May 30, 2019
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Enjoy Your Riding More: Training by Perceived Exertion
By Coach John Hughes
I’m enjoying spring riding in Boulder, Colorado where I live. The fields are just starting to get green and beyond them the Rockies are still snow covered. And I have time to enjoy the scenery because I’m not staring at numbers on a heart rate monitor or power meter. I listen to my body and ride by Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE). Read more.
Q&A on Wheels for Clydesdale Riders
By Jim Langley
Some of the feedback on last week’s look at a budget, super light carbon clincher wheelset from the new Chinese company, ICAN Cycling surprised me. So, this week I’m sharing the unexpected comments and responding to provide some thoughts. Read more.
Quick Tip: Spit Politely on Group Rides
Sometimes you need to expectorate and/or expel the contents of one’s nasal passages on a group ride.
That’s not a pretty picture, but it gets even uglier for the rider behind if you don’t use proper technique. Read more.
Intensity Training
To learn how best to use intensity training get the eArticle by Coach John Hughes on Intensity Training: Using Perceived Exertion, a Heart Rate Monitor or a Power Meter to Maximize Training Effectiveness. Intensity Training explains in detail the human body produces power and how to gauge your intensities. Based on your personal objectives it describes a dozen different types of workouts with examples of each type of workout. Learn more.
Is There a Lifetime Limit to Hard Efforts?
Question: Does a person have a finite number of really hard efforts in his athletic career?
I was a competitive swimmer at the age of 10, moved on to weightlifting and then began to ride. Now, in my mid 40s, I find it very difficult to work at the levels that I attained previously. It’s like my body just doesn’t want to train really hard anymore. The mind is willing but the flesh is definitely not. What do you think? — Tim S. Read more.
Are Processed Foods Making Us Fat?
by Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
A small but well-designed study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) shows how eating processed foods, compared to unprocessed foods, leads you to eat more calories per day and gain more weight (Cell Metabolism, May 16, 2019). Twenty people lived in a lab for a month and alternated between two weeks each on:
• a diet of highly processed foods, or
• a diet of unprocessed or minimally processed foods. Read more.
A Guide to Saddle Sores
by Arnie Baker, M.D.
Sores of the buttocks and groin area are a common occupational hazard for the bicycle rider. Many causes can be avoided. Specific treatment is available if saddle sores do develop. Crotchitis is dermatitis: irritation or inflammation of the crotch. Redness, itching, and pain are problems in this area. Read more.
Fausto Coppi’s Mysterious Death
By Gabe Mirkin, M.D.
Fausto Coppi was the best international cyclist in the years before and after World War II because he was the best climber, time trialer and sprinter. He won the Giro d’Italia five times (1940, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953), the Tour de France twice (1949 and 1952), and the World Championship in 1953. He was officially reported to have died from malaria, but many people believe that he was murdered in revenge for forcing an African rider off a cliff during a race. Read more.
How to Avoid Pinch Flats
By Coach Fred Matheny
Pinch flats are caused when you ride into something that causes a sharp impact — a rock, railroad track or edge of a pothole are prime culprits. The impact compresses the tire so much that the tube is pinched between it and edges of the rim. Read more.
Question of the Week
Do you ride multi-day bike rides?
More Cycling Stuff to Read
Bicycle Retailer: Future worries? Sales of Kids Bikes are Slowing
VeloNews: How Giro riders chose gears for the super steep Mortirolo
Cycling News: Taylor Phinney will ride this year’s Dirty Kanza
Bike Radar: Lazy ways to get faster as a cyclist.
End Note
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Question: Recently a friend of mine fell while biking when he hit some sand as he turned a corner. He hit the road face first, was knocked unconscious, broke his cheekbone and had numerous facial cuts. Fortunately, he is doing fine now. My question is, has there been any discussion of modifying cycling helmets to include a face guard, as I’ve seen on motorcycle helmets. Clearly, a helmet that protects the head on three sides but leaves the face unprotected has a major gap in coverage. Is the cycling industry addressing that issue at all?