Am I grinding......leg issues

[gillelive]

As I have said in other posts I have been laid up with a hamstring tendon problem over the past few weeks and have only managed a few short rides on my new Sirrus, I am desparate to get out and about but the leg is not playing ball. I have been reading other posts today but the one about 'Knee pain' and cadence has got me thinking - am I grinding?

I sometimes suffer some knee/leg discomfort and I not sure if this is related to my hamstring problem. I don't think I grind, I use a the full range on the cassette but mostly stay in the middle front ring. In terms of cadence I have no idea what my average is but I tend to stay in the gears that feel most comfortable for my ride . The problem I find is that when I go in to a lower gear and try to spin faster I don't feel in control of the bike and don't feel as if I am getting anywhere (it also makes me look like a dick who can't ride a bike), does this make sense? If I up to a higher gear, like others have said, after a few mins it feels like my lungs are about to leave my chest and my legs are going to burst in to flames. I guess my question is: does what I have tried to describe sound like grinding, and am I best increasing my cadence by sticking with the gear that feels most comfortable to me for the road type/hill while at the same trying to increase by rpm?

Sorry for waffling on, any advice appreciated.

 

[BSRU]

Get yourself a bike computer with cadence display, then choose an appropriate gear that maintains at least 70 rpm preferably 80 to 90.
Do not worry about your speed just your cadence, keep at it, the more you do the better if feels and becomes more natural.

 

[MacB]

If you use Sheldons gear calculator you can take the option to show the results in RPM:-

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gears/

See which gear you use a lot on a regular route and just have a play via your computer speedo. For example if I go out and spend a lot of time in 67.5 inch gear then I would expect to see 12mph at 60rpm, 13 at 65, 14.1 at 70, 15.1 at 75 and on up to 24.1 at 120rpm...that's about as fast as I can spin.

Grinding can be quite subjective anyway, I haven't followed your other posts but, if not done already, I'd want to make absolutely sure that my position on the bike was right before messing about with cadence. The only times I've had knee problems have beendown to setup and not my pedalling.

 

[Sittingduck]

does what I have tried to describe sound like grinding, and am I best increasing my cadence by sticking with the gear that feels most comfortable to me for the road type/hill while at the same trying to increase by rpm?

What cadence do you typically maintain? You don't need a cycle computer with a cadence monitor, to figure this out. Count your Revs over a 10 second period. Do this 3 times and pick the avg. Then multiply that by 6.... what number do you get?

Everybody is different but I found that the second I drop below 80 rpm, it just feels like a grind.

 

[HLaB]

You don't sound like your grinding Gillelive, I couldn't say 100% though.
The thing to watch out with cadence monitors IMO they don't always paint an accurate picture. When I'm out on a ride I often pedal at a fairly high cadence (say 100-110rpm) but also freewheel quite a bit, down hill (0rpm) bringing my average down to around 70rpm but on a flatter club run its back up in the 90s. My cadence monitor is on my other bike and I feel I am spinning more these days, after having got a turbo for Christmas but I'm in no rush to transfer to the bike I ride most often.

 

[Moodyman]

If you haven't got a computer or a watch, you can do this.

Say 'One thousand and one', 'One thousand and two'

Takes about a second to say one of them, so if you manage one turn of the crank, that's 60 rpm. If you do it twice, that 120 rpm.

 

[gillelive]

First of all see a sports physio for a proper clinical diagnosis and advice.
MY GUESS - People with hamstring problems do get sore knees. Cyclists can get over tight hamstrings, lots of exercise without the knee fully straightening will promote tight hamstrings. If your knee pain is a result of over tight hamstrings then you need to concentrate your attention towards your hamstrings not your knees.
Lots of very gentle stretching, see this YouTubeVid LINK, Don't expect to get anywhere near 90° as the bloke in the video, and keep it very very gentle, find a position that you don't even feel the stretch for the first 20 seconds, and then don't go beyond that point.

thanks for that, it has made me feel much better, my physio has also said the same about knees and hams

i am sure my bike is set up right so it's just down to me and my exercises!

by the way i think the chap in the youtube link has a problem, how can anyone be that flexible! but some good advice and worth a try providing i don't over do things......

 

[cyberknight]

by the way i think the chap in the youtube link has a problem, how can anyone be that flexible!

It is doable with a lot of practice when i did kung fu for years i could do splits on chairs and get my leg further over than that....

I had to stop training when i tore a bit in my shoulder at work leaving it weak on 1 side, it would hurt for over a week after only 1 session so i got back into cycling.Could i claim? maybe but it was a while ago and how can i prove it was work and not other training i did in a court case....

Nowadays ... goes and has a go....

yes i can still get my leg over

 

[Rob3rt]

First of all see a sports physio for a proper clinical diagnosis and advice.
MY GUESS - People with hamstring problems do get sore knees. Cyclists can get over tight hamstrings, lots of exercise without the knee fully straightening will promote tight hamstrings. If your knee pain is a result of over tight hamstrings then you need to concentrate your attention towards your hamstrings not your knees.
Lots of very gentle stretching, see this YouTubeVid LINK, Don't expect to get anywhere near 90° as the bloke in the video, and keep it very very gentle, find a position that you don't even feel the stretch for the first 20 seconds, and then don't go beyond that point.

One of the biggest reasons for tight hamstrings these days is apparently.................. sitting at a desk all day if your job is based in an office.

My point being, its not just what you do on the bike that informs what happens on the bike, its also what you do off the bike. So if you do a lot of sitting, you might want to start doing a bit of routine stretching a few times a day.

 

[gillelive]

you are right, i am doing a range of stretching and exercises to free up movement in the lower back, hip, hams and calf, i am office based and as the years have passed (even though i am only 41) i hadn't realised how unfit and stiff i was.....that is until i started cycling and then my problems started

things have improved recently but my specifc ham/knee problem has taken about 9 weeks to sort, even when i am back to what i see as my best i will need to introduce some stretching and exercise in to my weekly routine, i can't just return to sitting on my ass!

at the moment i keep disappearing to the fire exit stairwell to do my stretching - let's hope no one see me! quite a sight.....