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Your Body |
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The Big Idea:
Any maximum intensity training only works effectively and
safely if the body is warmed up beforehand, and given
enough rest afterwards.
However shinny and ultra - low weight & expensive your
bike is, you are the sole means of propelling it along.
You may know everything there is to know about compression
damping and progressive spring rates, but you'll still be
going no where fast if you're over-trained or racked with
cold.
What you get from this
information is entirely up to you, Just use it as a basic
guide. After all even if you don't find it handy for your
cycling, it'll be very handy for the pub quizzes. |
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 Make
cycling apart of your lifestyle.
It could bring many healthy benefits, .... Read, Learn, Ride
and ride and ride... |
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Abuse |
Dehydration |
Food& Eating |
Muscles |
Heart & Blood |
Skeleton |
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Drugs:
The dubious bits they put in the legitimate stuff from the
chemist are scary enough, but who knows what goes into the
local street dealer's melting pot?. Drugs cause disorientation
and psychological and physiological chaos, of varying
proportions. Mixing these symptoms with any kind of intense
exercise just makes the risks higher as the `products` crash
around your system faster. Given the length of time some drugs
stay in your system, think very carefully before mixing
mountain biking or for that matter, any cycling with
pharmaceutical habits.
Drinking:
Alcohol makes you feel like shit on Sunday mornings when you
should be riding. Re-hydrate with water or a weak sports drink
as soon as possible and hope you feel better when you hit the
trail. Next time, eat first to line your stomach, limit the
amount you drink and have the odd glass of water or a couple
of soft drinks. Before you crash into bed, drink at least a
pint of water, that way you should feel like riding the next
morning. We are not telling you not to drink, but drink it in
moderation.
Smoking:
Fags will fill your lungs with sticky tar, reducing
performance, increasing irritation and massively increasing
the risk of lung cancer. None of these are recommended.
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Water:
Seventy-five per cent of the energy given out by your muscles
is heat, and the body's cooling system is water-based. A litre
of sweat gets rid of 600 calories of heat. Exercising
intensively in the heat, you can lose up to two litres of
sweat an hour. Dehydration affects the circulation, placing
increased strain on the heart and lungs, and other systems
become impaired with only minute rises in body temperature.
Remember
two per-cent body weight fluid loss = 10 - 20 per-cent
performance loss. Five per-cent body weight fluid loss = a
performance drop of 30 per-cent, with nausea, vomiting and
diarrhoea. Below this level, and things get really serious. [lights
out!]
When To Work:
Keep hydrated throughout the day. NEVER wait until you
get thirsty as that's to late. Watch out for hot work places
or air conditioning which may have an artificially dry
atmosphere. As soon as you are on your mountain bike drink as
much as you comfortably can without having to stop every
twenty feet for a piddle!. About 100ml every quarter of an
hour or more if its hot. Don't ration a bottle so that it
lasts a hole ride, take enough bottles to allow for the
expected time. Keep drinks to a frequent sips, and don't stop
after riding.
Which Drink:
Pure water is a great re-hydrator, but over long periods you
need to mix it with other fuels and minerals to maintain
operating levels. Hypertonic and isotonic drinks are absorbed
faster than just pure water. Concentrations of carob's in
isotonic drinks will be around 4-8g per-100ml, keeping a
balance so that you can refuel without affecting hydration.
Hypertonic drinks contain more sugars and should be used with
another, thinner drink to avoid dehydration. Use hypersonic
and isotonic drinks in all high-intensity situations, add a
carbohydrate drink as the activity increases beyond an hour
but increase other intakes to compensate. Countless sport
drinks and gels are now on the market some unflavoured starch
carbohydrate powders, some carefully-balanced fuelling mixes,
and others little more than fizzy sugar/syrup drinks. >Always
read the labels.
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Bite And Swallow:
As soon as food and drink are taken on board, the processing
starts. The teeth chop and grind it all up into little bits
while the tongue tells you what it tastes like and starts
stirring in saliva enzymes to break down cooked starches. The
dissolving mush is massaged down to the stomach in wave like
actions for yet more serious stirring. The stomach is
basically a muscular bag that can stretch or shrink depending
on its load, with muscular valves at either end to stop any
overflow. Acids and enzymes, which break down proteins and
dairy products, are also added to the mix at this point. The
average meal will be emptied from the stomach after about 3-5
hours, but liquids go through much faster.
Pipe Work:
Once out of your stomach it begins the eight meter-long "Yes
8 Meters !" journey through your intestines, where
actual absorption of nutrients takes place. Minute fronds on
the intestinal walls absorb fats, sugars and proteins, and
further down the piping there are lymph glands to fight any
infections that kick up. Each type of food is broken down into
its most basic form before absorption. Carbohydrates are
broken down into monosaccharides, fats are split into fatty
acids and glycerol, and proteins are broken down into
peptones, polypeptides and amino acids.
Bile:
As well as the basic plumbing, there are other organs vital to
processing. The liver is a huge gland that creates up to a
litre a day of the acidic `bile` that breaks down fats. It
manufactures enzymes, vitamins, cholesterol, protein and blood
components. Not content with this work load, it is also
responsible for breaking down bodily toxins and storing blood
and processed glycogen sugars ready for use. The pancreas is
another essential gland which controls the carbohydrate
metabolism of the body through the production of insulin.
Carbohydrates And Sources:
Carbohydrate complexity is all to do with molecule size. Your
body doesn't care, it processes them all in the same way. The
key to choosing the best carbohydrate for the job is in the
extras you get with the food. Complex carbohydrates tend to be
those starchy, good-for-you foods with roughage, vitamins,
minerals, proteins etc, that fill you up. Bread, pasta, rice,
oats, unsweetened cereals, pulses, beans, spuds and parsnips
are all complex-rich. Common sense tells you to stick to these
as your staple carob's source, as opposed to a massive pile of
sugary cream buns and choc bars fat lard Just eat
sensibly and read the labels and don't go overboard by trying
to eat a bowl of pasta halfway around the course. "Muppet"
How Much And When ?:
When you are out riding, aim to eat and drink one gram of
carbohydrate for each kg of body weight for each hour you are
exercising, with the same amount before and after a ride to
preload and reload respectively.
Mixing The Fat:
A lot of high-protein foodstuffs, such as eggs, cheese and red
meats, also contain lots of fat. The way to avoid this
becoming a problem is by rationing how much you eat of each,
and choosing a leaner or low-fat alternative wherever
possible. Swap your frying for boiling, poaching or grilling
to minimize fats added through cooking. Beans, Soya, cereal
and bread are all alternative low-fat sources of protein. Mix
your diet and use as many food groups as possible, and your
protein needs shouldn't ever be a problem.
'One serving of pasta
with mushy peas & honey & rice pudding please'
Fruit & Veg:
It's quite simple, eat fresh fruit and veg every day.
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Pulling Power:
Muscles are the motors that power the skeleton, muscles
always pull, through contraction of muscle fibre, they are not
capable of pushing. This means that for every muscle there has
to be another capable of pulling in the opposite direction to
get you back to the original position. For example, the biceps
oppose the triceps. Where maximum power is required, muscles
are layered on top of each other, with different attachment
points but the same basic function. Muscles are linked to the
skeleton by tendons, and enclosed in lubricated sheaths to
keep operation smooth. Muscles contract when they receive a
nerve impulse from the brain 'so how can yours
work'?. They come in two varieties. Involuntary
muscles are the automatic ones that control the heart,
breathing, digestion, circulation etc. These keep you alive
without you having to worry about it. Voluntary muscles are
the ones you get the remote control for.
Power:
Once the nerve impulse is received by the muscle,
molecules within it produce heat and movement which is energy.
'There are 640 named
muscles, accounting for an average 50% of your body weight,
100's have no name, including the ones which are at the base
of every hair strand'
Crash And Burners:
Under normal use the circulation is able to supply enough
oxygen, and carry away enough of the waste products, for
pain-free operation. Fatigue occurs when fuel available in the
muscles and liver is spent or being processed too slowly.
Under extreme workloads the demand for oxygen outstrips
supply, and the muscles work `anaerodically`. A
build up of excess waste occurs, and this is what causes the [Burning
sensation] in the muscles that bring you to a halt.
Flushing the muscles through with oxygen and fuel-rich blood
is the order of the day, which is why we're always banging on
about warming down.
Muscles And The Twitch:
Muscles are bundles of elastic fibres laced with blood
vessels that supply fuel and oxygen. Two basic types of fibres
exist: powerful but fuel-hungry `fast twitch` fibres and more
efficient-but less powerful -`slow twitch fibres`. Natural
weight and composition of muscle is determined genetically;
certain people will always be stocky and add muscle easily,
others will always be light and `wiry`. Specific training
,however, can increase muscle power and nervous efficiency.
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The average heart weighs about
255g.
Pumps about 36,000 litres of blood through about 20,000 km's
of blood vessels.!
Each cubic mm of blood plasma contains 5 million red blood
cells that carry oxygen.
8000 white blood cells that fight infection & 250,000
platelets that cause clotting.
Pumping:
The heart is the pump for the whole system. It pushes blood
through the lungs, where it picks up oxygen, then pumps it out
through the organs of the body. The more it gets used the
stronger it will grow, pushing more blood with each beat. When
resting, it doesn't need to beat as often. Hey presto: a
slower resting rate.
Plumbing:
Plumbing for the heart comprises of two types of pipes Veins
and arteries. The arteries carry oxygenated blood fresh from
the lungs, while the veins carry the blood back for re-supply.
Both are ,elasticised tubes which decrease in diameter at the
extremities. As they are operating under heart pressure, the
arteries are smooth but the veins operating under lower
pressure are equipped with valves to prevent back-flow of
blood.
Blood:
The blood is basically the transport system [Bike] for
the body. Plasma carries sugar, amino acids, mineral salts,
enzymes and other nutrients. Red blood cells carry oxygen out
and bring carbon dioxide and other waste back. White blood
cells fight infection by ingesting bacteria [yummy !]
If the infection is serious the cells divide and multiply
extremely rapidly. Blood platelets are large cells responsible
for maintaining blood thickness and clotting in wounds.
Lymph:
The lymph system is a secondary circulation that is based on
the plasma that flows from the capillaries. It flushes through
the body's tissues, nourishing them and carrying away waste
products. Tiny lymph vessels, like veins, join together at
larger lymph nodes and glands where the lymph fluid is
filtered to prevent infection passing into the blood stream.
This is why your glands feel hot and swollen when you are
fighting an infection. The lymph fluid is then passed back
into the circulation system.
About Your Heart Rate:
Your heart is the most important muscle in your body. It pumps
blood to your lungs and other bits by contracting and relaxing
rhythmically. The number of times your heart contracts and
relaxes per minute is called your heart rate. A healthy person
with average fitness typically has a resting heart rate of
60-80 beats per minute. During exercise, your heart rate rises
as more blood has to be pumped into the system. The harder you
exercise, the further it rises.
Resting And Maximum
Heart Rates:
When you exercise with a heart rate monitor, its important to
know about heart rate limits, because your heart and your body
gets its best workout when your heart rate rises. Your resting
heart rate is your heart's rate when you're at rest, while
your maximum heart rate is your limit to how hard you can
safely push yourself.
The maximum heart rate can be roughly calculated using the
age adjusted formula. Maximum heart rate = 220-your
age. So, a 40 year old persons maximum heart rate is
approximately 180 beats per min.
Maximum heart rate = 220 - your age 40 = 180 b.p.m
For your own personal heart rate
print-out, exercise & active program go to
http://www.polaruk.co.uk/
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The Hard Bits:
The bones in your body provide protection for the soft bits, 'the
skull .......... that dense bit'
protects the brain and your eyes, the ribs protect the lungs
and heart, the spine protects the spinal nervous column and
the pelvis creates a basket for your giblets to sit in. The
bones themselves are fully capable of self-repair when we
damage ourselves. Even a simple hard knock will cause extra
bone to grow in the bruised area ready for the next time.
However, care must be taken to ensure proper realignment,
hence all that fun with plaster and pulleys.
 Them
Bones:
Pelvic 4 Skull 22
Ribs 24 Spinal 33 Upper back 60 Lower back 60
Flexing:
Different sections of the body are linked to different types
of joint, according to the range of movement required. Hips
and shoulders have ball-and-socket joints allowing big
circular movements, and rely on muscle and ligament strapping
to keep them in place. Knees and elbows are hinge joints, kept
fore and aft by heavy ligaments and ridges on the bearings.
The kneecap forms a stop at the knee to prevent it all going
flamingo. The spine is a stack of vertebral bones, each one
moving slightly on cartilage bushings allowing larger movement
of the whole spine. Stability comes from muscles in the back
and stomach, which act like the lines on a tent.
Joints:
Cartilage provides smooth bearing surfaces and shock
absorption for the joints. Like all good sealed bearings the
joints need to be kept lubricated and maintained, so each one
has a sensorial capsule with a store of fluid secreted inside.
Skeletal damage comes mainly from impact or just old age but
it can easily be damaged by careless use or posture. |
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Important Stuff.
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Bicyclemania.co.uk cannot attest to the accuracy of
this information. Use of a term in this web site should
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G r a s s
r o o t s t r a i l &
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