Tired legs...

lastant
lastant Posts: 526
edited February 2010 in Commuting chat
Really noticed tiredness in my legs today and almost had my left calf cramp up along Lower Thames Street which was an odd experience having never happened before.

I've changed my bike this week and my mileage has upped quite a bit in the new year(sub 100 miles in November and December and then 400ish in January), but it's not like I'm going mental trying to beat my times every trip - was hoping to do that later!

I'm not starving myself and certainly not hungry at any point so pretty sure it's not a case of me 'bonking' (snigger) and my longest commute journey is roughly 24miles through London streets so it's not particularly hilly etc..

Going to give it a break on Saturday and Sunday rather than get out again, but was just wondering is rest the best option for 'dead' legs, or are you better off just working through it?
One Man and LEJOG : End-to-End on Two Wheels in Two Weeks (Buy the book; or Kindle it!)

Comments

  • R_T_A
    R_T_A Posts: 488
    Rest is always necessary, but you could also drop into a slightly easier gear and increase the cadence a bit as well.

    You've just quadrupled your mileage, so it'll take some time for your body to adapt. I had 3 weeks off over Christmas, and I've only just got back to the aches of doing 20 miles a day.
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  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    lastant wrote:
    Really noticed tiredness in my legs today and almost had my left calf cramp up along Lower Thames Street which was an odd experience having never happened before. ...

    Isn't cramp linked to dehydration?

    Cheers,
    W.
  • mtb-idle
    mtb-idle Posts: 2,179
    It's your body telling you to take a break. rest for a couple of days and you will feel much better.
    FCN = 4
  • Mikelyons
    Mikelyons Posts: 154
    If you were in France, you could just go to your local pharmacy & buy something for
    'Heavy legs'

    Apparently there's lots of over-the-counter remedies available.

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/f ... 779126.stm

    Probably doesn't help, but just thought i'd share ;-)

    Mike
  • benno68
    benno68 Posts: 1,689
    MTB-Idle wrote:
    It's your body telling you to take a break. rest for a couple of days and you will feel much better.

    But he's got the SCS stats to worry about!

    I've now noticed Lastant is one place ahead of me.

    Actually, yes a rest would be an idea :wink:
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  • prj45
    prj45 Posts: 2,208
    WGWarburton wrote:
    lastant wrote:
    Really noticed tiredness in my legs today and almost had my left calf cramp up along Lower Thames Street which was an odd experience having never happened before. ...

    Isn't cramp linked to dehydration?

    Cheers,
    W.

    Or lack of salts.
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  • lastant
    lastant Posts: 526
    prj45 wrote:
    WGWarburton wrote:
    Isn't cramp linked to dehydration?

    Or lack of salts.

    Hmm...I'm definitely getting liquids in, having decided I wasn't taking enough water on board for a while. Think I must be getting through four or five cups of green tea a day, a couple of cans of something (usually Pepsi Max) and then at least six pints of water.

    So perhaps it's the case that I'm getting too much - as prj45 has mentioned, maybe I need to get some more salts in if the problem persists. As I said it's only happened the once, but something to keep an eye on.

    I've been keeping the gears easier and cadence fairly high in order to get used to being on a road bike more than anything else, but not sure I could have pushed it any harder even if I wanted to! Will keep at the easier pace for the next few weeks and look to step up in March I think.

    Thanks for the replies - going to be having rest days on Saturday and Sunday...well, off the bike at least!
    One Man and LEJOG : End-to-End on Two Wheels in Two Weeks (Buy the book; or Kindle it!)
  • mtb-idle
    mtb-idle Posts: 2,179
    Tonic water is good for cramp because of the quinine in it but i stick to my original diagnosis of take 2 days off.
    FCN = 4
  • pastryboy
    pastryboy Posts: 1,385
    MTB-Idle wrote:
    It's your body telling you to take a break. rest for a couple of days and you will feel much better.

    Probably the first sign of overtaining or maybe your body is also fighting off some viruses (plenty around) so you're a little bit weaker than normal. Either way rest is all you can do.
  • fossyant
    fossyant Posts: 2,549
    Hydration.................. :?
  • snellgrove
    snellgrove Posts: 171
    Sat in the office today with the top of my right calf, or soleus cramping up from time to time.

    Drove in as well, will do tomorrow as well :roll: did have a fairly hard gym session on the bike last night though.. but drank plenty of fluids.

    Hope it's mended by the weekend :-)

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