fatigue

[girlracer]

So i race and am in the middle of indoor gym training. My team director has me lifting heavy weights but it seems a bit early for that. I raised this point, and he was like I know what i am doing. When i ride the bike I am exhausted, although the weight lifting doesnt seem that bad when I am actually lifting. I also can seem to find my snap when riding to sprint (I am a sprinter, my only claim to fame). Does anyone else get this fatigue, and although i rest as much as i can, i have a stressfull job (full time grad student in science....lots of lab work). How do you guys deal with it and prevent it from becoming a serious problem (ie y ou have to stop training for awhile, which is what I want to avoid having to do)

[Mr. Bloom]

If I'm understanding correctly, you're doing heavy lifting and then cycling training?

When I work out, I've always been coached to do the lifting last. If you're really lifting to exhaustion, I could see where anything else would be hard to do afterward. I bet it will get easier though...

[girlracer]

No. I weight lift mon and wed. do trainer workouts Tues and thurs. have fri off and ride outside Sat and Sun.

I cant see to find my snap and go on the bike. I want to make sure that I am just not getting myself into a hole and going to a. peak to early in the season and b set my training back bc of taking time off to deal with super fatigue.

[velogirl]

girlracer, you need to talk to your coach. he/she should be aware of how you feel (physically and mentally).

given that, it's completely natural to feel "slow" while you're lifting heavy weights. your coach is having you lift heavy weights so you can increase your strength and (later in your training) improve your power. but if you're lifting appropriately, your legs (and your whole body) will feel fatigued. that's okay.

remember, you can't sustain a high level of performance year-round. you don't need to be fast right now. when does your race season start? when are your goal races?

[Flybye]

No. I weight lift mon and wed. do trainer workouts Tues and thurs. have fri off and ride outside Sat and Sun.

Tell us some more about the length of time for each workout and more specifics about what you are doing for each workout.

How long are the bike rides? The trainer workouts? How many hours are you putting in for grad school? How much sleep are you getting at night? What is your nutrition like? Vitamins? Liquids?

We need more info to be able to help you out. Your trainer might need more information, too.

[OakLeaf]

Just a thought... how much protein are you getting? I need a LOT when I'm putting on muscle - 80-100 g a day, including a 20 g boost right after my weight session. If I don't get that, I get a lot of fatigue and muscle soreness.

If you're vegetarian, try not to get all your extra protein from soy (it's tough, I know) - at least one study has decided that soy protein isn't ideal for muscle building, and personally if I get too much soy, it sends my hormones haywire.

[girlracer]

Hi, Thanks for all your replies!!! My racing season will start in April and go until mid-sept. I peaked in June last year and then was pretty flat the rest of the season. I won all my races in a month and could barely turn out a decent race after that. It was sad really. My gym workouts have lasted about 1-1.5 hours two days a week. I do leg extensions, squats, lunges and upper body (legs 2x a week and arms 1x). I try and cross train a little bit with running.

My coach feels great and when I tell him that I am fatigued, he doesnt really change any plan I just slow down a little bit that is it.

I just got a new bike that actually fits. (my previous bike was BAD, and ill fitting) but it is not jazzing up the cycling ability just yet.

do i need to slow down? is it too early to be doing heavy weights? It is a month early than when i did this last year. I am 126 lbs and squating 115 lbs and leg extending 135lbs.

for eating protein, I try and eat protein with lunch and dinner. ckicken, fish, spinach, veggies, cheese, Fat free milk, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc. I think i am getting enough protein, but maybe not.

does anyone have ideas on how to get potassium without taking another suppliment or eating bannanas?

happy holidays!

[aicabsolut]

I don't think it's necessarily too early for weight training. This is a good time to do that when your bike mileage is low. But you may want to cut down on the endurance workouts on the bike or add another rest day earlier in the week. You could just be overtraining. Do you have any trouble sleeping?

[girlracer]

I dont usually have trouble sleeping unless my work gets to me. but although lately my eating crap has been out of control--- so I am not sure that my fatigue may have something to do with that? But more recently I have been eating better, although I am still feeling tired on the bike.

so if I start earlier with the lifting training it wont cause me to peak too early in the season? that is also my main concern in addition to the fatigue getting out of control.