Soreness.

The initial long or fast rides of the season are apt to
result in what the sports docs call delayed onset
muscle soreness (DOMS). That's the tenderness you
feel in the 24-48 hours after a strenuous ride.

What do you do about it? Pop 2 or 3 Advil or Tylenol
and hit the road again?

Bad decision! So says Ed Burke, Ph.D., in Optimal
Muscle Performance and Recovery, a book dedicated
to repairing and replenishing muscles for greater cycling
success.

Here's a passage from chapter 4, "What Causes Muscle
Soreness?" To read another excerpt and see the table
contents, click www.roadbikerider.com/omp_page.htm

Causes of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

The first thing you should know is that non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen
(Advil) and acetaminophen (Tylenol) do not work on
DOMS, and will actually interfere with muscle
recuperation.

A study published in the American Journal of Physiology
demonstrates this in a striking way. Researchers gave
24 men the recommended doses of ibuprofen,
acetaminophen or a placebo (containing no active
ingredients) on the day following a hardcore weight
workout.

They then measured muscle soreness and skeletal
muscle fractional synthesis rate (SMFSR) -- the
muscle-building response to exercise.

They found that not only did NSAIDs not help with
muscle soreness, they completely halted all SMFSR.

That is, muscles made no gains toward recovery.
While the placebo group increased its SMFSR by 76%,
there was no increase in the NSAID groups. Muscle
building was completely negated by the NSAIDs.