Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

I am just a casual rider and do it just for fun and the enjoyment at the moment. Every time I seem to go out on a ride which os around every second day I seem to get very heavy legs at the start of the ride for the first 5KM or so and sometimes can last even longer the 5KM. I have tried to slow down at the start of the ride to make in in effect a 5kM or so 'warm up' in sence, but that has not worked at all. After it goes away it just feels normal untill I hit a rise in the road!!
Is this normal and or ahve any ideas of how to help this.
Rye

Perseverance, more km - It takes time but you will become "bike fit"

Initially half is Physical - the other half is Mental

It only gets better from there ...

Hmm Based on your pic I feel your legs may be very restricted And not being able to sit down must be a real killer

puffdaddy wrote:Hmm Based on your pic I feel your legs may be very restricted And not being able to sit down must be a real killer

i go fast though - that funell really does help

While I have very little medical knowledge, a heavy feeling in the legs at the start of exercise and one that does disappear during exercise, is likely associated with an impaired venous return blood flow to the legs and a build up of lactic acid and other waste products as a result.

Because of my age and other medical problems, I have experienced the same type of effect. The solution I have found was to wear long compression tights for at least four hours prior to bike riding, and have also found that wearing them while riding improves my leg stamina.
In fact if I do decide to go for an early morning ride I wear them all night prior to riding.

The other thing to also check out ASAP is blood sugar, as a low level diabetic problem may cause the same type of symptoms.

Tom

greyhoundtom wrote:While I have very little medical knowledge, a heavy feeling in the legs at the start of exercise and one that does disappear during exercise, is likely associated with <snip> a build up of lactic acid and other waste products as a result.

That's a myth. While an increased concentration of blood lactate may be associated with such sensations of fatigue, it is a correlation, not a causation. The real reasons are actually not very well understood by exercise physiologists

For most, heavy legs is simply a sign of general fatigue, which may or may not be deisreable depending on what you are doing training wise or perhaps inadequate recovery or fuelling (as you mentioned).

I know that at times I can experience "heavy legs" in the early stages of a ride. For me it can take up to 45-mins before they come good and I am cranking out the power without those sensations. But heavy legs are not usually associated with a drop in power output, it's just a sensation. I can also get it in a warm up before racing but as soon as the race starts they're usually good to go.

But if legs are heavy and power is down, then that's a level of fatigue that requires rest and recovery. Time to shut down and go home.

Alex Simmons/RST wrote: But if legs are heavy and power is down, then that's a level of fatigue that requires rest and recovery. Time to HTFU and lift the watts.

I've had to have some HTFU bars during a MIET or two myself.

Ant. wrote:

Alex Simmons/RST wrote: But if legs are heavy and power is down, then that's a level of fatigue that requires rest and recovery. Time to HTFU and lift the watts.

I've had to have some HTFU bars during a MIET or two myself.

HTFU is a given.

Alex Simmons/RST wrote:

greyhoundtom wrote:While I have very little medical knowledge, a heavy feeling in the legs at the start of exercise and one that does disappear during exercise, is likely associated with <snip> a build up of lactic acid and other waste products as a result.

That's a myth. While an increased concentration of blood lactate may be associated with such sensations of fatigue, it is a correlation, not a causation. The real reasons are actually not very well understood by exercise physiologists

For most, heavy legs is simply a sign of general fatigue, which may or may not be deisreable depending on what you are doing training wise or perhaps inadequate recovery or fuelling (as you mentioned).

I know that at times I can experience "heavy legs" in the early stages of a ride. For me it can take up to 45-mins before they come good and I am cranking out the power without those sensations. But heavy legs are not usually associated with a drop in power output, it's just a sensation. I can also get it in a warm up before racing but as soon as the race starts they're usually good to go.

But if legs are heavy and power is down, then that's a level of fatigue that requires rest and recovery. Time to shut down and go home.

yeah it is not every ride... i find that itonly happens on shorter rides like aorund the 1 hour or 45 minute rides. when i go on longer rides i dont get it...?

I had this problem until I attached helium balloons to my legs. Now they feel better. I would start with removing the cone first though - you are probably not in a very ergonomical position.

Anyway, if you got the helium route be sure not to use too many, otherwise you may end up like this Brazilian priest

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/ne ... 087193.ece

But the helium balloons would add extra resistance on the downstroke...

I have expereinced this sensation when out riding early mornings, usually when it is cold. It seems no matter how hard I go (no pun intended ) that my legs still feel like dead weights. It might take 10k's before my legs start to feel good again.

Yeah, I get this almost every weekend when I go for longer rides. Only differences I know of between weekends and weekdays in terms of this is that I generally don't ride on a Friday so that I am well rested for the Saturday ride AND I bath before the ride on weekends - long, hot bath. Err, yes I do shower during the week, but after the ride at the office I mean a REALLY hot bath, and thought that may drain some of my energy?

Often feel that I won't have enough strength to go on, but after 2-3Kms I feel better and continue for another 100+kms.

Having said that, the "almost every" is not quite correct as I'm only getting back into riding now after taking the easy way out and staying in bed for the first part of winter.