Speed (or lack thereof), fitness, and blood flow

[Simon Brooke]

I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I'm recovering from a
second serious deep vein thrombosis, about four weeks ago. Some aspects
of this are frustrating and depressing...

When I cycle my power output is immensely variable and I haven't worked
out what's going wrong. On Saturday I went out and did 45 miles with a
friend, and we made very reasonable speed, averaging 16mph and with
sustained periods above 20mph on the flat. On Tuesday I went out to
time trial, and cycling out to the start I was struggling to sustain
14mph. During the time trial itself I managed 20mph average to the
turn, and 18mph over the full ten miles, and coming home I felt fine
and was able maintain 18mph. And today I cycled into town (16 miles)
and was again struggling to maintain 14mph.

I wouldn't be surprised, given my condition and the fact that the blood
flow out of my left leg is badly restricted, if my power was down
consistently, but I don't understand why it's so up and down - why some
days I've got quite good performance and other days it's just ****. It
may be related to mood swings - I've been really struggling not to get
too depressed over this. But if anyone has any suggestions for why my
performance is varying, and what I could do about it, I'd be really
grateful.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; It appears that /dev/null is a conforming XSL processor.

 

[Clive George]

"Simon Brooke" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> I wouldn't be surprised, given my condition and the fact that the blood
> flow out of my left leg is badly restricted, if my power was down
> consistently, but I don't understand why it's so up and down - why some
> days I've got quite good performance and other days it's just ****. It
> may be related to mood swings - I've been really struggling not to get
> too depressed over this. But if anyone has any suggestions for why my
> performance is varying, and what I could do about it, I'd be really
> grateful.

Isn't it just normal? I notice good days and bad days too. I mostly blame
the weather though

cheers,
clive

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

Simon Brooke <[email protected]>typed


> I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I'm recovering from a
> second serious deep vein thrombosis, about four weeks ago. Some aspects
> of this are frustrating and depressing...

> When I cycle my power output is immensely variable and I haven't worked
> out what's going wrong. On Saturday I went out and did 45 miles with a
> friend, and we made very reasonable speed, averaging 16mph and with
> sustained periods above 20mph on the flat. On Tuesday I went out to
> time trial, and cycling out to the start I was struggling to sustain
> 14mph. During the time trial itself I managed 20mph average to the
> turn, and 18mph over the full ten miles, and coming home I felt fine
> and was able maintain 18mph. And today I cycled into town (16 miles)
> and was again struggling to maintain 14mph.

> I wouldn't be surprised, given my condition and the fact that the blood
> flow out of my left leg is badly restricted, if my power was down
> consistently, but I don't understand why it's so up and down - why some
> days I've got quite good performance and other days it's just ****. It
> may be related to mood swings - I've been really struggling not to get
> too depressed over this. But if anyone has any suggestions for why my
> performance is varying, and what I could do about it, I'd be really
> grateful.

It's called lack of glycogen, overtraining, poor recovery and possibly
reduced fitness due to recent illness.

Glycogen reserves take 2-3 days to replenish, more if you're on a low
energy diet.
Most people benefit from at least one day per week with NO exercise.
You probably have less glycogen than previously because you've not been well.

RELAX!

Make sure you eat enough.

Make sure you rest enough.

Don't try for speed more than once (or twice in exceptional times) per week.

Try not to fret!
Enjoy your cycling.
Enjoy your eating.
Enjoy your rest days.

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[Tom Anderson]

On Thu, 21 Apr 2005, Simon Brooke wrote:

> But if anyone has any suggestions for why my performance is varying, and
> what I could do about it, I'd be really grateful.

A doctor, perhaps?

tom

--
LEDERHOSEN IS NOT EDIBLE

 

[wafflycat]

"Helen Deborah Vecht" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> It's called lack of glycogen, overtraining, poor recovery and possibly
> reduced fitness due to recent illness.
>
> Glycogen reserves take 2-3 days to replenish, more if you're on a low
> energy diet.
> Most people benefit from at least one day per week with NO exercise.
> You probably have less glycogen than previously because you've not been
> well.
>

Nathan takes his cycle training seriously (for a teenager) yet he recognises
the benefit of a day or two off for recovery. The recovery part of training
is *vital*. The rest time is just as important as the on-bike time.

Cheers, helen s

 

[LSMike]

"wafflycat" <wafflesATv21netDOTcoDOTuk> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Helen Deborah Vecht" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>>
>> It's called lack of glycogen, overtraining, poor recovery and possibly
>> reduced fitness due to recent illness.
>>
>> Glycogen reserves take 2-3 days to replenish, more if you're on a low
>> energy diet.
>> Most people benefit from at least one day per week with NO exercise.
>> You probably have less glycogen than previously because you've not been
>> well.
>>
>
> Nathan takes his cycle training seriously (for a teenager) yet he
> recognises the benefit of a day or two off for recovery. The recovery part
> of training is *vital*. The rest time is just as important as the on-bike
> time.
>
> Cheers, helen s
>

Absolutely, it's the rest period after exercise where your body recovers and
super-compensates, becoming that tiny bit fitter and stronger.
Rest/recovery doesn't necessarily mean no exercise, for those training a lot
some active recovery is often best, *VERY* light exercise for 30 minutes,
just enough to get your HR up a little and make you warm.

 

[Roos Eisma]

"wafflycat" <wafflesATv21netDOTcoDOTuk> writes:


>"Helen Deborah Vecht" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>>
>> It's called lack of glycogen, overtraining, poor recovery and possibly
>> reduced fitness due to recent illness.
>>
>> Glycogen reserves take 2-3 days to replenish, more if you're on a low
>> energy diet.
>> Most people benefit from at least one day per week with NO exercise.
>> You probably have less glycogen than previously because you've not been
>> well.
>>

>Nathan takes his cycle training seriously (for a teenager) yet he recognises
>the benefit of a day or two off for recovery. The recovery part of training
>is *vital*. The rest time is just as important as the on-bike time.

And I was wondering if Simon is on medication that may have side effects
as well. Maybe something to discuss with your doctor?
Whatever it is, get well soon!

Roos

 

[wafflycat]

"LSMike" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Absolutely, it's the rest period after exercise where your body recovers
> and super-compensates, becoming that tiny bit fitter and stronger.
> Rest/recovery doesn't necessarily mean no exercise, for those training a
> lot some active recovery is often best, *VERY* light exercise for 30
> minutes, just enough to get your HR up a little and make you warm.
>

Aye - on his off-bike day(s), he'll do some gentle stretching exercises for
about half-an-hour.

Cheers, helen s

 

[wafflycat]

"Tom Anderson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]...

> LEDERHOSEN IS NOT EDIBLE
>

Depends on how hungry you are, shurely ;-)

Cheers, helen s

 

[Simon Mason]

"Simon Brooke" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:jqklj2-
>
> I wouldn't be surprised, given my condition and the fact that the blood
> flow out of my left leg is badly restricted, if my power was down
> consistently, but I don't understand why it's so up and down - why some
> days I've got quite good performance and other days it's just ****. It
> may be related to mood swings - I've been really struggling not to get
> too depressed over this. But if anyone has any suggestions for why my
> performance is varying, and what I could do about it, I'd be really
> grateful.


Like the others say, recovery is key. However, I have to bike to work, so I
have "training rides" where I push myself with a HRM and "fat burning" rides
where I take it easy. After a few training rides I can feel my muscles ache,
so I just take it easy and try not to respond to the "attacks" launched by
various mountain bike commuters ;-) Although on training rides they can be
useful as a target to aim for in the distance.
--
Simon Mason

http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[dkahn400]

Simon Mason wrote:

> After a few training rides I can feel my muscles ache, so I just
> take it easy and try not to respond to the "attacks" launched by
> various mountain bike commuters ;-)

That's the hard part.

--
Dave...

 

[Tony Raven]

Simon Brooke wrote:
> I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I'm recovering from a
> second serious deep vein thrombosis, about four weeks ago. Some aspects
> of this are frustrating and depressing...

Its a real bummer when your body ages and starts to **** out on you.
Good luck on the recovery.

>
> I wouldn't be surprised, given my condition and the fact that the blood
> flow out of my left leg is badly restricted, if my power was down
> consistently, but I don't understand why it's so up and down - why some
> days I've got quite good performance and other days it's just ****. It
> may be related to mood swings - I've been really struggling not to get
> too depressed over this. But if anyone has any suggestions for why my
> performance is varying, and what I could do about it, I'd be really
> grateful.
>

Whichever, if you keep up the exercise, collateral blood vessels will
grow to deal with the blood and oxygen requirement of your leg muscles.
It may take time but it does happen.

Tony

 

[Simon Mason]

"Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Simon Brooke wrote:
>> I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I'm recovering from a
>> second serious deep vein thrombosis, about four weeks ago. Some aspects
>> of this are frustrating and depressing...
>
> Its a real bummer when your body ages and starts to **** out on you. Good
> luck on the recovery.
>

Hey- I'm knocking on 50 and have never been fitter in my life. I work with
people 25 years younger who are very out of shape. Age can be just another
excuse if you let it be

--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[dkahn400]

Simon Mason wrote:
> "Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...

> > Its a real bummer when your body ages and starts to **** out on
> > you. Good luck on the recovery.
> >
>
> Hey- I'm knocking on 50 and have never been fitter in my life. I
> work with people 25 years younger who are very out of shape. Age can
> be just another excuse if you let it be

I think Tony was referring to the thrombosis as much as anything.

--
Dave...

 

[Tony Raven]

Simon Mason wrote:
> "Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
>>Simon Brooke wrote:
>>
>>>I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I'm recovering from a
>>>second serious deep vein thrombosis, about four weeks ago. Some aspects
>>>of this are frustrating and depressing...
>>
>>Its a real bummer when your body ages and starts to **** out on you. Good
>>luck on the recovery.
>>
>
>
> Hey- I'm knocking on 50 and have never been fitter in my life. I work with
> people 25 years younger who are very out of shape. Age can be just another
> excuse if you let it be
>

Me too and its nothing to do with fitness but the increasing prevalence
of bits of your body to let you down as you get older. One of the main
risk factors for DVT is age.

Tony

 

[Arthur Clune]

Simon Mason <[email protected]> wrote:

: so I just take it easy and try not to respond to the "attacks" launched by
: various mountain bike commuters

That made me laugh. It's amazing how competive commuters get. I ride into work
slowly on my modified tourer. It's just fast enough that faster commuters
view it as a task to get ahead and stay ahead.

I leave them to it these days, and content myself with the thought that if
I could be arsed I'd leave them for dead

--
Arthur Clune PGP/GPG Key: http://www.clune.org/pubkey.txt
Don't get me wrong, perl is an OK operating system, but it lacks a
lightweight scripting language -- Walter Dnes

 

[Simon Mason]

"Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

>
> Me too and its nothing to do with fitness but the increasing prevalence of
> bits of your body to let you down as you get older. One of the main risk
> factors for DVT is age.

Yeah sorry Simon - hope you get back in full working order soon.

--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[dkahn400]

Simon Mason wrote:
> "Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...

> > Me too and its nothing to do with fitness but the increasing
> > prevalence of bits of your body to let you down as you get older.
> > One of the main risk factors for DVT is age.
>
> Yeah sorry Simon - hope you get back in full working order soon.

There's a book by Joe Friel that's quite useful for us creaky older
cyclists. <http://tinyurl.co.uk/zqn9>.

Full url =
<http://www.sportsbooksdirect.co.uk/product.asp?SportID=10&ProdID=1139&SBDProdID=5019>.

--
Dave...

 

[Simon Mason]

"dkahn400" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Simon Mason wrote:
>> "Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]...
>
>> > Me too and its nothing to do with fitness but the increasing
>> > prevalence of bits of your body to let you down as you get older.
>> > One of the main risk factors for DVT is age.
>>
>> Yeah sorry Simon - hope you get back in full working order soon.
>
> There's a book by Joe Friel that's quite useful for us creaky older
> cyclists. <http://tinyurl.co.uk/zqn9>.
>

Yes I've got it - the chapter on motivation that starts with the LeMond
story is *very* uplifting.


--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[Simon Mason]

"Arthur Clune" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Simon Mason <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> : so I just take it easy and try not to respond to the "attacks" launched
> by
> : various mountain bike commuters
>
> That made me laugh. It's amazing how competive commuters get. I ride into
> work
> slowly on my modified tourer. It's just fast enough that faster commuters
> view it as a task to get ahead and stay ahead.
>
> I leave them to it these days, and content myself with the thought that if
> I could be arsed I'd leave them for dead

I had to use my 42 lb hybrid the other day when it was wet and it was
frustrating not to be able to ride like I do on the road bike. It was like
wearing lead boots, although the few years I've had using only that bike has
done wonders for my leg muscles. Having to ride fast and uphill on that bike
was good training.

As for racing commuters, it's fun. I like to be overtaken and then sussing
out how much "competition" they are. Usually they try and "put you away" as
soon as they've gone past, perhaps going through a red light to maintain
their lead. Then it's a case of just following some way off sizing things up
and then deciding when to attack, usually just before a flyover or when
there's a long stretch with no traffic lights.

I try and ride past just breathing through my nose which adds to the effect
;-) It's a good way of training as I've got to give it full gas for a long
while not knowing if they've turned off or not. It's also fun looking at the
people in their cars trudging along home and feeling so alive and free


--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net