help legs on fire

muddy216

hello all,

after returning to cycling from a long lay off (10years) i am struggling to get over the leg burning. after a 5minute warm up i can feel the burning starting to come on. withing ten minutes i am off the bike and streching to get rid of the sensation this contiunally is happening on any sort of ride and is getting to the point where its really not enjoyable to go out. so far i have tried everything i can read up on and im hoping that some one else may be able to put forward a suggestion here is a list of the things i have tried.

1) had bike setup fully checked out and all adjustments have been made.
2) eating and drinking before a ride and also not eating and drinking before a ride.
3) deep heat rub in the legs before ride.
4) staying on the flat as much as possible.
5)upping the cadence to near on a 100 rpm this works for a while but very quicly knackers me out i am using thisto work on me fitness to hopefully get over this but the legs allways start on any sort of incline and im not talking anything hill like more mole hill.

first of all im very unfit and i am over weight which is the main reason for taking up the cycling in the first place. my bike is a specialized enduro comp (full suspension for those that dont know the model) i know that i am to expect some form of problems with my fitness and i fully expected this but the feeling i get in my legs after such a short space of time is very fast taking away any pleasure i have in riding. Even though this problem persist i am still looking forward to going out on the bike up unitll i get ten minutes into the ride and feel like my legs are going to burst also as the week progresses the burning sensation comes on faster to the point where sometimes its immeadiate. i have been to the doctors for suggestions and he says that he cant find a medical reason why this should be.

Please help with any suggestions or tips and tricks

muddy

ollie51

Ride slower, the feeling you seem to be describing is that of lactic acid; in essence you're working too hard.

muddy216

thanks ollie i am also sure its a latic acid problem are there any good methods of reduing it so i can get through what should be an easy cycle as to going slower i am trying this as in cycle speed but keeping the cadence quite high.

muddy

ollie51

this'll sound strange but you have to go slower to get faster. You're at that stage unfortunately, the burning will only stop if you work aerobically, just keep the cadence around 80 don't concentrate on it too much though, you'll stop enjoying it. Just pace yourself, but not so slow you're not feeling the affects of exercise (increase hr, breathing rate sweating etc.)

muddy216

cheers ollie ill have a go and see what happens im out again tomorow so ill put it into practice

cheers muddy

clodhoppa74

been reading a lot about rest days as well. you say 'as the week progresses' which leads me to think you're on the bike pretty much every day? if that's the case i'd do one day on, two days off, resting, giving your muscles time to recover and 'heal'.

it's working for me, and i'm in the same boat as you, pretty much.

richrock

I've just got to the point after two weeks of riding where I'm starting to feel better in my legs/lungs... I'm an unfit, overweight rider (commuting for economy, plus love being on the bike )

My experiences may not be similar to yours, but I'll note what's happened to me:

I thought I could go fast. But found I was coughing loads after every ride. I learned to listen to my body, to ride with the pedals spinning at a rate that kept me slightly breathless. I think to term is 'breathy conversation' - try talking to yourself and you'll see.

Once I did this, the legs got slowly better (took about a week) and found I was getting faster. If you've got some way of tracking time over distance, you'll notice this. I've gone from 12mph avg to 14-15mph avg just by learning to pedal right. Yesterday I did a 16-17 mile ride and got home fresh enough to get in the shower, rather than just collapse when I got in the door. You will find your stamina increases over time, just increase it slowly.

I could easily (and will do) another ride like yesterdays. But I do make sure of the odd rest day.

Above all, just enjoy being on the bike!

richrock

Forgot to say:

You would need to factor in the bike you're riding, and the terrain. As you're riding an MTB, has it got chunky treads, or smaller ones? What paths/tracks/roads are you riding - all these will affect a mountain bike more than a road bike. I rode my Hardrock on roads and it was bloomin' hard work I tell you! It was easier off-road and I had to accept that I was going slower, and had to push more because of rolling resistance.

HTH

muddy216

hi guys and thanks for the replys. yes i am on the bike as much as possible probably most days when i can but even when i miss a couple of days the legs still burn. went out today and rode slower which helped to some extent slower speed higher cadence seemed to do the trick on the flat but still had the burn on the incline as to be expected. gradually i seem to be able to push that bit further before i have to stretch me thighs out so hopefully im on the way to solving this ill keep youinformed of whats happening.

pretty sure that the main reason for this is lack of fitness.

cheers muddy

blablablacksheep

pretty sure that the main reason for this is lack of fitness.

then that the issue, only you know how fit you are.

try doing weight circuits which will increase the time it takes before the latic comes on and legs start to burn.