Cramps - Page 11 - Cycling Mob: Road Cycling, Mountain Biking and More

06-01-2004, 02:00 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday doing a ride which
> was a step up from what from what I had done before. It was a first try
> at going up to Skyline from where I live in Palo Alto.

> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.

Mike:

Your statement that this ride was a step up from what you had done before
suggests that your muscles were just plain overworked when you started
cramping. You may have also been somewhat dehydrated, but I think the
main cause was muscle overwork. I experienced several incidents of muscle
cramping caused by overwork while I was adjusting to riding a new bike
several years ago. The next time you try this route you'll probably get
through it without cramping.

Re: V8

I usually set out on an all-day ride with water, Enduralytes (overpriced
salt tablets), a flask or two of Hammergel (for times when I don't feel
like eating solid food) and a mix of Clif, Luna, and Balance bars. I can
recall one such time last year when riding the Mt. Hamilton Loop, I
approached the small store at Calaveras and Pleasanton-Sunol roads
desperate for a change of diet. I was hungry and didn't feel like eating
anything sweet. After perusing the limited selection at the small store I
found a bottle of V8 and a medium-sized bag of Lays salty, greasy potato
chips. I drank the V8 and ate half the chips while stopped and ate the
rest of them on the way home. I felt much better afterward. Sometimes
'junk' food is just what the body needs.

-- Bill Bushnell

06-01-2004, 04:05 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message news:<MzLuc.16852$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].pas.ear thlink.net>...
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday...
> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.
---------------

ouch, I feel for, you having struggled with cramps myselfregardless of
how good condition I am in. I have tinkered with this and that, and
what is working best for me now is:

- "pre-medicating" with a couple gulps of pickle juice before a long
ride. It seems to help... I read about some pro football teams doing
it before games in hot stadiums.

- hydrating with water before, during, (and after) a ride. Having to
pee about once every 30-50 miles is a good sign.

- eating a granola bar about 1/hour

- a squirt of HammerGel about every hour

d

06-01-2004, 04:05 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message news:<MzLuc.16852$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].pas.ear thlink.net>...
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday...
> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.
---------------

ouch, I feel for, you having struggled with cramps myselfregardless of
how good condition I am in. I have tinkered with this and that, and
what is working best for me now is:

- "pre-medicating" with a couple gulps of pickle juice before a long
ride. It seems to help... I read about some pro football teams doing
it before games in hot stadiums.

- hydrating with water before, during, (and after) a ride. Having to
pee about once every 30-50 miles is a good sign.

- eating a granola bar about 1/hour

- a squirt of HammerGel about every hour

d

06-01-2004, 04:05 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message news:<MzLuc.16852$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].pas.ear thlink.net>...
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday...
> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.
---------------

ouch, I feel for, you having struggled with cramps myselfregardless of
how good condition I am in. I have tinkered with this and that, and
what is working best for me now is:

- "pre-medicating" with a couple gulps of pickle juice before a long
ride. It seems to help... I read about some pro football teams doing
it before games in hot stadiums.

- hydrating with water before, during, (and after) a ride. Having to
pee about once every 30-50 miles is a good sign.

- eating a granola bar about 1/hour

- a squirt of HammerGel about every hour

d

06-01-2004, 04:05 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message news:<MzLuc.16852$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].pas.ear thlink.net>...
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday...
> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.
---------------

ouch, I feel for, you having struggled with cramps myselfregardless of
how good condition I am in. I have tinkered with this and that, and
what is working best for me now is:

- "pre-medicating" with a couple gulps of pickle juice before a long
ride. It seems to help... I read about some pro football teams doing
it before games in hot stadiums.

- hydrating with water before, during, (and after) a ride. Having to
pee about once every 30-50 miles is a good sign.

- eating a granola bar about 1/hour

- a squirt of HammerGel about every hour

d

06-01-2004, 04:05 PM

Mike McGuire <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote in message news:<MzLuc.16852$[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].pas.ear thlink.net>...
> I got into a pretty bad place with cramps yesterday...
> So what to do about this? How to avoid it.
---------------

ouch, I feel for, you having struggled with cramps myselfregardless of
how good condition I am in. I have tinkered with this and that, and
what is working best for me now is:

- "pre-medicating" with a couple gulps of pickle juice before a long
ride. It seems to help... I read about some pro football teams doing
it before games in hot stadiums.

- hydrating with water before, during, (and after) a ride. Having to
pee about once every 30-50 miles is a good sign.

- eating a granola bar about 1/hour

- a squirt of HammerGel about every hour

d

06-03-2004, 04:40 PM

Should not be eaten if you do not have great teeth. Might stick in
braces or pull fillings or caps from your teeth.

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
<snip>
> People eat Power Bars that can hardly be swallowed without washing
> them down with a chaser and taste like cardboard soaked in molasses.
> If you can do that, V8 should be tasty.
>
> Jobst Brandt
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

06-03-2004, 04:40 PM

Should not be eaten if you do not have great teeth. Might stick in
braces or pull fillings or caps from your teeth.

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
<snip>
> People eat Power Bars that can hardly be swallowed without washing
> them down with a chaser and taste like cardboard soaked in molasses.
> If you can do that, V8 should be tasty.
>
> Jobst Brandt
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

06-03-2004, 04:40 PM

Should not be eaten if you do not have great teeth. Might stick in
braces or pull fillings or caps from your teeth.

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
<snip>
> People eat Power Bars that can hardly be swallowed without washing
> them down with a chaser and taste like cardboard soaked in molasses.
> If you can do that, V8 should be tasty.
>
> Jobst Brandt
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

06-03-2004, 04:40 PM

Should not be eaten if you do not have great teeth. Might stick in
braces or pull fillings or caps from your teeth.

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
<snip>
> People eat Power Bars that can hardly be swallowed without washing
> them down with a chaser and taste like cardboard soaked in molasses.
> If you can do that, V8 should be tasty.
>
> Jobst Brandt
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]