Yes. It's normal; Almost after each and every hard ride. Especially when doing a lot of hard climbing...Nutrition might work. But, also quite helpful is the "Stick." It can really roll out the sore muscles in your legs.

I use the Stick, or a tennis ball or lacrosse ball to release the muscles. That's been useful but it doesn't stop them from aching. My diet's good at the moment, probably the best it's ever been, but still, I could be iron deficient as I gave up meat (exc. fish) about a year ago. I'll go talk to my doctor about it but if you have any ideas please let me know.

I'd be concerned, greatly, about why you are sore in your arms from what amounts to a few loops around the block on a bike. I would also be at the doctor's testing your blood for any deficiencies, as it makes no sense that you continue to have the heavy aching legs and yet you do some sort of physical activity nearly every day, it looks like. It honestly sounds like your body is short on something, and you are experiencing the fallout from that. However, that is just a guess, but I'd have your doc test your blood for any deficiencies (or toxicities) in metals and vitamins.

I doubt it's related, I have Raynaud's also and never had problems like that except when I was way overtrained.

Please get properly fitted for your bike. Betting that the seat isn't high enough and you are stomping on the pedals (no clipless) and the stem is too short causing you to not be fully extended. The pressure on your arms indicates that your center of gravity isn't correct and too far out from where is should be.

New riders often ride without being properly fit.
Cycling should never hurt like that.

Me too, I have Raynauds. I know that living in CA should certainly benefit you, more than someone living in a much colder climate. Its affects extremities more than legs. "When I'm done" its probable I will move out to CA, Latigo Canyon being a preference just because of my Raynauds & being able to control it better.

Ironically it's usually only an issue when the temps are cool but not cold. 50s and 60s confuse my body and the circulation in my fingers shut down but the rest of my body is fine. Colder than that I generally don't have any issues, although probably because I usually just wear gloves.

In my case, the further the temperature drops, the worsen my symptoms become. I get significant chilblain's. The only cure for me would be living in Palm Springs full time. But yeah, I have it bad but it doesn't affect my legs, just fingers, toes & possibly nose?.

Exercise helps a lot, the increased blood circulation.

Thanks for your replies. I'll keep up with my routine and post any changes. Bike fit is ok, maybe not great, but I will have that looked at before I start doing longer rides. I think I'm too stretched out at the minute, which could be what's causing the arm and shoulder pain. The solution, I'm told, would be to stretch the back and glutes and lean forward a bit more. I'll work on doing that. In the mean time I have a shorter stem I could attach. Does that sound like a good idea or would I just be referring the strain to another area?

It doesn't sound to me as if you are doing enough exercise to really wipe out your endurance like you are describing. I didn't see where you mentioned how old you are, but depending on your doctor and the protocols that your doctor is required to follow, not all relevant blood tests may have been run. Thyroid disease, for example, is supposed to be rare among men under 50 so some younger men have difficulty getting doctors to order blood tests for thyroid disease even though the symptoms would get a screening for thyroid disease moved up to the top of the list if the man was over 50. Undiagnosed Lyme disease can cause a bunch of similar symptoms also. If there's no possibility of exposure, then cross that one off. MS, as I understand, can only be positively diagnosed by MRI, and can be positively eliminated as a cause as well.

Think very hard about any other mental or physical changes that you have undergone in the last year or so. Are you more susceptible to cold? Is there anything about your memory or concentration? How about joint pain/stiffness? Susceptibility to depression can be caused by endocrine imbalances, too .Write down everything you can think if that has changed, even if you don't think it's important, and talk the list over with your doctor.

Sometimes a person can have some ailment like this and it will go away spontaneously and a cause is never found. So far, it doesn't appear as though you're that lucky. If you suspect a nutrition problem, or suspect that you might be able to fix the problem through changes in diet / supplements, talk that over with your doctor. If your doctor seems to be at a loss to help you, get another doctor. But remember, this is probably a medical condition that needs to be rectified and it could be very serious.

Just got back from my first physio session for seven weeks. It was with a new therapist as the old one had left.

This new one seems very good. She gave me deep massages on both calves and said I should do the same at home too. It was incredibly painful, one of the most painful experiences I've had, but I feel a little better for it. She couldn't believe how tight they were.. compared the muscle fibres to cheese wire I can actually feel a huge knot in there as well, must be 10-20 mm in diameter.

Anyway she said she'll be doing more deep massage at the next session, which will be in three weeks. I hope this will return to 100%.

Update:

Day after tomorrow it'll be 6 months since the pain started. I'm still very weak at the moment and unsure what the cause of the problem is.

I had my second professional massage today. It felt good at the time, but my legs still ache when I walk or climb stairs. They feel quite heavy and weak now, as if I'm just coming to the end of a long distance walk, you know, when they start feeling like lead. I'll have atleast a few more massage sessions though to see whether I regain any strength.

From what I've read, iron deficiency could also be a factor in this. I gave up meat one year ago and don't get much iron from other foods. My skin has been dry and pale and my circulation poor, and I've had a few other symptoms like fatigue. Bought some iron tablets the other day so I'll see if they make any difference.

There have been some improvements over the past few weeks though. I don't get pins and needles nearly as often now, and my calves have healed enough for me to walk properly again.


Last bike ride I did was on the 2nd of March as I've had some forearm pain, but I've made sure to walk atleast 1 mile a day when I'm not cycling. I've done a few 4 mile walks this month as well, up onto the moors. They've been quite taxing on my legs though, muscles and tendons, so I'll stay on flatter ground for the next few weeks.

Iron tablets may or may not help with iron deficiency. There's some problem with absorbing non-hemi iron, at least in some poeple. Though I would think a doctor would have caught that in any ordinary physical exam. If you gave up meat for philosophical reasons, you might try putting those beliefs aside for a bit and eat some liver. Just to see. I don't eat meat, either, and have no problem with iron, but that's me.

My doctor noticed a few things in the physical exam. The main thing he spotted was that my feet were cold and pale. They'd been like that for weeks. He diagnosed Raynauds and gave me some Nifedipine to widen the blood vessels. Still, I'd rather find out the root cause, as I haven't always had Raynauds, at least not as bad as it has been lately.

Which foods are high in Iron.. the type of Iron I may not be getting in the tablets? Cheers.

Had a professional massage today for the third week running. The legs are still weak and achy though, and I'm in my seventh month now.

I can still walk average distances though. Did a four mile walk on sunday, up onto the moors. It was tougher than it should have been, but it was great to get out and do something, and I may have been a fraction stronger than I was this time last week. It's hard to tell because progress is so slow, I just know they're not back to normal yet.

The reason I'm concerned is that it's taking so long while I'm only making small progress. I've had DOMS before, but this is different. It's not healing the same..

My massage guy said there's hundreds of things that cause these symptoms but in most cases, and this probably applies to me, the fascia between muscles sort of sticks together, meaning the muscle groups on either side have to work harder and will feel weaker.

I just think it's about time I was able to get out and do some proper rides, especially now summer's coming up

enfilade, Do you take antibiotics? Or over consume any food, such as a fruit or something high in sugar???...


Check the link below for Iron foods...

https://www.whfoods.com/nutrientstoc.php

Nice link I'll have a browse through that. I get an average amount of sugar, plenty of fresh fruits, chocolate and honey. My diet's quite good, lots of whole grains and good sources of protien, and I take several supplements. Not on antibiotics or any other medication.

You get an average amount of sugar but consume plenty of fresh fruits, chocolate and honey???... Thats sugar overdose. Fruit is pure sugar.

Its probably your downfall. My doctor associated high sugar with my Raynauds.

When I reduced excess sugar, my raynauds symptoms got much better.

Also, if you drink detox teas or teas promoting great health benefits, I'd cut them too. You could also have a thyroid issue. If you feel "spaced out" a lot of the time, I would say it was that.

Tons of sugar = No energy, with some people, your body is just going to rebel & go the other way.

Don't ever over consume any food, even foods in the Brassica oleracea family. These can bring on thyroid/fatigue issues like you wouldn't believe, over consuming.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brassica_oleracea

That's interesting 'cos recently I've been feeling completely exhausted, sometimes to the point where even socializing isn't really possible. How will too much sugar affect the body like this?

I put an average amount of sugar because it's not a great deal more than what most people have, or what I've been used to over the past few years. Although I know not to use that as a guideline or indicator that I'm getting too much.

An average day's sugar intake would be:

Breakfast:

1 teaspoon honey in porridge
2 teaspoons demerera sugar in porridge
250ml innocent smoothie (made up entirely of blended fruit)

Rest of the day:

honey sandwich
apple
orange/plum/grapefruit whichever i have
sometimes a chocolate bar or a few biscuits

Of course there's sugar in my other meals as well but they're the only really sugary foods I eat on a daily basis. Does this seem like a lot? I don't drink tea or soft drinks when I'm at home, only water. If I'm out for the night though I'll have several cokes. I'd normally drink a lager but at the moment anything alcoholic irritates my quad tendons. They get inflamed whenever the blood flow increases, so I've also been showering in warm water to reduce the inflammation a little bit.

For the next few weeks though, I'll reduce my sugar intake wherever I can. I'll start with the honey sandwiches, biscuits and chocolate and see whether that affects anything.

I'd like it if the answer was something as 'simple' as diet, but the frustrating thing is I'm unlikely to ever find out what the cause is for me. If I do start to feel better it could be because of the ice massages, iron tablets, red meat, vitamin B tablets, stretching, trigger point therapy, more exercise, better sleep, yoga, etc, etc.

This doesn't sound normal at all, and i'm not sure if normal remedies (diet/exercise) will fix it...Does your body ache even after a few days of not exercising? If so then it's not the exercising causing the "soreness" the soreness would have to be a symptom of something else. Sounds more like chronic pain than just sore muscles, maybe arthritis, fibromyalgia?...i honestly would first find the root cause of the problem before rushing into any solutions, because the solutions could make things worse or just be a waste of time...it must be frustrating but keep looking for the cause and not just hoping random things will fix it

The basics are diet (eat healthy, well balanced meals getting your recommended vitamins/calories), exercise (find the right exercise for you for now, maybe swimming), and rest (get enough sleep and relax)...and these should all help with mental well being too if that's a cause...if you don't notice improvements then keep going to the doctors...i would be hesitant to jump on any medication until they can say exactly what the problem is and you verify via google

How many calories a day do you get? Your weight seems pretty low. What has your weight been over the past 5 years, relatively the same or has it fluctuated? Any multivitamin(s)?
How are you mentally/emotionally? Any major life event happen? (death, depression, illness, kids, family,suicide, laid off, stressed, over worked, hypochondriac, etc.)(Don't have to state here, just something to think about)

Good luck and keep us posted

Consuming sugar spikes your blood sugar level and then allows it to crash because sugar has no staying power. If you eat something like candy or a chocolate bar rather than something with complex carbs, protein, or fat, you can feel more hungry and tired than you would if you opted for something like a piece of cheese and a couple whole wheat crackers.

You are consuming quite a bit of sugar ... sugar and honey on your porridge, honey sandwich, chocolate bar or cookies, coke, and sugar in your other meals ...

I've discovered that I cannot eat a honey sandwich before going out on a ride and expect to get very far down the road. If I just eat the honey sandwich (and nothing else more substantial), I will bonk about 20 km down the road. I suspect it just spikes my blood sugar too fast and has absolutely no staying power.

I've also discovered that if I drink coke when I'm off the bicycle, I get all shaky and a bit dizzy ... again, too much sugar in a rush and then a drop of blood sugar.


Go with more whole grains (complex carbs), nuts, cheese, meat and less of the simple sugars.

Cheers for the replies.
I'll make a few changes and post back soon.
Do you know any alternatives to soft drinks at a bar when I'm not drinking alcohol? I think I'll have a hard time finding something with no alcohol and little sugar. Maybe diet coke?

+1 to Machka....

Enf, your diet is terrible.

I too am mostly vegan, but I do not touch the garbage you mention eating---My gawd! You refuse to eat meat, but then you munch on cookies, candy bars, and dump sugar and honey on your porridge. What are you 5?

Read up on nutrition. Quit eating junkfood. Start eating unprocessed fruits and vegetables---eat them as they are when they get harvested, preferably raw. Also, eat some real protien. Get it from soy or beans or eat nuts until you explode, I don't care, but get some protein.

I have not read this thread in months. But, I see your condition has not improved, and may have even gotten worse. I seriously suggest changing your diet asap!

Which tells you everything you need to about what is causing your bad health, your consumptions of foods & drinks.

Honey sandwiches, biscuits, chocolate, sugar and honey on your porridge, several cokes, lager... It sounds like your addicted to sugar.

Sugar The Bitter Truth

Just a single chocolate bar could sway your health & body to rebel. Most of the sugary foods & drinks in your diet need to be eliminated???... (for exceptional health). If I consumed that much (sugar) per day, my raynauds would explode & my thyroid, skin issues would return. You must crash & burn man.

Ice massages, iron tablets, red meat, vitamin B tablets, stretching, trigger point therapy, more exercise, better sleep, yoga won't come close to curing you.

Ease up on the bar visits ... but if you go, choose water, black coffee, black tea, diet soft drinks, or 100% fruit drinks (not flavoured sugar water).

Here ... read ...
https://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-gu.../index-eng.php