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When I got up this morning I had very sore legs. I've been riding my bike a lot and last night I played basketball at Church for around 3 hours or so. I did a short bike ride (15 minutes or so) and at the begining my legs were really hurting, but towards the end they got better. In situations like this, are you supposed to give your legs time to rest or push through the pain and keep working? Any other tips?
[Side Note: Apparently this is a T_Smith post as I now have a number of posts equal to T_Smith's registration number. In honor of this occasion: (((((Celia))))) ]
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The answer is simple: you need drugs. You should have asked me in my drug recommendation post. In this case, I recommend Oxycontin 80mg 3 times a day. Then, you will feel NO pain ANYWHERE at all...
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In all fairness, I have read recently that pre-exercise stretching is basically worthless in preventing injuries, but I still recommend it. If you are simply stiff and sore, then stretch out before working out and do more of the warm-up exercises like riding a bike.
If your pain turns into something like cramping or shin splints, then you need to not push so hard and take it easier until your body catches up to the level of workout you are putting it through.
Remember adequate hydration and after-workout soaks or rubdowns by scantily-clad Sweedish bikini models are also helpful.
Posts: 1870 | Registered: Mar 2003
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Hobbes, It depends on why your legs hurt. If you have pain associated with your joints or tendons, then you definitely don't want to push through the pain. If on the other hand, what you have is sore muscles, go out for a spin usually works very well for me. The sore muscles are probably do to a build up of lactic acid and moving your legs will help clear the lactic acid. If you are riding and the pain goes away, or decreases, after you've been riding for awhile, its probably lactic acid build up and the best thing is to go for a long, relatively slow ride.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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Hobbes - first, I'm no expert on bike riding, I'm a runner and horserider. So feel free to disregard every comment hereafter!
It depends on the reason why your legs are sore in the first place - and also the kind of pain it is. If your muscles are sore from the basketball (I'm not sure if bball is a regular sport of yours?) then it is probably just that they are not used to being used for long periods of time in that way. Same could apply for the riding.
IMHO, it is better to ride through the pain, but not to a stupid extent. That is, if you're sore when you start out but as you warm up the pain fades, then keep going. If the pain gets worse and you don't feel like you're loosening up, then the problem is most likely more than just aching muscles. Sometimes the muscles just need a good stretch - they'll probably still be sore for a couple of days, but I find it's a "good" kind of sore. I doubt you'll be doing yourself any sort of harm to keep riding, unless you are actually finding it very difficult and painful to keep riding. You might want to try some stretches, afterwards, if you don't already. Just don't overdo it for a couple of days, and you'll be fine.
EDIT: What Rabbit said. That'll teach me for clicking reply, then going to make a coffee and cut a slice of cake and getting distracted... self.
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My sports coaches always recommend icing for 20 min. on, 20 min. off three times. If you have a couple days off, ice as much as possible. It seems to work for me.
Posts: 981 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Every week, you're supposed to have one day of rest. Usually the day after training especially hard, you should schedule a light workout (like an easy run or bike).
After I do a hike, I won't workout the next day. Mostly because when I wake up that morning, I usually can't move all too well.
Depending on my work schedule, I'll usually do a bust my ass hike on Sunday, take off Monday, do 2 hours in the gym on Tues, Wed, Thurs, do a mid-length run on Friday, take of Saturday to rest muscles for the next bust-ass hike on Sunday.
This has worked so far. It gets a bit tricky with my medication playing weird games with my tiredness, so I can't usually figure out if it's me busting my ass making me dog-tired, or the medication level being upped.
*shrug*
so basically, what does your biking/workout schedule look like so far? or what'd it look like in the past week?
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999
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When I had just turned 19, my legs were practically made of jello. Then I went on my mission.
My first companion was 3 or 4 months from release, and he was what we call trunky. Translation: he was mad with desire to be home. (Luckily I was only trunky for about my last month--but HOLY CRAP it got powerful. )
So anyway, he was having trouble being an effective missionary--but I think he also felt some responsibity toward me, didn't want to be responsible for turning me into a lazy apostate missionary. So we stayed out working all day, the way we were supposed to. But... his way of coping... whew. We would be tracting in an area for a while, and you could just see his eyes glazing over, his door approaches getting robotic... and finally, he couldn't bear another second and he would say something like- "Elder, It's time for us to go do the work of the Lord... somewhere else," and we would hop onto our bikes. The somewhere else was usually a good distance away. We must have biked several hours a day, when I was with him. My legs turned into dispassionate pistons pretty fast, though my first few days were full of delerium and near death.
I think his method was perfect for me. It broke me into the little saddle- and I too had trouble at first coping with the new atmosphere. So both of us greatly mellowed during those trips, preparing us to work a bit longer. I started to really love that bike.
But, the soreness, yes. It would sometimes feel like my bum would burst, if I dared to sit down on the bike the day after. But it never did. Posts: 554 | Registered: Nov 2000
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Usually if the muscles are sore after a workout drink lots of water and stretching well after you work out can help prevent soreness the next day. It's ok to keep working though usually it's best to alternate. Mostly I've heard 3 hard workouts a week, 2 easier workouts, and one or two days to recuperate or do a really light workout. Drugs can help too, if it's really bad. I'd recommend tylenol or aspirin though.
Posts: 349 | Registered: May 2003
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Alucard - regarding stretching. There has never been a study showing that stretching helps prevent injury, but also on the flip side, there has never been enough evidence to show that you shouldn't stretch, as stretching muscles can relieve soreness, as opposed to preventing injury. A sore muscle is different from an injured one.
Sore muscles are usually the result of overworking your muscles. In your case Hobbes, it's probably because you played bball as opposed to your normal biking. THe muscles you use for these sports are completely different. You can work through soreness without any adverse effects normally, though you will feel more pain.
I wouldn't recommend pain killers (unless its REALLY bad), as using those will just make you more pain sensitive in the future. Icing is good for injured muscles, not so much sore ones, as icing will just cause them to tense up some more and make them even more tight. Heat is best for sore muscles. If you heat the muscles and then stretch out, that is really good for them.
Posts: 348 | Registered: Dec 2000
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Ummm what should I say...I've done a LOT of stretches VERY often since I started playing flag football, and I'm in the best shape of my life. At least I was, until school started.
My brilliant philosophy is play through everything until you stop helping the team and start hurting it by being there. For things such as biking, I keep going until I feel like stopping. At this point, I stop, or, if I'm ambitious, keep going until my blood suger gets too low. Then I eat a TON of pretzels and go to sleep or whatever. I'm sure that didn't help, but it was interesting to write.
Oh yes...have I mentioned that I run REALLY FREAKIN FAST?! Posts: 755 | Registered: May 2001
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quote:If you are simply stiff and sore, then stretch out before working out and do more of the warm-up exercises like riding a bike.
For me, riding a bike is the work out.
The pain wasn't at all serious and I'm pretty sure it's what Rabbit suggested (lactic acid build up), I was wondering if that is a sign that resting will give your legs time to build up muscle or just a good time to go outside and do something.
quote:It depends on the reason why your legs are sore in the first place - and also the kind of pain it is. If your muscles are sore from the basketball (I'm not sure if bball is a regular sport of yours?) then it is probably just that they are not used to being used for long periods of time in that way. Same could apply for the riding.
That's very true, I've played basketball about twice in the last 4 years.
quote:so basically, what does your biking/workout schedule look like so far? or what'd it look like in the past week?
I try to go on 2 to 3 medium rides a day (everyday). Since I'm so out of a shape a medium ride is normally from 15-40 minutes long. I try to push myself within that time (always riding faster that I would if I simply was trying to get from one place to another) but it's still kind of pitiful...
quote:your edit creeps me out.
It wasn't an edit, that post wasn't edited, I meant all of it from the start!
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Danzig, I was replying to the not stretching part, which is almost very accurate, there have been no studies showing that stretching actually helps you. On an interesting side note, some coaches (for sprinters) are floating around a new idea that has no stretching involved in it really. I haven't read too much about it yet, so, whatever. take it with a grain of salt I suppose.
Shlomo - Stretching can help you get in shape, but it may not actually help you. They are two different things. Being in shape does not necessarily mean you aren't going to get hurt. Pro athletes get hurt all the time and they are in incredible shape with the best trainers and doctors in the world to help them. How fast do you run? Do you do track? I'm a sprinter so am curious
From what you say hobbes, the pain should be subsiding over the next few days while you work the kinks out of your body. All in all, keep doing whatever you want and don't really worry about it. Stretch out, maybe use some heat, and have fun!
Posts: 348 | Registered: Dec 2000
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If you keep on that ride schdule of pushing hard on the bike, multiple times a day amounting 1-2 hours a day, everyday of the week,your sore legs probably arent going to become unsore very fast. You will probably become faster, but as you become stronger youll still be pushing yourself to soreness. Eventually your body would be able to cope with that without being too sore, but that might be a while with you saying how out of shape you are. You need to give you body a chance to rest in order to actually grow stronger. Exercise kills muscles, and resting afterwards is when we grow stronger as the body replaces the damaged cells and then some. I would recomend the following ride schedule: Mondays off; Tuesdays, long continous ride, easy; Wednesdays, do your serveral times a day of hard effort; Thursday, medium length, easy ride, Sprint a few times, or climb a few hills; Friday, short length, easy; Saturday and Sunday, long, hard rides if you can.
About streching, I defintely recomend it. All I know is that I ride my bike a whole lot, and its definitly good to strech. Also, for riding streching doesnt nessicarily prevent injury to muscles but being flexible is a good thing to be on a bike. I ride about 200-300 miles a week. I work at the local bike shop and needless to say, I'm around bike-geeky people all the time, so I have some idea what im talking about.
Give the legs a little time to rest up if they are really sore, then enjoy the riding. Hope that all helps, feel free to ask advice, mechanical or other wise, anytime.
Posts: 88 | Registered: Jan 2003
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Ughhh. I was all prepared to start doing some actual training and schedualing and what not when yesterday happened. My bike's front tire blew when I tried to ride it to class. I have the necessary equipment to fix it, but I didn't have time then (plus it was kind of on and off raining all day). I devloped what has turned into rather a nasty cold (I can't really speak right now) that makes it difficult to really do anything. And then this morning, as if my body was worried I'd still try and do something I pulled at least one muscle. Or at least that's what I think happened. I don't know if this ever happens to anyone else, but it happens to me a lot, where some joint suddenly has a really intense, really sharp pain. And then after 10-30 seconds it starts to go away, does that happen to anyone else? Anyways, that happened to me this morning, only... it hasn't finished going away after 2 or so hours. So now the back top of my left calf (right under the knee) is on fire and I have to walk to classes. And now my right calf is starting to burn too.
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That burn may still be a lactic acid muscle knot. I would get cramps like that in my foot when I would swim. Make sure you are drinking lots of water and gatorate or some other sports drink with electrolytes and potassium. Eat bananas (I hate bananas so I don't but I know they help). Try stretching against a wall leaning on it then stretching your leg back and pressing your heel to the floor. If you have knots that stretch will show you exactly where they are. Then if possible go in a whirlpool tub or take a bath in epsom salts and massage the knot in your legs yourself.
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My bike's front tire blew when I tried to ride it to class. I have the necessary equipment to fix it, but I didn't have time then (plus it was kind of on and off raining all day). I devloped what has turned into rather a nasty cold (I can't really speak right now) that makes it difficult to really do anything. And then this morning, as if my body was worried I'd still try and do something I pulled at least one muscle. Or at least that's what I think happened. I don't know if this ever happens to anyone else, but it happens to me a lot, where some joint suddenly has a really intense, really sharp pain. And then after 10-30 seconds it starts to go away, does that happen to anyone else? Anyways, that happened to me this morning, only... it hasn't finished going away after 2 or so hours. So now the back top of my left calf (right under the knee) is on fire and I have to walk to classes. ![[Mad]](mad.gif)
And now my right calf is starting to burn too. ![[Wall Bash]](graemlins/wallbash.gif)
