Stiff legs after long cold ride.

[Banjo]

Did a 200km DIY Audax this week and the following day found my legs really stiff (to the point of it being obvious to other peopler when I walked) . It wasnt a hard ride, not a lot of climbing ,I did have to go slightly quicker than usual to make up time wasted on navigational errors.but certainly not riding hard.

Temp was down to freezing at the finish.Does the cold weather contribute to muscle stiffness after exercise?

 

[Globalti]

Might do. I suffered unaccountably from cramp on a routine ride in very cold weather recently, just as I was doing the downhill bit towards the end of the ride when I got chilled.

 

[Banjo]

Funnilly enough I felt a few twinges of cramp in my calves during the ride but they didnt go into full blown cramp as I immediately did a bit of stretching and eating which stopped it progressing.

 

[Old Plodder]

A ride longer than normal, & at a harder pace, will leave you with 'hollow legs', nothing unusual in that.
Add in the cold, & I'm not surprised at all.