Bike Forums - Please Help

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I'm 69,have been riding 5, years riding around 150 miles a week, I have a little over 30,000 miles on my road bike. Two hours before a ride I drink an Ensure+ Protein 13g,Carbs 50g,eat a Cliff Bar Protein 9g,Carbs 42g, I try to drink water all during the day and the morning before a ride. I will usually drink 24oz of Skratch during the first half of the ride. Todays ride was 44miles I had an average HR of 123BPM,Max HR 170 BPM this includes a rest stop have way thru the ride. I ride very hard working I guess close to an all out effort. The problem I have every ride is I have very severe burn in my Quadriceps the greatest burn is when I'm doing my share of pulling. I have to really talk myself into riding at a fast pace. After a short rest stop and then when I get my legs warmed up after the half way point I'm a different person. I can push until my legs just don't have any more strength no burning, stop pedaling for a few seconds and I'm ready to go again. By the end of the second half of the ride I can completely drain my legs, with little burn nothing like the burn I have the first half. Please anyone and everyone give me your thoughts on what I'm doin wrong, no mater how crazy I will listen.

Well you're 69! - you warming up, post ride stretching all that? I'll be 50 in a month and I sure can't blast out of the door without warming up like I use to when I was 25. I also use a foam roller before every ride and usually after and if I forget it feels like I have no legs for first :15 minutes. I also like to stretch and roll the legs before bed, especially on nights before a ride, seems to help.

Yep, at 67, I experience the exact same thing, burn in the quads, etc.. In fact, I try to ride in to what I think are going to be spirited rides so I can get warmed up in advance. Same as you, a short rest after 8 miles or so and I'm good to go. The rest of the ride, the legs feel great.

I was hooping for a quick fix. I ride three miles at a very slow pace 14 or so then start the main ride starting off at a slower pace then building up to 20 to 23. If my burn only lasted 15 minutes it would be great but they burn for the first hour or 25 miles

It may be than some people warm up very slowly compared to others. Something like that seems to be true of myself. Even back in the days I did considerable hiking and backpacking. I'd be wearing a parka for the first half hour while my hiking partners taking off extra layers within 10 minutes. On the bike it is similar. I'm asthmatic and get short of breadth very easily in the beginning. As the ride progresses I begin to feel better and can then pick up the pace. I've noticed that pros frequently use a trainer to warm up before competition. Perhaps you just need to spend more time warming up.

What about cadence? I always use a computer with cadence, so I know that I'm spinning and not mashing. I'm now 65 and probably rode 75,000 miles before my knees wore out in 2010, at age 57. I quit cycling and did other things for 8 years, but decided to try cycling again, after two knee replacments. My average speed has dropped about 2 mph, from what I could do 8 years ago. It's hard to find any flat roads where I ride. They are all either up hill enough to slow my pace by several mph, or downhill. I ride some extreme hills where I can hit 50 mph on the descent and climb as slow as 6-8 mph. On slight downhills, I keep my cadence at 90-110, and coast past that cadence in top gear. On the climbs, I try to stay in the 65-80 rpm range. Anything slower than that, means you should get out of the saddle or put lower gears on the bike. I use a compact crank and a 12-32 11 speed cassette, that allows me the choice to stand or sit on any hill I encounter. FWIW, at age 53, I rode the 28 mile race route from Idaho Springs to top of Mt. Evans in 2:35, which would usually get you in the top 10 of the 50+ age group, on race day. The fastest riders in that age group usually finish 10-20 minutes faster than I ever did. Although you ride to 14,000 foot elevation, that average slope is only around 4%. I never rode that route after age 53, because the average speed on my regular training route was always slower in subsequent years. I'd never beat my previous best time.

Past Results - Bob Cook Memorial Mount Evans Hill Climb

If you're not mashing a low cadence, then you're probably just working beyond your ability. Since I'm trying to get back in shape after so many years off, I take two rest days after every ride, rather than riding every other day, like I used to. I'm also not hammering it too hard, but I have increased my endurance to handle 40 mile rides on some challenging terrain. I used to ride 50-60 mile routes that include 10-15 miles of mountain climbing, but most mountain roads in Colorado are not as steep as the hills I now ride. My main goal now is just to stay in descent shape for my age.

Go harder during your warm up. like 5 min @ threshold like a pre 20 min power test warmup

I get the burn in the glute. I'm 66. And yes, all it takes is putting my feet on the ground for a few minutes, and off I go. Standing and coasting on the pedals does nothing. And, much as I dislike it, the occasional rest day does wonders.

Yes, harder warmup. I've found a couple of full throttle 90 second efforts helpful. I'm another older rider who warms up slowly. It takes me a good hour to warm up. OTOH, I don't get a quad burn. My legs just very gradually don''t work anymore. That takes more than a couple hundred miles though. Good note on using lower gears. If I'm going long distance, I gear down and spin the hills, definitely not popping over them.

However I think you're talking about group rides, so except for cadence, this advice is all useless. And on cadence, on a group ride, best to spin the same cadence as the riders who are in front of you. Sometimes our group rides go right up a hard, competitive hill within a mile of the start. Just have to suck it up.

Physical fixes: besides cadence, use your whole leg. Pedal circles, which doesn't mean pull up in the back. Push forward at the top, try not to push down, pull back at the bottom, mostly unweight the up pedal, but don't pull up. Try to be conscious of not particularly pushing down. Relax your ankles. Relax the muscles which aren't working. On a too-hard ride, your hams should cramp about the same time as your quads. Which sucks but it's better than the alternative. So if your quads hurt, pedal with your hams. When your hams hurt, switch back to your quads.

Chemical fixes: I think what's going on is that it takes some time for your blood vessels to open up and carry away the waste products. You can speed that up a bit with supplements: 1g. sodium nitrate + 3g citrulline malate + 1g beta alanine - every day, whether you ride or not.

Thanks for all the info, I did quad stretches and rolls on the quads(rolling on the quads hurt like crazy) In the morning I will do a much harder warm up doing, I will check on the supplements ,Carbonfiberboy where did you get you supplements

If it matters, I am 69, race road and track and had 10 race days this season. We are all different so a one size fits all answer typically does not work. I always prefer a slow warmup with ever increasing force and then some efforts to match what efforts are planned for that day. Hence preparing the bodies systems of ATP-PC, glycolytic and aerobic. However, that can be done in 20 minutes plus minus.

I suggest being careful of what “feels” good. Many times my legs do not feel great but they are ready. The problem is that if one keeps warming up until they feel perfect, one may pick up a lot of fatigue that will be detrimental to the planned activity. Warmup is NOT an effort!!!!

So try going harder on your ride to start of the group ride and see if it helps. I suspect it is conditioning. You need more juice in your legs. Sorry. More threshold and VO2 solo work. Also, do not play the age card. It will not do you any good and it gives your brain an excuse for non performance. When my legs feel bad, I tell my brain that is the way they are supposed to feel. Get over it. Jens V just tells his to shut up.

The good news for you is that they feel better over time and you have power at the end or at least you think you do. The entire group may be slowing down or the wind / terrain has changed.

Also, I never feel compelled to do “my fair share” of a pull. If my legs are not great, I take a couple of pedal strokes and rotate out. There is no money or anything else handed out at the end of a group ride to the valedictorian of the group ride. Having said that, I suggest challenging yourself since that is one of the reasons you are on the ride.

My opinion is that you lack 5 minute power. Work on that between group rides and I suspect you will feel a lot better at the start and finish. Good luck.