By Arnie Baker M.D. The priorities for nutrition for aerobic endurance exercise—long rides, runs, walks, or triathlons—are water, calories, and sodium. For events under an hour, no special nutrition may be needed. For most events over an hour, concern yourself mainly with fluids and calories. For long-distance events that last most of a day or longer, sodium must also be … [Read more...] about DIY Maltodextrin Nutrition
1Training & Health
How Often Should You Lift Weights?
By Gabe Mirkin, M.D. You can become very strong and grow large muscles just by lifting a single set of 6 to 12 repetitions of a weight that is 75 percent of your maximum, three times a week (Sports Med, Apr 2020;50(4):751-765). You need to lift a weight heavy enough to damage muscle fibers to make a muscle bigger and stronger, but causing more damage than that increases your … [Read more...] about How Often Should You Lift Weights?
Vehicular Cycling: 23 Tips for Safer Cycling
By Coach John Hughes Several years ago a man was descending from the foothills in Boulder, CO with his wife. Several pedestrians hit the button to flash warning lights signaling they were about to use the crosswalk to cross the road. Vehicles — including bikes — are required to stop. The wife did, husband didn't. He hit a pedestrian, who suffered minor injuries, but the man … [Read more...] about Vehicular Cycling: 23 Tips for Safer Cycling
Cycling Training Zones for RPE, HR and Power May Differ on the Trainer
By Coach John Hughes The key to training effectively is riding at different intensities depending on the purpose of the workout. Your intensity shouldn’t be the same if you are training for endurance or for power or for speed or doing an active recovery ride. This applies whether you’re riding outdoors or on the trainer. To train at different intensities you need a way … [Read more...] about Cycling Training Zones for RPE, HR and Power May Differ on the Trainer
Quick Tip: What To Do When Your Wheel Goes Off the Pavement’s Edge
Get back on the pavement after dropping your wheels off the edge. You may not want to put yourself in this risky predicament for the sake of practice. But if you remember this tip, you can do the right thing when the time comes. … [Read more...] about Quick Tip: What To Do When Your Wheel Goes Off the Pavement’s Edge
Energy Sources at Different Exercise Intensities, Explained
By Arnie Baker, M.D. Energy for exercising muscle comes from carbohydrate, fat, and protein. Carbohydrate may come from blood sugar (from the liver by way of stored glycogen or metabolized amino acids or from the intestine by the absorption of carbohydrate) or from glycogen stores in muscle. Typically, athletes with normal stores have about 2,000 carbohydrate calories … [Read more...] about Energy Sources at Different Exercise Intensities, Explained
Quick Tip: Brake Early When Rims Are Wet
Has this happened to you? It starts raining, and the next time you come to a stop sign your brakes don't work. You roll through the intersection and thank your lucky stars no cars were coming. Rim brakes and water don't mix. When the rims and brake pads get wet, almost zero bike- stopping friction is created no matter how hard you squeeze the levers. At least for the … [Read more...] about Quick Tip: Brake Early When Rims Are Wet
Recovery Nutrition for Cyclists
By Coach John Hughes Arnie Baker, M.D. wrote a good column on Cycling Nutrition: How to Eat After Rides. I’ve coached at camps with Dr. Baker and have several of his books. His key points are: Refueling after exercise is a proven recovery strategy.The sooner the better. Refueling during exercise is best.Prompt refueling benefits both endurance and strength … [Read more...] about Recovery Nutrition for Cyclists
Can Intense Exercise Increase Your Risk for a Heart Attack?
By Gabe Mirkin, M.D. The American Heart Association has cautioned that, “Exercise, particularly when performed by unfit individuals, can acutely increase the risk of sudden cardiac death and acute myocardial infarction in susceptible people” (Circulation, Feb 26, 2020). The authors cite more than 300 scientific articles showing that exercising excessively long and intensely … [Read more...] about Can Intense Exercise Increase Your Risk for a Heart Attack?
Quick Tip: Pedal Like a Pro
Conventional wisdom says that a smooth pedal stroke makes you faster. But we've seen studies arguing that it's the other way around: Fitness contributes to a smooth pedal stroke. The fitter and faster you become, the easier it is to pedal smoothly at a given intensity. … [Read more...] about Quick Tip: Pedal Like a Pro
Quick Tip: Shift Into a Harder Gear to Smooth Out Rough Roads
You'll see the pros do this on cobblestone sections in events such as Paris-Roubaix. Let's say you're cruising along in a 53x19-tooth gear. Spinning and grinning. But uh-oh, here comes a gnarly stretch of bumpy, patched pavement. … [Read more...] about Quick Tip: Shift Into a Harder Gear to Smooth Out Rough Roads
How to Eat and Drink Safely Riding with a Group
Have you ever been in a fast group on a long ride? You can get so focused on sticking with the paceline that you're too busy, or too nervous, to eat and drink. That's a real problem because soon you're bonked, dehydrated and struggling to maintain the pace. It's dangerous, too, because a tired rider is a squirrelly rider. … [Read more...] about How to Eat and Drink Safely Riding with a Group
Sweat Mineral Losses and Antioxidants
By Arnie Baker, M.D. Sweat Mineral Losses Minerals are lost in sweat. Prolonged exercise, especially in the heat, has the potential to create mineral deficiencies. Is during-exercise replacement necessary? To answer this question we need to know: Is the amount of mineral lost in sweat significant? Are daily intakes typically greater than possible sweat losses? Are … [Read more...] about Sweat Mineral Losses and Antioxidants
Ride, Eat, Enjoy
By Coach John Hughes Ever hit the wall? Then you understand the title of this column! In last week’s newsletter there was an excellent column Cycling Nutrition: How to Eat during Rides by Arnie Baker, MD. I’ve coached at camps with Dr. Baker and have several of his books. His key points are: … [Read more...] about Ride, Eat, Enjoy
The Placebo Effect and Supplements
By Gabe Mirkin, M.D. Fifty-two percent of North Americans spend $41 billion a year on over-the-counter food supplements. A review of 277 clinical trials on 992,129 participants, using 24 different supplements, found that nutritional supplements were not associated with increased lifespan or prevention of heart disease (Ann Intern Med, July 8, 2019;171(3):216-217). … [Read more...] about The Placebo Effect and Supplements