It’s about that time to brush the dust off your bike (or time to purchase one) and get training for one of the most fun bike touring events you’ll experience! There are a few things you’ll need to have in order before you can begin your training.
Nutrition
• Stay hydrated. Always carry a water bottle with water or other hydrating liquids.
• For rides longer than 30 minutes, I recommend bringing some sort of nutritious snack…now is the time to experiment with nutrition that works best for you
• Find a brand or flavor that you ENJOY drinking…no matter how good it might be for you, if you don’t like it, you won’t drink it and you’ll be dehydrated
• For rides greater than 90-120 minutes, consider a product that has protein in the mixture. It might taste a bit gritty, but it aids muscle recovery
• Beware of overly sugary drinks. Yes, you will need the sugar to some extent, sometimes you can water down these drinks for a better ratio of necessary sugars and electrolytes.
• March and April is the time to decide what snack/nutrition work for you. You’re going to be out on longer rides this summer before the event date and you’ll need to bring along some extra calories and nutrition.
Basic Stretches
Stretches are very important in maintaining efficiency and play an important role in injury prevention. If using a chair or elevated surface for assistance, put the it against a wall to prevent it slipping out away from you.
Adductor stretch (groin)
• Same set up as the hamstring stretch but the foot on the ground is pointed 90 degrees away from the angle of the elevated leg on the chair (which will open your hips up – BOTH of the pelvic bones near your waist point in the same direction as the leg on the ground – 90 degrees away from the elevated surface)
• Bend the leg with the foot on the ground and keep the elevated knee straight (toe up to ceiling)– you should feel the stretch MOSTLY in the groin of the elevated leg
• NOW bend the knee of the elevated leg (your whole body will shift towards this leg a bit) and straighten the knee of the leg that is on the ground – you should feel the stretch in the groin of the lower leg (but you might feel it on both sides which is good too)
• Rock back and forth between these two positions – Make sure the stretch length totals 30 seconds for each of the two positions (you can do 3 sets of 10 seconds OR 1 set of 30 seconds each)
• Then turn around 180 degrees and switch legs (turn the other direction) and repeat
Calf Stretch
• Hands on wall or end of table
• Stand with a stride stance (one foot in front of the other – shoulder width apart)
• You need to stretch BOTH the gastrocnemius AND the soleus (the two muscles lay on TOP of each other and make up the calf). If you do just one, you are not properly addressing your calf flexibility.
• For an “extra” stretch, you can place a towel roll under the toes/ball of foot of the back leg
• SO…to stretch the calf of the back leg, start with your knee straight and hold the stretch for a total of 30 seconds.
• Now bend that same knee (very slightly) and you should feel a calf stretch in a similar spot as before (some people feel it a bit lower in the Achilles and that’s ok too).
Glute Stretch
• This stretch can be done either standing or sitting
• Cross right leg over the left with right foot near the left knee
• If done standing, you can hold onto chair for balance
• If done seated, you can bring left heel closer to buttock for a stronger stretch
• You should feel this in the buttock of the right leg (the leg creating the figure four position)
• Hold this stretch for 30 seconds total
• Switch legs
Hamstring stretch
• One foot up on elevated surface (you can even do it on ground) and tilt top of pelvis FORWARD (stick your butt out)
• Be sure front AND back feet have toes forward
• Positions: 1) straight forward 2) twist torso inward 3) twist torso outward (the twists help ensure you stretch ALL the fibers of the muscle – you should feel the main hamstring muscle stretched the whole time but with slight differences with each “twist” motion)
• You should feel this in the back of your elevated leg
• Make sure the stretch length totals 30 seconds for each of the three positions (you can do 3 sets of 10 seconds OR 1 set of 30 seconds each)
Hip Flexor stretch
• One foot up on elevated surface and one foot on ground. Tilt top of pelvis BACKWARD (tuck your butt)
• You can place towel roll under the heel of your “down” leg
• Bend knee of elevated leg (recheck pelvic position)
• Be sure front AND back feet have toes forward
• Positions: 1) straight forward 2) twist torso inward 3) twist torso outward
• You should feel this in the front of the leg that is on the ground
• Make sure the stretch length totals 30 seconds for each of the three positions (you can do 3 sets of 10 seconds OR 1 set of 30 seconds each)
OSU Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation
OSU Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation includes a group of physicians, athletic trainers, physical therapists and certified specialists that understand the demands of your sport. We understand that as endurance athletes, you are familiar with training through pains and fear the recommendation to discontinue your sport. However, with prompt evaluation and appropriate procedures taken, many injuries can be treated early, which may prevent time away from your sport.
Physical therapists in OSU’s Endurance Medicine Team offer bicycle fittings for both patient rehabilitation and at a fee-for-service basis.
Clinics that offer bike fitting services include:
OSU Sports Medicine at Martha Morehouse (OSU Campus)
2050 Kenny Rd, Suite 3100
Columbus, OH 43221-3502
Phone: 614-293-3600 (physician clinic)
Phone: 614-293-2385 (physical therapy clinic)
OSU Sports Medicine CarePoint at Gahanna
920 N Hamilton Rd, Suite 600
Gahanna, OH 43230-1757
Phone: 614-366-4332 (physician clinic)
Phone: 614-293-7600 (physical therapy)
OSU Sports Medicine is the official medical provider for Pelotonia.
Kendra McCamey, MD and Matt Briggs DPT, SCS, ATC are the medical directors for Pelotonia.
