying these. They will disolve in water, so I usually drop in 1 or 2 in my camelback.

Creatine: I've taken it before and I never heard of it speeding up recovery. Creatine overall really no benefits for cycling, maybe sprinting....

I believe Glutamine is for muscle recovery and soreness.

After my rides I drink a MuscleMilk protein shake. My favorite flavor is Chocolate Milk and I use plain ice water to mix it.

Every big powerbar company seems to make a recovery drink, I believe Power its self has one, ClifBar, Cytomax and so on.

I would also try stretching after rides and if you have a lucky lady beg for a massage.

Knowledge of myself and ASU's Kin dept-

[denmother]

Sportlegs - Before during and after to eliminate lactic acid buildup
MotorTabs - Fluid Replacement (I put this in my Camelback)
EGel - [FONT=Arial]Electrolyte Energy Gel ( I use this if I am just carrying water in my camelback)[/FONT]
Strength/Mobility Training - I have been training with James Wilson for the last year and his program is excellent. His programs are based on mountain biking specifically. We just did a 2 week road trip to Whistler and back and I was able to ride 8 days in a row with no soreness except the callouses on my hands.

[ericfoltz]

I ride pretty much every day (150-230 miles per week). I drink gatorade while I ride and water constantly after to stay hydrated.

Most of what your looking at is just simple conditioning. Once your body is accustomed to 10 miles per day, you go up to 15. I alternate easy and hard days but generally just ride depending how I feel each day with no set plan.

I've actually found that I feel worse if I take a day off than if I just do an easy day.

[mp3]

Leg massage on off days does wonders.

[allison]

If you're just doing 10-12mi rides, you don't necessarily need to go out and spend a bunch of money on products. Feel free to go buy them if you want to, though

Definitely conditioning.. I'd probably have a problem riding 4 days in a row as well, especially with a good amount of climbing. Try taking a rest day in between as mentioned, or doing an easier/slower paced ride in between.

Also as mentioned, stretch! It'll definitely make you feel better and help your legs.

Also, it may not have anything added, but try plain old chocolate milk after your rides (either from the carton, or mix milk with chocolate syrup). They've done tests and it's pretty much the best post-workout thing you can have.

If you get up to doing 20+mi then definitely look into some products. They'll be more necessary for harder/longer rides.

[dstepper]

I go in spurts where I will ride like 10 days straight. Road trips can get brutal with mutli days riding with 6+ hours in the saddle.

It helps to take a couple of days off now and then to recover. I don't know if I am stronger, but I feel stronger after a two day break.

Dean

[Pilas]

Rest is as important as hard riding or training. Mix easy spins with with harder sessions. If you continuosly kill yourself, you'll end up over training and your fitness will deteriorate. Injuries are more likely to appear when you are doing too much volume/intensity and too little recovery.
Also, try taking a week off every 3 weeks or so. This doesn't mean completely off the bike, but reduce the volume and stick to easy rides that week.
I introduced that aproach to my training 3 years ago and I can really feel the difference. On my easy days, I go really easy, ussually on the road. That leaves me with enough energy to push it on my hard days.

[PacMan]

I have had really good success with Sportlegs. It seems to work as advertised and for the record, I was extremely skeptical when I started using it.

[Jordansrealm]

Food and Rest. Be sure to start changing up your diet and be sure to make yourself take rest days. Dont overload on products for the distance you are riding yet. Right now diet is going to be your #1 defense for sore legs. Cutting out crappy food will help you more than any sports drink or powder. Worry about that later when youre doing really tough workouts. If you ride 4 days a week and you are new to riding be sure to take a rest day on the 5th. Dont workout or anything take a full complete day off.

[Edog]

At least you're not complaining about a sore ass! Suck it up buddy

[bjammin]

Jack in the box, Beer, McD's, beer, and beer.

[genusmtbkr5]

You can ride everyday if it's not too hard of a route like with lots of climbs. For example, you can't do the Traverse course 4, 3, or even 2 days in a row without recovery time, but you can ride Aliso or Whiting 6, 7, or 8 days straight provided you're not hammering each day. Moderation is key. Hammer one day, spin or cruise the next. Also, change it up some, do other routes/trails. You'll find that you all of a sudden have energy simply because it's different. At least that's what works for me.

[OMR]

A lot of good advice here... especially about over training, which we all seem to do. There is another method that you can use as well.... one used by the pros: use a heart monitor and listen to your heart (like the song). This also gives you a great indicator of how your whole body is responding to effort. Most good heart monitors have excellent training books that come with it. You'll need to take your resting pulse first thing in the morning and train accordingly. I used a heart monitor when I was racing and it really improved my times... also found out I was constantly overtraining and that I didn't need to work as hard as I thought... I had reached a point of diminishing returns (more effort=less output). It's a great tool if you want to get stronger, faster and recover quicker.

Hint: A first, try not to use one when riding with your buds as it's harder to maintain a certain level when others force the pace.

Also, just be sure and slow down when you roar by me...

OMR

[BrewMaster]

Thanks for all of the great ideas and advice.

I seem to hit this wall of weakness about an hour into my rides so I think hydration with electrolytes might be part of the problem. I may try some Cytomax just for hydration purposes.

allison, I think you are right, I am not going to drop a bunch of money on expensive products until I get my ass in better shape. Conditioning is probably my biggest need.

I did use Icy Hot on my legs last night while I slept and this helped a lot to reduce soreness. That stuff smells like crap and keeps the wife away, so I don't like to use it.

[Fired Yo Momma]

Originally Posted by mtber3737

A lot of good advice here... especially about over training, which we all seem to do. There is another method that you can use as well.... one used by the pros: use a heart monitor and listen to your heart (like the song). This also gives you a great indicator of how your whole body is responding to effort. Most good heart monitors have excellent training books that come with it. You'll need to take your resting pulse first thing in the morning and train accordingly. I used a heart monitor when I was racing and it really improved my times... also found out I was constantly overtraining and that I didn't need to work as hard as I thought... I had reached a point of diminishing returns (more effort=less output). It's a great tool if you want to get stronger, faster and recover quicker.

Hint: A first, try not to use one when riding with your buds as it's harder to maintain a certain level when others force the pace.

Also, just be sure and slow down when you roar by me...

OMR

Enough said right here. All you have to listen to is Mr Gene. Dude has been MTBing back when they had beachcruisers . This guys is a male model (hand model) Zoolander!!! Older than most of the peeps here but why faster (just read SAR Boats rules of STR). When I am Gene's age thats when I will be fit. The way I look at it if I start now by the time I am Gene's age I will be in my prime .

[allison]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

Thanks for all of the great ideas and advice.

Something else in addition to stretching... take luke warm to cold showers after riding. Many pro's take ice bath's. Just good for the muscles.

[BrewMaster]

Originally Posted by allison

Something else in addition to stretching... take luke warm to cold showers after riding. Many pro's take ice bath's. Just good for the muscles.

Yeah, I do the cold showers after riding. I didn't know it helped muscles, but it makes sense. I do it because I am hot as hell after riding in the sun.