All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

Highly recommend. But if we're going non-self-justifying... ABBEY TOOL!

 

I also recommend any clothing from hand up, their stuff is really nice. I went to the shop in Chattanooga too and there great friendly guys. I will continue to support them.

 

While we’re all high fiving hand up, I’ll toss out that their socks are choice. Especially the wool ones.

 

LOVE my Hand Up winter gloves. I don't even think about my fingers - and from a guy with Raynaud Syndrome, this is amazing, as is Hand Up (I chatted with the owner)

Speaking of winter: How do you folks warm up and stretch for biking?

I often do the idiot thing and just ride. NOT GOOD (I'm headed for 64 yo) - very luckily no strains, but this would be a good way to blow something out............anyway was wondering about warming, stretching, BEFORE jumping on my bike?

 

Crank the heater in the truck and but warmers.

Honestly I’ve always started slow. No stretching just warm ups.

 

I think the best way is to start easy/slow. No hard pedaling, no super fast pedaling. I will do a couple laps in the parking lot if there is one. I think science is pretty much down to this. In general I definitely do not do static stretching before. If you want to move off the bike then you could try dynamic warmups. We used to do stuff like this before soccer games (after a couple laps around the field and before drills).

https://www.premierhealth.com/your-health/articles/health-topics/10-dynamic-warm-ups

 

wearing knee warmers or knee pads that act as warmers would be smart. ive been watching some syd and macky on youtube and theyre starting to age but are still racing. they big thing they said in the last cold weather video was keeping your joints warm.

i noticed this on my last ride too, my knees would get stiff since i was still just wearing shorts.

 

Do some leg swings, lunges, jumping jacks, and push-ups. Stretches are a post workout activity.

 

yea, I definitely want to pick up one of their flannels and the AT Pant. Unfortunately they're above the price point of our gift exchange so I have to spend my own money... lol

 

I have a set of active stretches/mobility work I do before I ride. I'm only 34...

But I'm a physiotherapist assistant, so I've nailed down a short but solid routine I do to stretch not just the structures used in riding, but the ones that get tight during riding too.

I'll do some deep squats, lunges, spinal rotations, Pec, and back openers. Then start riding a little slow in the beginning to get my heart rate and muscles ramped up slowly before pushing it. Then after my ride I cool down and relax with a beer or 4.

I can see if I can upload an exercise sheet if people are interested in that.

 

Screenshot of that routine would be much appreciated. Always looking to try new workouts and adding stuff to my own routines. I'm old with various injuries, though, so need to be selective.

 

Ok I had a few minute just now because I had a patient No-Show.

I couldn't do it as a conveniently framed screenshot for mobile, since I'm on my work computer, so i'm just uploading it as a PDF.

Here it is:

 

Pretty solid! Thanks!

I will say that biking is the least of my worries...sitting at this desk 8+ hours a day is way worse on me...I went to see a chiropractor this week and she was like, "you are way to young to have that much tension in your back" haha. Luckily her and her husband are both runners and mountain bikers (I found her through a race I did) and her husband even knows the coach I hired from when they were both in the coast guard!

 

Good stuff, thank you! Check it out now.

 

If biking is your main exercise, and you're sitting for that long, I'm not at all surprised you have back tension and issues. You're always in a seated, forward flexed position. make sure you're getting up and stretching into Spinal Extension and Rotation throughout the day! Your hip flexors and pecs are probably pretty tight...

 

other than stretching, would a substitute be getting a massage? going to a chiro? foam rolling? thera gun? electro therapy? those water jet leg sleeves that are in the latest pink bike academy?

 

very nice tools. looked them up once. pricier. but nice.

love my pants from handup. VERY well priced. VERY durable. their AT pants just look like normal pants when I'm not even riding!

 

Go for walks!

 

Nothing can really replace movement and exercise (including stretching). Our bodies are made to move.

But in a pinch, foam rolling and massage can help temporarily relieve symptoms and tension. It becomes mostly a matter of Cost/Benefit. Foam Rollers are cheap, and don't take much time, but their benefit is variable, and temporary. Thera-guns usually feel pretty good, and have a mild and temporary benefit, like foam rolling but are expensive (unless you get a cheap knock-off from Amazon, but you generally get what you pay for). I haven't heard of those Jet Leg sleeves... and I could write a whole post on Chiros, so I'll just leave that alone for now...

 

this would be great. I often advise my chronic-sitter patients to get up and walk every hour or so.