dleccord

when lactic acid builds up and both legs are completely stiff, what should i do to get rid of it on the ride?

gregf83 

You can get rid of lactic acid by just spinning easily for 30 seconds. Whether that will cure your stiff legs is a separate question. If they are sore and cramping because you've ridden more and harder than your fitness supports you may need to rest a couple of days. There is no quick fix for damaged muscle tissue.

hamster

It takes 5-15 min of rest or very light exercise (well below the threshold) to clear lactic acid out of the muscles.

mpath

On the ride? Stop riding.

Post ride? What works for me post-ride, and post-running is a concoction of BCAA (amino acids) and glutamine. Helps with quicker recovery.

canam73

Some of you may want to do some re-reading on 'lactic acid'.

renton

Why don't you enlighten us?

rogerstg

I just drop a gear or two and keep pedaling. You'll be surprised at how quickly you'll recover and get your "second wind".

canam73

For starters, lactic acid only occurs in our body as a brief transition before lactate is formed, and it is lactate that builds up during vigorous exercise. But lactate is also converted fairly quickly as soon as you drop below your threshold and is not responsible for delayed muscle soreness.

I'll let anyone who is interested do further reading on their own.

Bacciagalupe

'kay

Lactic acid is not a caustic waste product. It's FUEL for your muscles. Physiologists have know this for years. (https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/16/he...ion/16run.html)

Taking it easy mid-ride might help. But if it does, it isn't because you're "clearing out lactic acid."

hamster

Lactate is the base of lactic acid. All acids dissociate into their bases and hydrogen ions in solution, that's one of the definitions of acid. It does not mean that they are no longer there.

It is not responsible for delayed soreness, but we are not talking about delayed soreness, which is, again, defined as something that only appears several hours after the exercise.

surgeonstone

Rest, eat, drink.

canam73

Sure. But lactic acid and or lactate are not known to cause 'stiffness' either. And for the OP and anyone else I think an improved understanding of what is actually going on may help in it's prevention. And learning these things on their own tends to be more convincing than taking some guys word for it on a forum.

Oostal

+1

To the OP, either you did not drink enough water and were dehydrated, leading to cramps, or your muscle cells were damaged. In the latter case the recovery can take days.

hamster

This seems to be a very misguided article.

Lactic acid (lactate) is one of the end-products of oxidation of glucose in partially anaerobic conditions. Buildup of lactic acid lowers the pH of the muscle, causes the burning sensation and acts as a sort of defense mechanism to prevent overexertion. Once oxygen is plentiful again, lactic acid can be used as a fuel. There's no contradiction.

Dudelsack 

There are pills that help you convert fatty acids to glucose. Take those and the problem will go right away.

Bacciagalupe

I believe you're countering a 2006 NY Times article with... a 2006 SciAm article. ("In reality, this is a natural defense mechanism for the body; it prevents permanent damage during extreme exertion by slowing the key systems needed to maintain muscle contraction.")

Here's something more recent, if you want to nerd out. Long story short, the burn isn't caused by lactate levels. It's caused by ATP making the cell turn acidic. https://www.getds.com/20110309181/Blo...-acid-the-burn

Of course, this could change again in the next 5-10 years. C'est la guerre. But the NYT article isn't ridiculously off.

abstractform20

so how many sport leg pills do i needa pop to go faster?

thump55

If you have reached the point where you can barely turn your 34-27 (or whatever your easiest gear is) on flat ground with a tailwind, and your legs are in extreme pain at all points in the stroke, and you've tried resting for 10 minutes, but it didn't help one stinkin' bit, and now you are laying on the side of the road, crying in the fetal position, holding your quads, begging for the pain to go away, not caring one bit about who may see you bawling like a baby: Then and only then have you officially hit the wall. There is nothing you can do to fix this. Not today.

If you haven't reached that point, you still have some gas left. keep going.

digitalusa

Quad musle cramps, comes and goes. If you feel the cramps starting, just lower your speed, but keep pedaling and at the same time, give some massage to the cramping zone, and it will go away, for a while... Though it will come back as soon as you encounter slightest uphills. But then you repeat the process. Just lower your speed , but keep pedaling and....... That's what I did on last weekend's solo century... I don't know how many times I did repeat that process...lol

Lexi01

7.