Absolutely Wiped!

[FetterSteve]

Went out today planning to do my longest ride to date (39 miles in just under 3 hrs) but about 5 miles out seriously considered turning back as my legs felt tired but as wont be able to go tomorrow decided to carry on. Thought I was keeping myself fed and hydrated but with 3 miles to go had legs like lead but pushed for home. When I got in exhaustion hit me like a ton of lead and managed a cuppa and half a sandwich before I had to go for a lie down. And that's been me for the rest of the day, just wiped out.

Don't think the distance was too much as I did 30 miles last week and felt great but today was completely different.
I recon I had about 1.25ltr of water in addition to my flapjack bar but I'm thinking I was maybe dehydrated as I was home over 2 hrs and had approx another ltr of fluid before I had to go to the loo.

I'm new to this lark and have never cycled these kind of distance before so any advice on feeding/drinking would be great as I don't want to feel like this again any time soon.

 

[Klaus]

I'm new to this lark and have never cycled these kind of distance before so any advice on feeding/drinking would be great as I don't want to feel like this again any time soon.

Very difficult to say what your specific problem was. For that kind of distance a normal breakfast (porridge in my case) should be sufficient. Water should be enough for hydration. I normally take an electrolyte energy drink for top ups. Lately I also take a bag of jelly beans for instant sugar fix. Not really needed but I do find that after a hill climb it just gives me some extra energy.

 

[the_mikey]

Reminds me of some of my early rides, things that may help with endurance is cycling a bit slower, use an isotonic energy drink, and drink frequently, don't wait until you're thirsty and need a break. Take food with you to eat on your ride also. Get used to this before pushing to ride faster/harder.

 

[Boatman]

Hi Fettersteve I posted a similar question a couple of weeks ago. The consensus was that I didn't bonk and your ride sounds like mine. I now realise that I to didn't drink or eat enough and thats probably your problem, although I am not as knowledegable as most on here.

 

[al-fresco]

When I get the "Oh my God, just let it stop feeling" it's generally because I'm trying too hard and just not enjoying myself. If you're riding for fun/fitness there's no need for it to be an ordeal. Stop, take a break, go a different route or take a day off - there's always another day. As long as it's fun you'll keep getting back on the bike for another go. I ride where I like, when I like, rarely take a water or food and stop at a cafe or pub if the mood takes me. But it's so much fun that I'm always looking forward to the next ride - and with the rides the fitness just comes.

 

[ColinJ]

I think the fact that you were already feeling bad after 5 miles might be a sign that you were either exhausted from previous days, or that you are coming down with a bug of some sort. How are you sleeping? If you haven't been sleeping well, that wouldn't help.

What exercise did you do on each of the last 7 days leading up to this ride? You need to allow time to recover from hard efforts. Did you try doing a few hard daily rides back to back?

As you get fitter, you will be able to ride further, faster but your body still needs time to repair itself.

It sounds like you are making an effort to drink enough but what did you eat before the ride and how long before? I don't think that one flapjack bar would give you enough energy for that ride, but what you ate beforehand would be more important.

You could try making your own energy drinks to take on rides, like this.

 

[Midnight]

I think the fact that you were already feeling bad after 5 miles might be a sign that you were either exhausted from previous days, or that you are coming down with a bug of some sort. How are you sleeping? If you haven't been sleeping well, that wouldn't help.

+1.

I had a similar experience last Sunday. Had planned to do at least 30 miles, but just a few miles in my legs felt tired, so i cut my ride down to a steady 20. I'm glad I did, because in the last couple of miles I felt like I barely had the leg strength to turn the pedals. I had a rest day Monday, but Tueday and Wednesday my legs were still stiff. Tried again Thursday and still not much better. Finally got a ride in on Friday, but my legs still don't feel 100%.

I have been loosing out on sleep lately, but I've also been feeling 'chesty' and had the sniffles. So I think it's some kinda bug.

In the mean time, I'm taking it easy, catching up on sleep and watching my diet until I start to feel better.

 

[FetterSteve]

Thanks guys,

It's clear that I didn't bonk, and the tiredness at the start must have been my body telling me it wasn't up for it but I didn't listen. I had a couple of disturbed night sleep due to the missus having a cold and maybe lack of sleep combined with a bug working on me was the cause

FWIW I have been reading up and didn't realise how drastic a bonk can be , scary stuff.

I'm going to have a few days rest and send the wife to the spare room as I'm planning to go meet my local club on Wednesday. Mid week is just a pub run so hopefully be okay for that.

 

[jack cameron]

Steve, i'l tell you what it feels like to Bonk then you will know for sure....You will suddenly feel tired ,exhausted,hungry.extremely shaky and cant turn a wheel for toffee,it's so extreme and sudden.I would say you Bonked.It doesn't matter what you eat or drink,this will not stop it at all.If you are going to Bonk,believe me you can't stop it.Keep at it Steve,Bonking happens to us all,but not that often...Good luck Mate...

 

[Seamab]

Went out today planning to do my longest ride to date (39 miles in just under 3 hrs) but about 5 miles out seriously considered turning back as my legs felt tired but as wont be able to go tomorrow decided to carry on.

A tricky decision. I've lost count of the times i've felt rubbish early in a ride only to find that after a while it seems to sort itself out and all is well. It's easy to say "can the ride" and go home but in practice it's much harder to do especially when you know it's your only chance for a couple of days.
I've also lost count of the times that i've felt as you describe after a ride (usually after a lot more miles right enough) due to poor hydration and feeding.

I suspect you have something viral working on you.

Try to make sure you have had a decent breakfast a while before heading out and some extra fluid 30mins/1hr before heading off.That should see you fine for a couple of hours on the bike - any longer and you need to supplement food and drink as you seem to be doing.

 

[ColinJ]

FWIW I have been reading up and didn't realise how drastic a bonk can be , scary stuff.

On one occasion I was cycling with another rider on a minor road up to a crossroads. The A-road that we had to cross was busy. One second I was riding, the next I was standing astride my bike at the stop line feeling mighty fuzzy-headed and trying to work out what to do next.

My pal had sprinted across the A-road in a gap in the traffic. I'd bonked so suddenly that I was totally confused and couldn't work out how to cross the road. I also couldn't really speak properly to let him know what was going on. He rode back over to me.

Fortunately, we were only about 50 yards from a supermarket. I stayed with the bikes while my mate went in and bought some emergency rations. (By then, I wasn't even capable of doing my own shopping!) It took a can of Coca Cola and a Mars Bar to get my blood sugar back up and then I ate a sandwich and a bag of crisps to keep me going. We waited about 10 minutes for the Coke to kick in but I didn't really feel right for another 30 minutes or so.

Yeah, bonking can be scary! (For another example, see my Trauma of Trawden post in Riders' Tales! )

 

[Yellow Fang]

I thought 'bug' too when I read your post. Another possibility is that you still haven't built up your stamina enough, as you say you're new to cycling. I suppose it's pretty hilly up there. I don't think you bonked. One way of telling is to hold your arm out with your palm facing downwards. If it's shaking, you've probably bonked. The main thing to do then is to eat and drink something sugary. I find a can of red bull, or an energy drink like gatorade or lucosade and a flapjack or mars bar sorts me out quite quickly.

 

[MLC]

Fettersteve,

We all have days like that. Two weeks ago I did 27 fairly flat miles and felt awful. Yesterday I did 47 miles built in some sprint intervals and attacked quite a few climbs and got in more refreshed than that week - go figure!

There can be so many things that can affect your performance on any given day. Perhaps it was more of a headwind, oncoming bug/cold, stress, lack of sleep, head not really there etc etc

Also remeber that when you get off the bike just because you stopped your riding your body will still be burning calories. It may still be burning extra calories even as far as the next day!

In terms of fuelling just keep yourself well hydrated and as regards energy for longer rides just pick something with a a slow release carbohydrates such as porridge. Bananas are also great.

You can also carb up the night before a bigger ride pasta potatoes etc etc

Alas it is trial and error as to what works for the individual but generally I subscribe to KISS (keep it simple) but if you want fuel and energy go good quality carbohydrate if you want to build muscle add protein and to balance and get vitamins add fruit and veg.

 

[fossyant]

The way I know the bonk is coming on is I get flashing lights in my eyes - like a target, and it get's worse, then I can hardly ride.

Fortunately it's down to fueling, and if you know how your body responds, you can stop it at the first stage.

The op's symptoms sound more like you were 'under the weather' as has been mentioned.

 

[BigTone0777]

+1.

I had a similar experience last Sunday. Had planned to do at least 30 miles, but just a few miles in my legs felt tired, so i cut my ride down to a steady 20. I'm glad I did, because in the last couple of miles I felt like I barely had the leg strength to turn the pedals. I had a rest day Monday, but Tueday and Wednesday my legs were still stiff. Tried again Thursday and still not much better. Finally got a ride in on Friday, but my legs still don't feel 100%.

I have been loosing out on sleep lately, but I've also been feeling 'chesty' and had the sniffles. So I think it's some kinda bug.

In the mean time, I'm taking it easy, catching up on sleep and watching my diet until I start to feel better.

This happened to me last week and I haven't been on the bike since as I ended up with a really bad cold and my chest has been just awful. Think it was the start of it coming on and the ride just killed me off. Hopefully back on the bike today for a nice gentle few mile just to assess where I am before I go for a bigger run.