Track fitness and recovery

[irishgixxer]

I am curious to know how others feel after a track day in terms of muscle soreness? I just did a recent track day and my calf muscles feel like they have been beat with a sledge hammer immediately the next day. I'm I doing something wrong on the bike?

I run -A pace.

 

[Spec-ECU]

First trackday of the season for you?

 

[Sukka_Foo_46]

Taking your time and stretching before and between sessions helps a lot! But like you, I also feel sore the days after riding the track, probably due to the constant face pace, stop and go and g forces the body goes through after a full day. But if you're constantly going throughout the season like ^Dennis, I'm sure it goes away! :thumbup :ride

 

[DirtyD]

It depends a lot on the bike, track, pace, and riding style. Turn 8 at Sears has me working so hard trying to pick the bike up and get it turned that my triceps are sore for days afterwards. Damn that's a good feeling! Laguna doesn't have any high speed esses, so no soreness after a day there. I've never had sore calves so I can't really offer any advice on that front.

 

[irishgixxer]

Hey Dennis! 2nd track day of the year. Just getting a little faster this year, I also have started cross training at the start of the year but I can't believe the pain in my calfs after the track day on Monday

 

[abhijitz]

Road Biking/Mountain Biking? with many elevation changes. My calves used to shake on prolonged riding. Road Biking with elevation changes [like an over-bridge multiple times] helped.

I got lazy this winter & stopped road biking. Had the shaky feeling this Monday. I am back to road biking now. 1hr [12-15 miles]

 

[Hooli]

Plenty of water, maybe some potassium tablets and stretching before/during/after sessions should help.

 

[stangmx13]

mustard and chocolate milk, not joking.

try to find places on track to relax. rly, no sense in tensing up down the front straight. i learned a lot about where i'm overexerting myself during a 20lap race; working on that has made me less tired after each session/race.

 

[scotinexcile]

When you are training try to work in calf raises. As silly as it may sound, get your bike on stands in the garage, make is secure then practice moving over the bike left to right, right to left. 20 - 30 minute sessions and see the difference that makes

making the engine noises is optional

 

[black cx]

Yoga

 

[Archimedes]

I'm finding that how quickly I fade and how sore I am afterward is directly related to my riding style. The more quiet I am on the bike and the less aggressively I'm hanging off, the faster my lap times are and the better I feel afterwards.

 

[scotinexcile]

Pilates is also great for your core strength. Planks are one of Ken Hills, at rest, exercises

 

[Burning1]

When I can, I generally run both A and B, with a 5 minute pit brake between sessions. I'll throw in a few C sessions later in the day to spend time with my wife. Yes, that means 40 minutes on track, with 20 breaks, and the occasional 80+ minute stint (with short breaks.)

I don't do any special training and conditioning, although subjectively I seem to have somewhat above average endurance for someone who doesn't train regularly.

The most valuable bit of advance I can offer is that relaxation on track is way way more important than building endurance, and endurance is way more important than building strength.

I'd personally recommend bicycling, since it builds leg endurance and is relatively low impact on your knees. It can also help build some wrist endurance.

A lot of problems can be solved with technique. Making sure you're shifted off the bike before breaking or turn entry will significantly reduce energy needs during track riding. Relaxing your legs and arms during cornering will not only reduce strain, but will also improve feedback and handling from the bike.

 

[MonicaLeePaige]

I am curious to know how others feel after a track day in terms of muscle soreness? I just did a recent track day and my calf muscles feel like they have been beat with a sledge hammer immediately the next day. I'm I doing something wrong on the bike?

I run -A pace.

There are definitely a lot of applied forces that your body is enduring as well as muscles that you are using to control the bike. If you haven't worked on strength and endurance exercises relative to riding you will likely experience DOMS (Delayed onset muscle soreness) particularly 24-48 hours afterwards.

Stretching and yoga does help, however if you are serious about riding at the track and do it often, as a personal trainer who specializes in programs for racers I recommend a strength/conditioning program to not only help prevent soreness, but also to improve your performance on the track and reduce your weight to power ratio. Using a foam roller for Myofascial release will help with recovery and can be purchased for a reasonable price from any leading sports store or target.

If you have any questions about a remote training program for racing, riding or weight loss shoot me an e-mail at - monica@aussiebodyfitness.com

Cheers! - Monica:thumbup
Aussie Body Fitness

 

[AFM535]

Calf muscles shouldn't be that sore, relatively. Quad, inner thigh, core - these definitely get worked.

Take a look at your inside foot. Many riders collapse their ankle by default (less than 90 degrees between foot and leg). It seems like less effort at first, but this means you're continuously bearing all of your weight on an over-stretched calf muscle, and hyper flexing it over bumps - not fun.

If you can point your toe down a bit (anything over 90 degrees), your calf muscle will work better. Also, it'll automatically lift your knee up, square up your hips, and take more weight off your inside arm for better bike feel overall.

 

[eeeeek]

I am curious to know how others feel after a track day in terms of muscle soreness? I just did a recent track day and my calf muscles feel like they have been beat with a sledge hammer immediately the next day. I'm I doing something wrong on the bike?

I run -A pace.

You are probably always on the balls of your feet. I move my outside leg to the arch of my foot and that helps alot.

 

[gbstone]

Perhaps the calve issue is bike set up related. You may be pushing off the ball of your foot to get more pressure into the gas tank to get more connected to the bike. Perhaps the foot pegs are in a position where the top of your knee is not set into the tank correctly.

By moving the rear sets up or forward you may get better/firmer contact with the tank and have less fatigue. Pro racing teams can spend an entire day or more just working on bike set up, ergonomics. Track day riders and casual racers seem to miss this all together. The more connected and comfortable you are on the bike the more convidence and faster you will go. With different bikes I have seen my track times drop 3-5 seconds because of set up.

 

[Gds7]

You are probably always on the balls of your feet. I move my outside leg to the arch of my foot and that helps alot.

+1

 

[27007RT]

No matter how much I ride, I am almost always sore the next day - Supermoto, dirt bike & road race bikes. If I'm cruising around I'm not sore at all - when I push my limits, it takes everything I've got. My arms, shoulders and neck muscles usually take the biggest beating.

If your calfs are killing you - I agree with everyone else, shank of the boot for the outside foot. If you are weighting your footpegs int the turns, stop - it really isn't that effective.

Cheers.

 

[scotinexcile]

If you are weighting your footpegs int the turns, stop - it really isn't that effective.

seriously? :wtf