February 20, 2020
PDF version for Premium Members is here.
4 Things To Do to Prevent Upper Body Fatigue / Pain
By Coach John Hughes
RBR reader John Meiers writes, “Being fairly new to road cycling (couple of years) and starting late in life at 65 I am finding my wrists are turning out to be a weak spot in cycling. Have my road bicycle on a rear wheel trainer indoors for the winter. Is there any information about making my wrists stronger?” Read more.
Tips for Using CO2 Cartridges Correctly
By Jim Langley
Not long ago, when we were discussing frame pumps and CO2 cartridges, John Marsh shared this ride story with me. Perhaps something similar has happened to you: “I was with a buddy recently who seemed to have never used his CO2 system before (or I guess it had been so long he had totally forgotten how). Read more.
Sponsor: Susie’s Smart Breakfast Cookie
If you aren’t eating two servings of fish every week, you might not be getting enough Omega 3 in your diet. According to WebMD, “Not only does your body need these fatty acids to function, but also they deliver some big health benefits.” Each Susie’s Smart Breakfast Cookie provides 2 grams of Omega 3s from sources including walnuts, flaxseed and canola in the form of a delicious cookie that comes in flavors including Orange, Cranberry Nut, Gingered Apple, Banana Coconut and Cocoa. Use one to fuel up on a ride, or as a breakfast replacement. Learn more about the Breakfast Cookies here.
Read what RBR Premium Member Randy Birch had to say about them here. Or read Sheri’s review of the cookies on our site.
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Nutrition Tips During Rides
By Arnie Baker, MD
Consider for a moment a typical American workday: You work three hours in the morning, have a 15-minute coffee break, take 30 to 60 minutes for lunch, and work for four hours in the afternoon, with another 15-minute break. You consume 500 calories for breakfast and 1,000 calories during lunch and work breaks. You drink many glasses of water, coffee, or other fluids.
Doesn’t it make sense that when you are exercising, you need even more calories and water? Of course! —Yet so many of us train or race until we drop without drinking enough and fueling our bodies. Read more.
Phunkshun Wear Neck Gaiter and Hoodieclava Review
By Sheri Rosenbaum
I don’t think there’s a more versatile piece of clothing than a neck gaiter. They are great for keeping you warm and controlling your body temperature when biking, hiking, skiing or even out running errands. Wear it at the beginning of a cold ride and as the temperature warms up or you do, simply slide it off your face or take it off. It packs down to nothing and easily fits in a jersey pocket or saddle bag. Read more.
All Exercisers Can Gain Health Benefits from Elite Training Methods
The training principles that improve performance in competitive athletes can be used by all exercisers, even those who have never exercised previously, and can help to prevent heart attacks and prolong lives. Read more.
Quick Tip: Easily Organize Group Rides with Ride Alert App
Looking for some new riding friends? Or maybe a better way to organize your group rides that doesn’t involve dozens of group texts, emails or Facebook messages?
Try out the entirely free Ride Alert app on your phone. Once you install it and connect it to your Strava account, you can look and see which rides are planned near you, or plan your own and post it for others to find. Read more.
Full Circle: Recollections of a Bicycle Ride Through the New York Finger Lakes Region on a Memorial Day
By William C. Fischer
Today, I bicycled fifty-six miles with my friend. We have been biking and skiing together for over fourteen years. I’m fifty-four, he is fifty-one. We have seen our children grow up, our marriages grow full, and our bellies grow large – that is why we started to bike. We have shared success and failure. We have enjoyed thrills, suffered pain, and experienced terror together. Read more.
Preventing and Treating Pain in Cycling’s Pressure Points
Butt, Hands, Feet, by Coach John Hughes, describes in detail the general factors that can cause discomfort / pain in cycling’s pressure points. Learn the specific factors that can cause butt pain or painful hands or hot feet and specifically how to prevent problems in each of these pressure points. If you unfortunately suffer from one of these, Coach John Hughes also describes what to do to alleviate the pain.
Question of the Week
How do you organize group rides?
Other Cool Stuff to Read
VeloNews: How drug anti-diversion techniques can be used to curb doping
Outside: Why Most Endurance Elites Don’t Endorse CBD (Yet)
ISPO: Extreme Cyclist Jonas Deichmann: “I Live on the Bike”
DutchNews.nl: Over 21,000 cyclists fined for using their phones on their bike
CTS Blog: Can Training in Extreme Cold Permanently Hurt Your Lungs?
End Notes
It’s just a little longer than a month until the start of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show, or NAHBS. It starts March 20 in Dallas, Texas, so it’s local for me. I’m looking forward to checking out all the cool bike stuff. Hope you’ll be there too.
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