Pain and methods to over ride it

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Comments

  • Herbsman
    Herbsman Posts: 2,029
    Pedal even harder than you do now :wink:

    The best advice I've been given is this: "When you have to ride really hard, first start to grin, then, as the suffering reaches the edge of your tolerance, turn the grin into a full-blown overenthusiastic madman-type smile. Ear to ear. Keep concentrating on that smile and start to pretend that what you're doing is a really sexy manouvre. The more it hurts, the more sexy you are. This is cycling intercourse, there is no pain, only pleasure. You are giving the bike ecstacy. Keep those pedals turning until your sexy calf muscles start oozing fluid. In reality it is merely sweat, but push reality aside for a minute while each pedal revolution one by one turns you into the sexiest man in the world. You are becoming a sex god. Make love to the bicycle in a way that only a sex god knows how."
    CAPTAIN BUCKFAST'S CYCLING TIPS - GUARANTEED TO WORK! 1 OUT OF 10 RACING CYCLISTS AGREE!
  • pcb24
    pcb24 Posts: 98
    Can't believe this hasn't been said: pain is weakness leaving the body!
    Cervelo S2
    Langster for the winter
  • Herbsman wrote:
    Pedal even harder than you do now :wink:

    The best advice I've been given is this: "When you have to ride really hard, first start to grin, then, as the suffering reaches the edge of your tolerance, turn the grin into a full-blown overenthusiastic madman-type smile. Ear to ear. Keep concentrating on that smile and start to pretend that what you're doing is a really sexy manouvre. The more it hurts, the more sexy you are. This is cycling intercourse, there is no pain, only pleasure. You are giving the bike ecstacy. Keep those pedals turning until your sexy calf muscles start oozing fluid. In reality it is merely sweat, but push reality aside for a minute while each pedal revolution one by one turns you into the sexiest man in the world. You are becoming a sex god. Make love to the bicycle in a way that only a sex god knows how."

    I`ll have that one instead of your murdering thing :lol:
  • GiantMike
    GiantMike Posts: 3,139
    pcb24 wrote:
    Can't believe this hasn't been said: pain is weakness leaving the body!

    No it isn't. No matter how strong you get you can still push yourself hard enough to feel pain, you just perform better when you feel the pain. If you stop feeling pain it's because you're too weak to endure it and you have stopped trying as hard.
  • pcb24
    pcb24 Posts: 98
    GiantMike wrote:
    pcb24 wrote:
    Can't believe this hasn't been said: pain is weakness leaving the body!

    No it isn't. No matter how strong you get you can still push yourself hard enough to feel pain, you just perform better when you feel the pain. If you stop feeling pain it's because you're too weak to endure it and you have stopped trying as hard.

    GiantMike - I think you took that quote a bit too literally, with a slight misunderstanding.
    Cervelo S2
    Langster for the winter
  • GiantMike
    GiantMike Posts: 3,139
    pcb24 wrote:
    GiantMike wrote:
    pcb24 wrote:
    Can't believe this hasn't been said: pain is weakness leaving the body!

    No it isn't. No matter how strong you get you can still push yourself hard enough to feel pain, you just perform better when you feel the pain. If you stop feeling pain it's because you're too weak to endure it and you have stopped trying as hard.

    GiantMike - I think you took that quote a bit too literally, with a slight misunderstanding.

    No I didn't. People (not you by the sounds of it) regularly quote this as some kind of training mantra without understanding it.
  • ju5t1n
    ju5t1n Posts: 2,028
    Pigtail wrote:
    I don't know if I lack imagination, have a high pain threshold, or just don't 'read' my own body very well, but I don't find riding my bike painful. Much of the time I think I can pretty much empty my head of everything and just keep going.
    Do you win a lot of races?
  • TakeTurns
    TakeTurns Posts: 1,075
    Pigtail wrote:
    I don't know if I lack imagination, have a high pain threshold, or just don't 'read' my own body very well, but I don't find riding my bike painful. Much of the time I think I can pretty much empty my head of everything and just keep going.

    Hi Lance.
  • mattshrops
    mattshrops Posts: 1,134
    Pigtail wrote:
    I don't know if I lack imagination, have a high pain threshold, or just don't 'read' my own body very well, but I don't find riding my bike painful. Much of the time I think I can pretty much empty my head of everything and just keep going.


    Pigtail doing a Z4 session.....http://youtu.be/dhtB11GAUX0 :D
    Death or Glory- Just another Story
  • liter
    liter Posts: 58
    Training should not be painful. Save it for the racing.
  • GiantMike
    GiantMike Posts: 3,139
    liter wrote:
    Training should not be painful. Save it for the racing.

    Training should induce sufficient physical stress to get the body to adapt. This may involve 'pain' (actually more like lactic acid build-up and discomfort from high demand activity). I'm not sure I agree with your 'easy training' mentality.
  • I thought it was train hard a race easy
  • Pigtail
    Pigtail Posts: 424
    GiantMike wrote:
    liter wrote:
    Training should not be painful. Save it for the racing.

    Training should induce sufficient physical stress to get the body to adapt. This may involve 'pain' (actually more like lactic acid build-up and discomfort from high demand activity). I'm not sure I agree with your 'easy training' mentality.

    That's to some extent the point I was trying to make. It's not really pain is it?

    I've worked hard and spent a couple of weeks straight with aching legs, noticeable every time I took a step.

    I've also had broken bones - thankfully not for some time- that were real 'pain.'

    There's just no comparison between the two.
  • GiantMike
    GiantMike Posts: 3,139
    Pigtail wrote:
    GiantMike wrote:
    liter wrote:
    Training should not be painful. Save it for the racing.

    Training should induce sufficient physical stress to get the body to adapt. This may involve 'pain' (actually more like lactic acid build-up and discomfort from high demand activity). I'm not sure I agree with your 'easy training' mentality.

    That's to some extent the point I was trying to make. It's not really pain is it?

    I've worked hard and spent a couple of weeks straight with aching legs, noticeable every time I took a step.

    I've also had broken bones - thankfully not for some time- that were real 'pain.'

    There's just no comparison between the two.

    In which case I'm not sure I agree with your 'painful racing' mentality :wink:
  • springtide9
    springtide9 Posts: 1,731
    I thought it was train hard a race easy

    Agree with the above.

    Although only done a few races, adrenaline carries you though these and never think about this during racing.

    Distraction seems key. I find, in order of effective distraction:

    - Racing
    - Road Riding
    - Turbo

    So the turbo seems worst for pain vs power and racing is the least invasive.

    But distraction is key... think about anything else rather than concentrating on the pain.

    There is a great scene in the film/book:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touching_the_Void_(film)
    Where in pops 'Brown Girl in the Ring' into his head, and he can't get rid of it.. but it was all about blocking out pain.
    Simon
  • liter
    liter Posts: 58
    GiantMike wrote:
    liter wrote:
    Training should not be painful. Save it for the racing.

    Training should induce sufficient physical stress to get the body to adapt. This may involve 'pain' (actually more like lactic acid build-up and discomfort from high demand activity). I'm not sure I agree with your 'easy training' mentality.

    Not painful doesn't have to mean 'easy'. There are plenty of adaptations induced by consistent regular training at a level which is not painful but makes you 'pleasantly tired' (Arthur Lydiard). Training should be enjoyable long term. If it's painful you will ultimately not do enough of it to cause the adaptations.

    Pushing the pain barrier in training uses up a lot of mental energy, as evident in this thread. And when it comes to racing you need to be mentally fresh to push yourself to your limits.

    'Train don't strain' (Lydiard again)