So for the past few weeks I've felt pretty darned sore... just general aches, pains, lack of flexibility - some would call it getting old. I figured it was time to find somewhere that had a good reputation and hopefully knew what they were doing, which after the couple of places I tried in town, that wasn't guarenteed.
After the first visit, which to be honest was a straight sports massage, flexibility nightmare test and about as much fun as having your stem snap at 50mph on gravel roads whilst wearing no mits or helmets I was kinda surprised that upon getting off the massage table I didn't feel "wonky" anymore. I decided pretty much straight away that a second visit was in order and after an extra 15 minutes of stretching and exercise tution I was on my way. After 6 days of stretching, resting and much relaxation I was back on the table feeling like some victim of a mass UFC beating... That was two days ago. For the first time in at least a couple of decades I can actually not only touch my toes but hold them and relax during the stretch. All of my riding time has been devoted to stretching this past two weeks I feel human again. Well, kinda.
So, onto the first bike ride with my new found flexibility. A couple of minutes into the ride I was figuring the saddle was at least an inch too far forward but something else wasn't right. The discomfort I thought was caused by the shrinking beer gut was actually caused by a myriad of way to tight back and hip/pelvic muscles. I was slowly ramping up the watts and feeling much more at ease all the way upto 300watts and I'd had enough - something felt like it was either bent or not on straight. Stem, bars, seatpost all straight. Saddle pointing the exactly the right way, tilted slightly up and level from left to right - no bent rails. That was a concern as I'm pretty much at the weight limit for the saddle. Cranks not bent... cranks weren't the same distance from each chainstay. What the f#$k. I've been training for the past year on a bike that's got a bottom bracket that's out of whack by 9 mm and it took two weeks of rest, active stretching and two body pummelling massages to be able to feel it. I'll have to get a new one, but for now the Powercranks are off the bike and the FSA's are back on, which the rather splendid Phil Wood "uber bling" stainless steel outboard bottom bracket. Phil's getting a call tommorrow for a new bracket for the PC's.
The moral of this little tale - don't neglect to stretch after training and maintain flexiblity. If felt so much more comfortable and at ease on the bike tonight than I have since I started getting into silly aero positions when I was 20. I really wasn't aware that I was so stiff. The masseuse summed it up the best. I was "a lump of granite with legs." LOL
I can really recommend Psoas Bodywork in San Francisco. They have a full complement of staff, who apparently are all very good. If you figure that for me it's a 100mile round trip and a $100 charge for the hour - you can bet that Martina is well worth it.
After the first visit, which to be honest was a straight sports massage, flexibility nightmare test and about as much fun as having your stem snap at 50mph on gravel roads whilst wearing no mits or helmets I was kinda surprised that upon getting off the massage table I didn't feel "wonky" anymore. I decided pretty much straight away that a second visit was in order and after an extra 15 minutes of stretching and exercise tution I was on my way. After 6 days of stretching, resting and much relaxation I was back on the table feeling like some victim of a mass UFC beating... That was two days ago. For the first time in at least a couple of decades I can actually not only touch my toes but hold them and relax during the stretch. All of my riding time has been devoted to stretching this past two weeks I feel human again. Well, kinda.
So, onto the first bike ride with my new found flexibility. A couple of minutes into the ride I was figuring the saddle was at least an inch too far forward but something else wasn't right. The discomfort I thought was caused by the shrinking beer gut was actually caused by a myriad of way to tight back and hip/pelvic muscles. I was slowly ramping up the watts and feeling much more at ease all the way upto 300watts and I'd had enough - something felt like it was either bent or not on straight. Stem, bars, seatpost all straight. Saddle pointing the exactly the right way, tilted slightly up and level from left to right - no bent rails. That was a concern as I'm pretty much at the weight limit for the saddle. Cranks not bent... cranks weren't the same distance from each chainstay. What the f#$k. I've been training for the past year on a bike that's got a bottom bracket that's out of whack by 9 mm and it took two weeks of rest, active stretching and two body pummelling massages to be able to feel it. I'll have to get a new one, but for now the Powercranks are off the bike and the FSA's are back on, which the rather splendid Phil Wood "uber bling" stainless steel outboard bottom bracket. Phil's getting a call tommorrow for a new bracket for the PC's.
The moral of this little tale - don't neglect to stretch after training and maintain flexiblity. If felt so much more comfortable and at ease on the bike tonight than I have since I started getting into silly aero positions when I was 20. I really wasn't aware that I was so stiff. The masseuse summed it up the best. I was "a lump of granite with legs." LOL
I can really recommend Psoas Bodywork in San Francisco. They have a full complement of staff, who apparently are all very good. If you figure that for me it's a 100mile round trip and a $100 charge for the hour - you can bet that Martina is well worth it.
