Category Archives: Health

To enjoy cycling you need to stay healthy, otherwise you are missing out on riding.

Marv’s post-Christmas childcare blues

 

Dear Roulers,

The baton of primary child carer has been passed to me and I’m officially in ‘daddy daycare’ mode. My main job is to transition my darling daughter into childcare.  My wife, the other member of Team MMT, has had really mixed feelings about this, after having nearly 7 months leave. Alas all of us will need to return to our employment and keep our places in the great rat race that is working in Melbourne CBD.  Happily, our daughter seems to be adjusting to the transition.  We both draw solace from knowing that she’s being cared for in a centre nearby to our respective workplaces. 

So onto cycling, MMT is still recovering from his brush with pneumonia which has really reduced my horsepower.  This has taken some of the gloss MMT’s main Christmas present.  For Christmas, MMT received an annual membership to Rapha Cycle Club from his wife.  MMT rolled up to his first ride last week.  RCC operates 2 rides during the working week.  The Thursday one leaves from Elwood’s Turtle Cafe and cruises down to Mordialloc and returns via the Nepean Highway.  I should qualify that description of the route with “I think’ as this bunch has dropped me 2 out of 2 rides, after about 10kms. It’s happening on the ramp that leads into Blackrock.  MMT just can’t seem to find the grunt to keep up with these guys.

Much of what MMT has read suggests that to become a faster, better rider you have to start riding with people are better than you. So it seems I have had my wish granted. These guys are moving much quicker than what RCC App says is the overall speed for this ride. So I’m going to  have to suck this up and get back to shedding unwanted kilos and getting my pre-Christmas conditioning back. I’m hoping that another new member will turn up one morning and challenge me for latern rouge that I seem to keep ‘winning’.  May be I’ll form up the second bunch that that the Rapha app speaks of 😉  

So onto the main topic of this blog, my new Trek Domane SLR 6 Disc.  First let me say I’m in love.  Its taken me awhile to get used to the geometry and the stopping power of the disc brakes.  Here’s a picture of MMT’s new machine.

Its soooo beautiful. My Trek Domane SLR 6 Disc

The first couple of weeks were driving MMT a bit nuts as the relaxed geometry and bike fit were creating aches and pains in places that weren’t there before.  The most significant problem being the saddle, which seemed to be creating friction and soreness in a area that MMT would rather not have it.  So after a few adjustments in seat post height and saddle position, it looks like that problem is now resolved. So happily, it looks like I have the bike and enough conditioning to take on, at least, the 65km version of the Cadel Evan’s Peoples Ride next weekend.  A weeks ago I wasn’t sure that I had either.

So in a couple of weeks time I’ll write up my experiences on that ride.  Last time I did in 2015 and it was great fun.

Until next time ride safe

Marv

What the heck does Isotonic mean anyway??

 

Dear Roulers,

On my recent Easter holiday I was laid low by a very nasty stomach bug. I’ll spare you the details, but it pretty much ruined my first trip to Kuala Lumpur. I didn’t eat any of the very nice chocolate my wife had bought until I came to Australia. I digress, back to the point of this blog, in the middle of a very average night I’m really dehydrated, I reach into the hotel minibar and find this weird drink called 100Plus.

I’m desperate, so I sip the drink slowly over the course of a few hours. It tastes bland and most importantly stays in my stomach. I look at the can and there’s some blurb about the drink being Isotonic. At the time I wondered what that meant and thought nothing of it.

About month later I’ve run out of Staminade. I’ve been buying the stuff for years as a means of having non-vile tasting liquid to drink whilst cycling.

20150518-Staminade

At this point I’m putting in a shameless plug for Staminade being made here in Australia…how rare these days…and raise a 2 finger salute to another couple of US drinks ending ‘ade’.  I buy another container at local supermarket and I notice that word again ‘isotonic’….hmmm some little gears whirl around in my head….ah ha I’ve made a connection back to that awful night in KL. So what the heck is isotonic? And why is it important.

Enter the science of the sports drink as provided by Google….
The basic theory goes like this. Being hot and dehydrated is bad. I’ll dispense with the explanation. It should be self-explanatory.  Plain water will keep you hydrated not fuel your muscles. Research has shown that body will perform better if your drink contains some carbohydrate. But it mustn’t be too much, fruit juices and sugary fizzy drinks can dehydrate as the body uses available water to dilute them and enable the carbs to be absorbed.

So much to my surprise sports drink can belong to one of three categories: Isotonic, Hypotonic and Hypertonic. Essentially these words describe how rapidly the fluid and carbs are absorbed through the stomach.

Type of Drink Description
Isotonic Drink These drinks are said to be in balance with the body’s fluid levels and empty easily from the stomach into the bloodstream. They contain somewhere in between 5 to 8 grams of carbs per 100ml. Some have sodium to assist absorption. They can be consumed at anytime while cycling.
Hypotonic Drink These drinks are absorbed by the stomach faster than Isotonic ones, but this is achieved by having low levels of carbs. They are very useful for hot conditions, where you are working up a sweat. However as a long distance cyclist you must eat something as well to keep your energy levels up.
Hypertonic Drink These drinks are the slowest to be absorbed by the stomach. They have upwards of 10 grams of carbs per 100ml. They provide plenty of energy, but can hinder hydration, as discussed earlier. They are best consumed after cycling, possibly when you are too tied to eat food.

A word of caution…drinking strong hypertonic fluids can reverse the normal process of osmosis and cause diarrhoea. Think Greg LeMond, Tour de France circa 1986. Which brings me full circle to KL and the 100plus drink in the minibar. Ta da 🙂

Until next time

Marv

Caffeine assisted cycling

banner_coffee

Dear Roulers,
I can’t imagine going for a ride without having a good coffee before and after the event. I would class myself as a functional addict, although my wife may dispute the “functional” part of that description.  Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant of the methylxanthine class of psychoactive drugs. It is the world’s most widely consumed psychoactive drug and unlike most other psychoactive drugs, it is completely legal.  The actual caffeine molecule looks the picture below.

caffeine molecule

Regardless, it’s the magical properties of caffeine, to ward off tiredness, that makes it the average office workers and cyclist’s best friend. It’s also been proven assist fat oxidation and reduce glycogen depletion. Both of which are very useful for the long distance cyclist.

The downside is that it is a diuretic and can cause dehydration. For that reason, it’s been treated suspiciously by anti-doping authorities who regard it as a masking agent for other performance enhancing drugs. Too much of the stuff results in overstimulation with anxiety and rapid heart heat. So it’s worth not overdoing it. While the UCI don’t ban the drug, the IOC still do.

I can remember Alex Watson, the Australian pentathlete, who found himself turfed out the Seoul Olympics in 1988 for imbibing way too much of the stuff and the tough battle he had to clear his name.  At present the UCI allows up to 12 micro grams of caffeine in a litre of urine. WADA has been lobbying UCI to ban caffeine, which no doubt irritate many cyclists. To get above that level, you would need to have about 6 cups of instant coffee or 10 expressos to hit that level.

So for those of you that are serious competitive cyclists, keeping an eye on your intake is a sensible approach, lest sharing the same fate at Alex Watson. Here’s a list of drinks that contains caffeine that a cyclist should be aware of:

Source Milligrams per a cup
Ground Coffee    80 – 90
Instant Coffee    60
Decaffeinated Coffee      3
Tea    40
Can of Cola    40
Caffeine Pills    100 to 200

I haven’t bothered with the energy drinks that may or may not give you wings, as I don’t consider those to be drinkable 😉

Happy coffee drinking and cycling

Marv

Cycling in the Melbourne heat

Be alert to the symptoms of heat exhaustion

The Breakaway

Being in the hot Melbournian summer means that cyclists need to be wary of heat exhaustion and stroke.

The Leadout

Eighteen months ago I had a reminder of just how easily this can happen, on the ride home from the MS Melbourne Cycle. Despite taking precautions, I was ‘cooked’ about 20 minutes from home on the return leg. It happened very quickly and ruined an otherwise very enjoyable event.

Shameless plug: you can find the MS Melbourne Cycle at: http://www.msmelbournecycle.org.au/default.asp

The Peloton

So lets start with the basics c/o St John’s First Aid -> http://www.stjohnnsw.com.au/heat-induced-conditions/w1/i1035112/

What is it?
Heat exhaustion results from a decrease in blood pressure and blood volume. This is due to the loss of fluids and electrolytes when exposed to the heat for a prolonged period of time.

How to do know you’ve got it?
As well as general fatigue, symptoms include, feeling sick, faint and heavy sweating. The skin will be flushed and hot to the touch, heart rate elevated and the rider may also complain of feeling dizzy and appear confused. I can vouch for this and general feeling of being really unwell.

What do you do about it?
Any rider displaying these symptoms should stop cycling immediately and find somewhere cool and in the shade. They should be given fluids to sip, ideally water or a sports drink, and may be cooled with a wet flannel or light spraying with cool but not cold water. They should recover within 30 minutes but, if they are still displaying symptoms after this time, contact the emergency services.

What happens if you ignore the symptoms and press on?
If the symptoms of heat exhaustion are ignored and the rider continues to push themselves, exertional heat stroke, where the body temperature rises to dangerous levels, can occur. Then some serious adverse effects may kick-in:

  • Heavy sweating will suddenly stop, the riders skin will feel cold and clammy and they may complain of feeling cold despite the heat.
  • Heart rate and breathing will be significantly increased and they may also be suffering from muscle cramps.
  • They may vomit, complain of having a headache and be confused and disorientated.
  • In severe cases, fitting and a loss of consciousness may occur.

What’s the treatment for severe heat stroke?
The priorities are to get the rider out of the sun and to contact the emergency services. While waiting for them to arrive, if conscious, the rider should be given fluids to sip and can also be cooled with a damp flannel or spraying. Avoid complete immersion in cool water and do not give any form of medication. If unconscious, place them into the recovery position.