Road Bike Racing - Sore Hamstrings - Race Sunday - advice needed!

Should I at least get on the bike Saturday and sit in or not ride at all. I got a little crazy the Saturday before and my hammies are still a little sore from those intervals. A friend advised me to take 2 Alieve in the morning and another 2 in the evening until the race. Also - i sit at a desk all day - should get a heat pad to sit on and keep the blood flowing - because my legs feel really good when sitting in a hot bath. Any advice will help me - Thanks!

BTW - it's a 100 mile road race - The Rouge Robaix!

you want to get out the Saturday before. At least an hour or so. Easy spin with 2 or 3 15 to 30 second hard intervals to open up your legs. Other than that, take it easy and rest.

* Don't sit all day. Stretch them a bit. Get a massage. Spin on a trainer or outside on some flats (>100rpms). Eat and sleep to recover. Stay really well hydrated. Do take something for the pain but don't rely on it.

* This what I do and have done, so take it with a grain of salt.

I'd sit with my legs propped up somehow, legs straight. Stretch the hamstrings a bit, put some tension on them. I found it helps keep them loose when they recover. I have very tight hamstrings so even a little more flex is noticeable. At my old office I'd just recruit an extra chair and put my feet up. Since shoes weren't a requirement it wasn't a big deal. Not sure how formal your office is or how dangerous/dirty the floor is there (i.e. if you work in a metal shop I wouldn't shed my shoes too quickly).

Keep your hamstrings really warm, it helps recovery if you have good blood flow. Heat pad or whatever.

Eat protein. Drink fluids to flush out waste.

Spin on the bike. If you're doing a 100 mile race, you can probably go a couple hours easy and not kill yourself. Getting warmed up and loose and all that will help your legs feel a lot better. Dress warmly, esp your legs.

Take some anti inflamatory (Advil? Tylenol? I dunno, don't take them very often).

A very good MD told me to elevate injured limbs so blood flows away from them. This helps speed recovery as waste and old blood doesn't tend to stay pooled in your limbs. Your hamstrings are injured in a sense so this advice should apply. Since your legs are normally lower than not, keeping them as high as possible would be good.

I've done all of the above. I found the best thing for recovery was to get older. Seems now I can ride much harder and longer (3-4 hours) and still be good the next day. 20 years ago I was dead to the world for 2-3 days after one hard day. Can't explain it.

Good luck with the race. Jeepers, 100 miles.
cdr

Ice is your friend.

I wish they had a 100 mile race like that up here. Sound very interesting.

1. get large bag of ice
2. fill bathtub approx 7-8 inches of cold water
3. empty ice in tub
4 get in tub for 10 minutes ( it will seem like 10 hours)
5. legs will be ready for sunday

edit: the sooner you can do this the better. you may want to wear a sweatshirt in tub too for warmth.

make sure you stretch out those creamy hamstrings.

http://www.thestagcompany.com/Flash/soundboard/old-man.jpg

you want to get out the Saturday before. At least an hour or so. Easy spin with 2 or 3 15 to 30 second hard intervals to open up your legs. Other than that, take it easy and rest.

+1.

I'd make today a rest day, or a very easy recovery ride, then do a little work tomorow.

1. get large bag of ice
2. fill bathtub approx 7-8 inches of cold water
3. empty ice in tub
4 get in tub for 10 minutes ( it will seem like 10 hours)
5. legs will be ready for sunday

edit: the sooner you can do this the better. you may want to wear a sweatshirt in tub too for warmth.

hm whats the science behind this?

when i've done it, the legs don't freeze, but they numb a lot. when they thaw they're considerably fresher. I guess cyclists have done it for along time. I got the idea from article on Andy Roddick who does it after every match. Soaking in ice water for 10 minutes is a lot harder than it sounds, esp. for couple minutes as the boys freak out.

hm whats the science behind this?

You've never heard of RICE before?

http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/rehab/a/rice.htm

The ice bath is just a version of "I".

Another therapeutic protocol called "Contrast baths" alternates the use of hot and cold water:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contrast_bath_therapy

Should I at least get on the bike Saturday and sit in or not ride at all. I got a little crazy the Saturday before and my hammies are still a little sore from those intervals. A friend advised me to take 2 Alieve in the morning and another 2 in the evening until the race. Also - i sit at a desk all day - should get a heat pad to sit on and keep the blood flowing - because my legs feel really good when sitting in a hot bath. Any advice will help me - Thanks!

BTW - it's a 100 mile road race - The Rouge Robaix!

ride today, ride tomorrow.

How do you hurt hamstrings in cycling? Isn't that a runners issue?
My guess, you'll be just fine on race day, thanks to the chill pill you'll take right now.
Best of luck.

+1 on the ice bath. The pool at my apartment complex is still cold enough for me to hop in after rides. I chill for 10 minutes with my chocolate milk. Usually helps more the sooner after your activity however. I'd follow all of this advice and get 9-10 hours of sleep both nights

DO NOT take Aleve, Ibu, Aspirin, or any other NSAID. They have been shown to hamper recovery... which IMO is the last thing you need when recovering from intervals before a 100 mile race.

Do the ice bath, and know that even if you're sore, you can still ride at a very high level (I've done it many times).

hmmm - freezing ice water; what about the boyz, aren't they gonna freeze as well???

How do you hurt hamstrings in cycling? Isn't that a runners issue?
My guess, you'll be just fine on race day, thanks to the chill pill you'll take right now.
Best of luck.

I was going to ask the exact same question.

What in the world are you doing that allows you to hurt your hamstrings?

hmmm - freezing ice water; what about the boyz, aren't they gonna freeze as well???

stick your head in first.

hmmm - freezing ice water; what about the boyz, aren't they gonna freeze as well???

LOL! You could try the pcad sock trick or perhaps botto's embrocation with baby oil on top of the embrocation. :eek:

I was going to ask the exact same question.

What in the world are you doing that allows you to hurt your hamstrings?

Last Saturday, 3 of us were attacking the fast recreational group very chance we got. This was the first time this season where I was really dropping the hammer while bent over in an aero position. That's the only thing I can think of that may have injured me. While trying to maintain an aero position - your hammies are a bit more "stretched" in this position.

Last Saturday, 3 of us were attacking the fast recreational group very chance we got. This was the first time this season where I was really dropping the hammer while bent over in an aero position. That's the only thing I can think of that may have injured me. While trying to maintain an aero position - your hammies are a bit more "stretched" in this position.

Time to drop that saddle, then.