It has long been known that warm-up before physical exercise can improve your performance significantly. In many of my training programs, I actually recommend you to perform an incremental warm-up before interval training really starts.

Physiological benefits of warm-up

• Metabolic processes are temperature-dependent, thus many enzymes perform better at higher temperatures.
• Oxygen transport from blood to tissue is more rapid.
• Faster transmissions of nerve impulses.

Bottom line is that your body is better prepared for severe exercise after doing a proper warm-up.

In my opinion it’s an easy decision whether you should warm-up or not before important events. If you want to deliver the best performance in cycling races e.g. time trials then you should definitely learn how to warm-up. The best place to figure out what is the best warm-up protocol for you is when you perform difficult intervals.

Use the Trial and Error principle for Warm-Ups

It might sound a bit pragmatic but the best way to make a personal warm-up protocol is to use the principle trial and error. If you do difficult, intensive intervals sessions, it’s almost perfect test material to see how your warm-up protocol works. Yes, there are circumstances that are different at races. Since I expect you to perform regular interval training at least twice per week there should be lots of chances to try different setups…  

Basic principles of warm-up before endurance events

• Start at low workloads. If you begin at a high workload, you spend too much anaerobic power too early due to oxygen dept. It’s demotivating and might decrease your performance.
• Make small increments in workload. When you’ve started your warm-up your oxygen consumption will go up. If you make small steps in workload during the warm-up, you will to a large degree avoid oxygen dept. That will prepare your body for the most important part of your training session: The interval training.

Example: Quick, effective warm-up before interval training (~15min)

1. Begin easy pedalling, ~100Watts.

2. Every 2min, increase workload ~35-50Watts depending on fitness level.

3. When you hit the lower limit of your heart rate target zone, take a short break.

4. Easy pedalling 3 to 5 minutes (if you are in a hurry, please skip this step)

5. Begin your interval training

Enough theory, take action!

This article is a guest post from Shim Ravalia who studies a master in sports rehabilitation at the University of Kent (Gillingham, Medway). In this article she outlines the current knowledge on how we can optimize our recovery by choosing the right recovery drink after training.

If cyclists do not recover properly straight after exercise there is no point to their training. Without the proper nutrients to refuel the body such as Carbohydrates and proteins, the performance of the individual will drop.

Timing is absolutely important because the muscle cells in the body are highly insulin receptive after exercise. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates the level of glucose. Insulin is in charge of transporting glucose and the essential amino acids to the cells. This speed up muscle repairs and reduces the breakdown of protein. It is best to consume a recovery drink 30 to 45 minutes straight after exercise. If this window of opportunity to recover is missed then the muscles will no longer be insulin receptive.

Depending on the intensity of training, cyclists should be aware of the types of recovery drinks to consume. Working in the gym environment, I often see many people just pick a bottle of drink after exercise without looking at the contents of the beverage. Some drinks contain too much sugar which can be distressful for the gut to absorb quickly.

Below are the some examples of the types of drinks:

1. Cyclists who perform low to moderate intensity training, they should
   consume Carbohydrates and Proteins on a ratio of 2:1 (Carbs:PRO).
   For example: approximately 450ml – 600ml of semi skimmed milk with 1 tablespoon of syrup or powder (any flavour). This should contain up to 25g of Protein; up to 48g of Carbohydrates and up to 1g of fat.
2. Cyclists who undergo moderate to high intensity training, they should consume Carbohydrates and Proteins on a 3:1 ratio (Carbs:PRO).
   For example: 350ml to 600ml of chocolate milk which contains approximately up to14 g of Protein and 35g of Carbohydrates. You can also buy ‘ready to drink’ milk based drinks which contain more Carbohydrates for higher intensity training such as Goodness Shakes, Nestle’s Nesquik.

Remember, the higher the intensity of your training, the more carbohydrates and proteins your body needs. Therefore, the amount and contents of your recovery drink should relate to this. There shouldn’t be an excuse not to recover properly. Cyclists who are lactose intolerant or does not like cow’s milk, soy milk is also an option as a recovery drink.

As a medical doctor I like to see proof that something actually works. Show me the facts. Perform a test on an ergometer bike and show me the numbers. Hard facts. I like it.

Cycling performance tests can provide insightful information about your current fitness level. These tests can be used to evaluate and optimize training programs.

Since my early start as a cycling coach I have tested my riders on ergometer bikes with power outputs or even better on their own bikes equipped with SRM crank systems. Optimized their training programs again and again based on my empiric data stream…

Here are my 5 basic principles that can help you to benefit from cycling performance tests:

1. Watts

Get a power meter or use an ergometer bike. It’s essential to know how many watts you put in the pedals. If you use an ergometer bike, make sure it’s callibrated correctly every time you use it for performance tests. Please note that heart rate is interesting, but definitively not the major concern in a cycling performance test. We want to know the power output in Watts (or even better Watts per Kilogram).

2. Support

Don’t do physical tests on your own. Have an assistant to guide you through the test. It could be your cycling coach, cycling buddie or just a friend or member of your family.

3. Specificity

Make the performance test as specific as possible. There is no test that provide answers to all questions. A performance test must be designed to measure the physical parameter you want to test. If you want to test your anaerobic endurance, perform a test designed for that skill, e.g. 60sec max power. If anaerobic endurance is your major concern, it doesn’t make sense to do tests that are not focused on anaerobic endurance.

4. Test Protocol

Write down (or rather get your assistant to write down) every details about your test. Get all the numbers written down: Body weight, watts, heart rate data etc. Also worth to notice weather conditions if you make outdoor performance tests.

5. Evaluate

After performing a physical test it’s important to evaluate and discuss your results. Use your results to optimize your training routine and let the performance test inspire you to train even harder.

Peak Performance has made a collection with detailed description of exercise tests. It costs less than $30 and delivers high quality information. Click here to read more.

This article is a guest post from Shim Ravalia who studies a master in sports rehabilitation at the University of Kent (Gillingham, Medway). Now she is proposing a study on the effects of soy milk and semi skimmed milk in the recovery period after exercise on trained male cyclists by looking at the time to exhaustion. Participants who are regular readers here on Training4cyclists.com are included in this project.

Enjoy her detailed review of the current knowledge about recovery drinks.

Is soy milk a better recovery aid compared to semi-skimmed milk after exercise? Does it increase time to exhaustion in trained cyclists?

The efficacy and importance of a recovery drink when balanced with training has to be deeply considered. The body is in a state of stress and needs a lot of nourishment after exercise (Carlson, 2008). The body is dehydrated, the blood insulin levels are low and cortisol and other hormones levels would be high; more importantly, the glycogen stores would be low or completely depleted and muscles would be breaking down (Ivy & Portman, 2004). This should be reversed by the nutritional strategy implemented.

Milk has been seen to be an effective recovery drink simply because of the components it has. Milk contains both whey and casein protein; whey is considered as to be a high quality protein and is more soluble than casein protein which also has a higher quality rating. Around 20% of whey is found in milk and 80% of casein is also found in milk (Pasquale, 2008).

Research has shown that the adding of protein to a carbohydrate drink is just as effective as a carbohydrate based drink for recovery after exercise; although carbohydrates is unquestionably of major importance, proteins is now considered to be of larger importance than previously thought (Niles et al, 2001).

A study by Saunders, Kane & Todd (2004) looked at the effects of a carbohydrate protein drink on cycling endurance and also looked into muscle damage. The main aim of the study was to see if cycling endurance performance changed and post exercise muscle damage changed when the carbohydrate protein drink was ingested in comparison to a carbohydrate only drink. The results showed that with the first ride at 75% of V02 peak, the participants rode for 29% longer with the carbohydrate with protein drink than the carbohydrate drink. In the second ride, at 85% V02 peak, the participants rode for 40% longer with the carbohydrate protein drink; to add to these findings, the level of muscle damage was 83% lower with the carbohydrate protein drink.

To support the above, Niles et al (2001) looked at the effects of a carbohydrate with protein drink improving time to exhaustion after recovery from exercise. With the ingestion of a carbohydrate protein drink or a carbohydrate only drink, the overall results showed that the carbohydrate protein drink gave higher insulin levels within 90 minutes into the recovery period and time to exhaustion was also longer in comparison to the carbohydrate only drink.

A very important study by Karp et al (2006) looked at the effects of chocolate milk as a post exercise recovery aid. By using 9 male endurance trained cyclists, the study compared chocolate milk, a fluid replacement drink and a carbohydrate replacement drink. The participants went through a glycogen depletion trial followed by a 4 hour recovery ending on an endurance trial. The results showed that the time to exhaustion and total work performed during the endurance performance trial were greater with the chocolate milk (15 minutes greater) and the fluid replacement (16 minutes greater) trials than the carbohydrate trial. The participants rode 49% and 54% longer with the ingestion of chocolate milk and fluid replacement trials despite the carbohydrate content in the drinks.

To add to the concept of using milk as a recovery aid, there has been new and limited research done on the possible benefits of using soy milk; although research is still limited in terms of the use of soy milk in endurance exercise, research has shown some interesting results with resistance exercise. Pasquale (2008) expressed that soy protein has the protein quality of 1.00 meaning that that it is equal in the quality of protein that it exists in other diary and egg proteins. To add to this point, Paul (2005) also stated that soy protein contains 2 high performance amino acids; Arginine and Glutamine which have a vital role in muscle recovery.

Bos et al (2003) cited by Roy (2008) looked at the increase in protein net balance and muscle protein synthesis which was defined by the consumption of 500ml of fat free milk compared to an soy protein beverage. The findings were that the soy based beverage was digested more quickly which led to an increase in blood concentrations of amino acids carrying it to plasma protein and urea synthesis. The rise in blood amino acids in the fat free milk however, was a lot slower and continued rising for a longer time providing more amino acids for muscle protein synthesis, but however, Bos et al (2003) used resistance exercise, not endurance exercise.

The proposed study has extracted the methology from Karp et als study (2006) using chocolate milk as a post recovery aid. With each participant undergoing a V02 max test with a gas analyzer to determine an individual’s maximum oxygen consumption and maximum power output.

The participants will also do a glycogen depletion trial starting from 90% maximum power output riding for 2 minutes and then 2 minutes onto 50% recovery; this will be carried out onto a lode bike; the intensities would decrease by 10% every time the participant s can no longer keep up with their cadence. This is then followed by a 4 hour recovery where 355ml of a drink would be administered straight after the glycogen depletion trial and also another 355ml 2 hours into the recovery stage. The last section of the test is the endurance trial where participants have to ride as long as they can at 70% of their maximum power output. Blood lactate measurements will be taken before and after the glycogen depletion trial, 2 hours into recovery and before and after the endurance trial and analysed; body hydration status will be taken before and after both exercise trials using the bio electrical impedance equipment.

References
1.Carlson, A. (2008) Protein Nutrition for Peak Performance, Peak
Performance, P2P Publishing, pp65 – 74.

2.Ivy, J & Portman, R. (2004) Nutrient timing: The future of Sports Nutrition,
Ed:Illustrated, Basic Health Publications.

3.Karp, R.J, Johnston, D.J, Tecklenburg. S, Mickleborough, D. T, Fly, D. A, &
Stager, M.J (2006) Chocolate milk as a post-exercise recovery aid. Journal
of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, (16), pp. 78-91.

4.Niles, S.E, Lachowetz, T, Garfi, J, Sullivan, W, Smith, C,J, Leyh, P.B &
Headley, A.S. (2001) Carbohydrate-protein drink improves time to exhaustion
after recovery from endurance exercise. Journal of Exercise Physiology, 4
(1)pp. 46 – 52.

5.Pasquale, D.G.M. (2008) Amino acids and proteins for the athlete The
Anabolic Edge, 2nd Ed. CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group.

6.Paul, G.L. (2005) Soy protein and Performance Nutrition New Evidence –
New Opportunities. The Solae Company Nutrition Brief, pp. 1-8.

7.Roy, D.B (2008) Benefits of milk consumption with resistance and endurance
sports. Director, Centre for Muscle Metabolism and Biophysics, Faculty
of Applied Health Sciences. Brock University, St. Catharines, ON. CANADA.

8.Saunders, J.M, Kane, D.M & Todd, M.K. (2004) Effects of a carbohydrate –
protein beverage on cycling endurance and muscle damage. Medicine &
Science in Sports & Exercise, 36 (7), pp 1233 -1238

9.Williams, M.B, Raven, B.P, Fogt, L.D & Ivy, L.J (2003) Effects of recovery
beverages on glycogen restoration and endurance exercise performance.
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 17 (1), pp. 12 – 19.

Resting heart rate is not always equal to performance

Monitoring your resting heart rate is a good discipline to integrate in your daily procedures since it can give you some important information about your fitness. When you have registered your resting heart rate in the morning for a period of time (months) you will start to see a pattern. There are days with low resting heart rates and there are days with high values.

Notice long term changes in resting heart rate

The most important observation for you will be that there is some but not a total correlation between resting heart rate and cycling performance. Small differences in the same week has nothing to do with improved performance but is a lot more a question about level of recovery, sleep pattern, physical and psychological stress level etc. Differences observed over a longer period (months) might very likely be seen because of a central adaptation. Due to a better relaxation (regulated by autonomic nerve system) there is a better filling of the heart in the diastole and thus a larger stroke volume in the systole.

Don’t compare heart rate values…
As I have mentioned a couple of times before: It doesn’t make sense to compare absolute heart rate values with others because we all have a different anatomy. As an example, I have registered a low resting heart rate of 36bpm in a period with a very small amount of cardiovascular training. I wonder how many of you hard training individuals who have the same value? That doesn’t matter! You are probably stronger than I was at that time anyway…

As you can see from the many comments (currently more than 136 comments) to my article ‘What is Your Lowest Heart Rate ever?‘ there are many people around in the world with low resting heart rates. Many of the comments illustrate that resting heart rate in it self is a good but not really good predictor of performance.