Can Bib-tights place extra demands on leg muscles ?

JimmyK

I just got my 1st ever set of bib-tights, they are made by Gore. Ive always used Altura regular type cycling shorts previously. I went out on a 40 miler this evening using my Cateye light set on the bike , it was dry and the wind was negligible.

Funny thing is, my legs are quite tired . I can really feel it in my calf and thigh muscles . 40 miles, for me, aint a particularly long ride at all , as Ive never owned bib tights before, can they place any extra demands on your leg muscles that normal shorts dont. Fit wise, the Gore tights are perfect, they are a size Large and fit me like they were made for me.

What do you think concerning this tiredness in the leg muscles ?

Jimmy

softlad

JimmyK wrote:

What do you think concerning this tiredness in the leg muscles ?

I think your legs are tired and it has nothing to do with your bib tights. To be honest, I've never even heard of this being suggested before...

neeb

Did you time yourself? Were you faster than normal? Maybe you were putting more effort into it without realising it due to some subtle subconscious effect of wearing the bib tights.

JimmyK

I was just curious and thought I would ask about this . I love the Gore tights and are definitely money well spent, sure beats coming in with blue legs after wearing shorts in winter time :P

Jimmy

rockmount

Some days ... good legs, some days not :shock:

andrewgturnbull

Hi there.

If anything it would be the opposite... I wear compression tights for running, and they are supposed to increase capillary blood flow and help your muscles disperse the waste products produced by hard exercise.

Personally I think it's snake oil, but I like the tights!

Cheers, Andy

Droops

" I love the Gore tights"

I don't usually get weak legs because of tights - but stockings... :P

softlad

Droops wrote:

I don't usually get weak legs because of tights - but stockings... :P

don't you find the suspenders catch on the saddle..?

salsarider79

I have full length bib tights by Nike. They don't fit brilliantly leading me to wonder the same thing. I'd like some proper leggings, as I think they might be better to cycle in.
Am I being silly?
Anybody have recommendations on warm leggings? I'm thinking of ones that look like these:

allredfibre

All my PBs have been set without wearing tights. I know it's correlation, not causation, but I have wondered the same thing too, do tights make one slower? (Or to maintain the same speed, you'd have to ride harder, hence the sore muscles.)

My personal view is that when it is colder, you're more likely to be wearing tights, and the air is more dense so speed will be lower, or required effort higher.

andrewgturnbull

allredfibre wrote:

All my PBs have been set without wearing tights. I know it's correlation, not causation, but I have wondered the same thing too, do tights make one slower? (Or to maintain the same speed, you'd have to ride harder, hence the sore muscles.)

My personal view is that when it is colder, you're more likely to be wearing tights, and the air is more dense so speed will be lower, or required effort higher.

...or maybe you're not race-fit in the winter?

allredfibre

andrewgturnbull wrote:

...or maybe you're not race-fit in the winter?

Possibly, but here in NZ the winters are often mild enough that some days are shorts days, and some are tights days. Overall, I believe that tights days are slower.

Next winter I'll add a column to my training diary that includes what I'm wearing (and hopefully average power). That way I can do some statistics.

Blonde

Race-fit, maybe not, but your fitness does not suddenly become shite one day, when it was perfectly fine the day before - it's the weather and the cold. Staying warm by wearing good quality kit helps a lot though. Leg muscles need to be warm before you can expect them to do anything decent, and it is 'normal' to take a bit longer to warm up in winter, no matter what you're wearing! If your tight are actually constricting your movement, get some that fit better. I used to wear Ronhills (due to my budget) and I tried the women's and men's fit, but found they were both far too short in the leg and it really pulled on my knees when pedalling. I wear lady-fit assos now I can sort-of afford to and I wouldn't switch back! Your leg length as well as the proporations (calf length in relation to thigh length, as well as the width) will dictate which tights you can wear without restricting your movement and pedalling efficiency. Some tights are not cut so well behind the knees and can bunch there which also might lead to loss of efficiency.

softlad

we will all wake up tomorrow morning and find that this thread was just a dream....

Border Cyclist

I had felt the same correlation as the OP - I just wasn't brave enough to post it :?

I too think that I ride more slowly in bibtights. If it is the tights, then it must be the calf bit because I often ride with 3/4 bibs. (The alternative theory that it might be colder days that affect performance is surely more likely to be true :oops: )

geoff_ss

I think there are two effects here.

First, if you're wearing tights rather than shorts then it's probably chilly at least and I think you tend to go slower in cold weather - leg muscles not working so well and others muscles tensed slightly. Your body just doesn't work as efficiently. Plus some of your energy is being used just to keep warm.

Second, there's a reason we prefer to ride in shorts. It keeps us cooler, sure, but the main reason is freedom of movement. You just feel better when not cluttered up with loads of restrictive clothing and consequently go faster or more easily. I know I do.

I assume you're not comparing bib tights with ordinary ones. In that case I don't think there's any difference at all.

Geoff

ademort

JimmyK wrote:

I just got my 1st ever set of bib-tights, they are made by Gore. Ive always used Altura regular type cycling shorts previously. I went out on a 40 miler this evening using my Cateye light set on the bike , it was dry and the wind was negligible.

Funny thing is, my legs are quite tired . I can really feel it in my calf and thigh muscles . 40 miles, for me, aint a particularly long ride at all , as Ive never owned bib tights before, can they place any extra demands on your leg muscles that normal shorts dont. Fit wise, the Gore tights are perfect, they are a size Large and fit me like they were made for me.

What do you think concerning this tiredness in the leg muscles ?

Jimmy

I have a set of bib tights which are also waterproof/windproof and have the same problem as you. They stick to my legs and make my legs feel very heavy. They are made of a similar material to a divers suit. My other bib tights are fine and i have no problem with them. Ademort

DaSy

softlad wrote:

we will all wake up tomorrow morning and find that this thread was just a dream....

Unfortunately It's still here!

Monty Dog

There are some winter tights that due to the cut and weight of the material can feel very restrictive - particularly the ones with windstopper all down the front. Sizing is critical too - I used to have a problem with my legs completely getting stuffed at the top of big hills - i then worked out it was due to a pair of Castellis that were too tight - as the blood pumped into my muscles, they expanded, but the fabric stopped the blood flow! IME decent tights have a multi-panel construction which 'gives' in all the right places.

ademort

Monty Dog wrote:

There are some winter tights that due to the cut and weight of the material can feel very restrictive - particularly the ones with windstopper all down the front. Sizing is critical too - I used to have a problem with my legs completely getting stuffed at the top of big hills - i then worked out it was due to a pair of Castellis that were too tight - as the blood pumped into my muscles, they expanded, but the fabric stopped the blood flow! IME decent tights have a multi-panel construction which 'gives' in all the right places.

I could not agree more Monty, My bib tights were so tight that after 16Kms cycling to work i felt knackered, i had to put so much effort in, they were waterproof and i was dry underneath but a good fit and comfort is more important. Ademort

andrewgturnbull

Hi there.

You guys really should try a pair of compression tights (Skins, or 2XU etc).

I used to hate running in my ronhills, and would always strip down to my shorts for fast runs, no matter how cold the weather was. Since I got a pair of compression tights in October I've worn them for pretty much every kind of run, including track reps. I even wore them under a skin suit for a cyclocross race (it was cold...).

Cheers, Andy