Cramps!!

All I can say is I get a similar problem in my foot, especially during a climb. I can be going uphill and have to keep moving my foot as it cramps up. Bananas before a ride seem to make it worse.
It may be that you're eating foods that are bringing the cramp on.

KeSs said:

Yesterday i did my first race. It was a 20 mile race around a lake here in Western PA that included 1 monster hill and rolling terrain. Mentally i was prepared for the race and had positioned my-self with a more "elite" group of riders. We were cruising at about 26-27 mph for most of the race. Anyways, we were coming to the finish with about half a mile to go and i was going to make my move on the 2nd to last hill. I got myself ready and went for it, about 5 bike lenghts in front of the main group and my left leg just locked! I couldn't move it and i almost fell off my bike trying to get foot unlocked from my pedal. I sat there for awhile watching the other racers pass and tried to walk it off.....about 20+ min go by and i put it in my granny gear and finish the race.

However, this was a huge disappointment for me, I am only 18 years old and I was just competing to win the mens 15-19 category which i had in a bag because I was sitting there on the side of the road watching people in my age category who i had put minutes go pass me.

Does anyone have any clue why this happened?! I have trained almost every day for 2 months to get myself ready. I have done 100 mile rides, 50 mile, 30 mile, fast paced 20 mile. It just came out of the blue! I have another race coming up this weekend that i am hoping to do good in but how can i aviod this cramping? I was hydrated, i was loading up on crabs before, during, and after the race. It just doesn't seem right to me. I think my leg just decided to be a [censored].......

-Sam

KeSs said:

Yesterday i did my first race. It was a 20 mile race around a lake here in Western PA that included 1 monster hill and rolling terrain. Mentally i was prepared for the race and had positioned my-self with a more "elite" group of riders. We were cruising at about 26-27 mph for most of the race. Anyways, we were coming to the finish with about half a mile to go and i was going to make my move on the 2nd to last hill. I got myself ready and went for it, about 5 bike lenghts in front of the main group and my left leg just locked! I couldn't move it and i almost fell off my bike trying to get foot unlocked from my pedal. I sat there for awhile watching the other racers pass and tried to walk it off.....about 20+ min go by and i put it in my granny gear and finish the race.

However, this was a huge disappointment for me, I am only 18 years old and I was just competing to win the mens 15-19 category which i had in a bag because I was sitting there on the side of the road watching people in my age category who i had put minutes go pass me.

Does anyone have any clue why this happened?! I have trained almost every day for 2 months to get myself ready. I have done 100 mile rides, 50 mile, 30 mile, fast paced 20 mile. It just came out of the blue! I have another race coming up this weekend that i am hoping to do good in but how can i aviod this cramping? I was hydrated, i was loading up on crabs before, during, and after the race. It just doesn't seem right to me. I think my leg just decided to be a [censored].......

-Sam

Sam, I'm afraid your last thought may be the answer to your question. I can't offer any new advice for you based on what you've said, but here's the basic story on cramping. Hope it provides some peace of mind that your preperation was sound:
At this point, what we "know" about cramps is based on the evidence of studies and experience of athletes and others. Unfortunatley, the resulting information doesn't lead to a single answer; thus the cause(s) of cramping is/are mainly theory.
However, cramping appears to be due to either electrolyte imbalance, an accute unoccustomed volume/intensity of training (eg: jumping into a 100mi race when you have been only training for a 50mi race), or both. Being such a short race, I would be surprised that an electrolyte imbalance was the cause; however, if you regularly drink water without replacing sodium in your prep over several days, it is possible. The latter is the more common cause of cramping, but you mentioned that you have completed much longer rides than that particluar race, so that does not appear to be the cause either.
Unfortunately, our bodies are not perfect, and under the stress of a full throttle effort like you described, your leg may have just decided to be an.....

KeSs said:

Yesterday i did my first race. It was a 20 mile race around a lake here in Western PA that included 1 monster hill and rolling terrain. Mentally i was prepared for the race and had positioned my-self with a more "elite" group of riders. We were cruising at about 26-27 mph for most of the race. Anyways, we were coming to the finish with about half a mile to go and i was going to make my move on the 2nd to last hill. I got myself ready and went for it, about 5 bike lenghts in front of the main group and my left leg just locked! I couldn't move it and i almost fell off my bike trying to get foot unlocked from my pedal. I sat there for awhile watching the other racers pass and tried to walk it off.....about 20+ min go by and i put it in my granny gear and finish the race.

However, this was a huge disappointment for me, I am only 18 years old and I was just competing to win the mens 15-19 category which i had in a bag because I was sitting there on the side of the road watching people in my age category who i had put minutes go pass me.

Does anyone have any clue why this happened?! I have trained almost every day for 2 months to get myself ready. I have done 100 mile rides, 50 mile, 30 mile, fast paced 20 mile. It just came out of the blue! I have another race coming up this weekend that i am hoping to do good in but how can i aviod this cramping? I was hydrated, i was loading up on crabs before, during, and after the race. It just doesn't seem right to me. I think my leg just decided to be a [censored].......

-Sam

try endurolytes from E-CAPS. they are suppose to prevent cramping.

Smartt/RST said:

Sam, I'm afraid your last thought may be the answer to your question. I can't offer any new advice for you based on what you've said, but here's the basic story on cramping. Hope it provides some peace of mind that your preperation was sound:
At this point, what we "know" about cramps is based on the evidence of studies and experience of athletes and others. Unfortunatley, the resulting information doesn't lead to a single answer; thus the cause(s) of cramping is/are mainly theory.
However, cramping appears to be due to either electrolyte imbalance, an accute unoccustomed volume/intensity of training (eg: jumping into a 100mi race when you have been only training for a 50mi race), or both. Being such a short race, I would be surprised that an electrolyte imbalance was the cause; however, if you regularly drink water without replacing sodium in your prep over several days, it is possible. The latter is the more common cause of cramping, but you mentioned that you have completed much longer rides than that particluar race, so that does not appear to be the cause either.
Unfortunately, our bodies are not perfect, and under the stress of a full throttle effort like you described, your leg may have just decided to be an.....

I have put a lot of thought into this and i seriously beleive that the reason for the cramp was due to the incredible pressure put on my leg. During tranning i normally keep it around 20-23 mph on the flats and i like i said before, i was doing well above those speeds during this race. My leg still feels kind of sore today, even after i did a slow 20 mile to try and work it out. I dunno? I guess all this means is that i have to train harder!

velomanct:
What exactly are E-CAPS? Where do i get them? And are they allowed by the uscf?

KeSs said:

I have put a lot of thought into this and i seriously beleive that the reason for the cramp was due to the incredible pressure put on my leg. During tranning i normally keep it around 20-23 mph on the flats and i like i said before, i was doing well above those speeds during this race. My leg still feels kind of sore today, even after i did a slow 20 mile to try and work it out. I dunno? I guess all this means is that i have to train harder!

velomanct:
What exactly are E-CAPS? Where do i get them? And are they allowed by the uscf?

E-CAPS is the name of the company that makes several nutrition produces: I believe it was suggested that you try their electrolyte capsules (sodium, potassium, etc). A product like this can be helpful for long/hot days, but as I mentioned, if you have regularly completed 100mi rides w/o this problem then electrolyte replacement for such a short event is not necessary (not beyond a basic sports drink anyway).
As for training harder, might I suggest training with more specificity first; perhaps there in lies the origin of your cramps (an obvious shot in the dark as I have little idea of what you do in your training.🙂)

KeSs said:

I have put a lot of thought into this and i seriously beleive that the reason for the cramp was due to the incredible pressure put on my leg. During tranning i normally keep it around 20-23 mph on the flats and i like i said before, i was doing well above those speeds during this race. My leg still feels kind of sore today, even after i did a slow 20 mile to try and work it out. I dunno? I guess all this means is that i have to train harder!

velomanct:
What exactly are E-CAPS? Where do i get them? And are they allowed by the uscf?

http://www.e-caps.com/

they are legal to use in competition. they are not drugs, just supplements. to me, it's a gray area, not all natural, but also not a drug.

i tried them for 2 weeks, 3 years ago, they seemed to work. i returned them because i didn't like the idea of taking pills. plus i rather win without "assistance"

Smartt/RST said:

E-CAPS is the name of the company that makes several nutrition produces: I believe it was suggested that you try their electrolyte capsules (sodium, potassium, etc). A product like this can be helpful for long/hot days, but as I mentioned, if you have regularly completed 100mi rides w/o this problem then electrolyte replacement for such a short event is not necessary (not beyond a basic sports drink anyway).
As for training harder, might I suggest training with more specificity first; perhaps there in lies the origin of your cramps (an obvious shot in the dark as I have little idea of what you do in your training.🙂)

Speaking of E-CAPS, i ordered some sodium phosphate from them. included with the order was the booklet on nutrition, tips on how to eat before a race ect. i followed the tips like a dumb ass and it hurt my performance, they need to change some info they have in that booklet.