Hey, my quads just cramped...Timmmberrrr!

I’ve recently done some long, hot summer rides, and they’ve reminded me of the importance of keeping hydrated on the bike.

Whenever I’ve ridden without enough water in my system, I am prone to cramps in my quads (thighs) and hamstrings, and those are no fun to cope with while riding. They hurt and inhibit your pedaling rhythm. And sometimes cramped up quads make you fall down and go boom! And that’s just no fun at all.

I first dealt with quad cramps on big mountain bike rides years ago. They would happen when I unclipped and stepped to the ground after a lot of tough climbing. Ouch, the muscles would freeze up and it hurt too much to even walk. But I could fall, no problem!

 My first long road bike ride was in warm summer weather in Napa and that’s when I got an education on proper hydration. It’s all about drinking enough water and having electrolytes in your system to keep the lactic acid from seizing up you quads and other leg muscles.

This was an organized ride, with many other riders and well stocked rest stops. I did the 60-mile version. At the midway rest stop, I figured if I downed a few bananas and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, then just filled my water bottles, I’d be good to go the rest of the ride.

 I saw other riders had Cytomax drinks to help keep them from cramping, but I was pretty sure just water would work for me. The second half of the ride started with a tough climb, with steep pitches and switchbacks. Even though it was in the shade, it was hot, and made everybody pedaling sweat it up as they slowly grinded it out. I didn’t rest at the top, and pushed on to a fast seven-mile descent. Flying down that was a blast. The road was smooth the turns were wide, nothing but fun.

At the bottom there was a hairpin turn, and the course went to a narrow back road with occasional small hills to climb. At this point, I didn’t realize it, but the wind from the descent had stiffened up my quads building up lactic acid, right after they had been pushed hard on the climb. Plus, I hadn’t been drinking enough water, because I pretty much forgot to. So up comes a short climb, and I decided to stand up to get some momentum. As I stood on the pedals, not one, but both of my quads locked up into cramps. I couldn’t move them forward at all without pain. The bike quickly slowed to a stop on the hill because I was in too high of a gear. I couldn’t even kick out of my clips. So what happened? I tipped over!

I’ve fallen off of a mountain bike enough to know how to fall without injury most of the time, so I tipped to the right and broke my fall to the asphalt with my gloved hands. So there I was in the middle of the road, with my bike on its side next to me – my fall had pulled me out of my clips – and so I sat up. My legs were straight out, but I couldn’t get up, they were locked tight.

That’s when other riders, bless ‘em, stopped and helped. One guy picked up my bike and leaned it on the rock cliff on the side of the road and out of the way of other riders coming through. Then he and his buddy each hooked me under my arms and dragged me off the road to the side, my heels dragging along the asphalt.

So then at least I was out of the way, and everybody passing asked if I was OK. I figured, I’d be sitting there for awhile until my quads could relax on their own. But then riders, who apparently had been in my position at some point, began offering me their remedies. One woman gave me some Tums, telling me the magnesium is a good electrolyte for cramped muscles. Another woman gave me a packet of Cytomax powder to put in my water bottle. Then a man stopped and held out his palm with six white gel caps in it, offering them to me.

“I’m a cardiologist,” he said. “I know it’s not a good idea to accept meds off the street from somebody you don’t know, but just take these, and your cramps will be gone in five minutes.”

I trusted this guy, no problem. He was a bike rider! Offering help! So as I’m washing down these gel caps with my Cytomax infused water, I asked him, “What are they?”

“They’re super electrolytes,” he said. “Believe me, you’ll be up in five minutes.”

So he rode off and I rolled around, trying to get up. I managed to get to my feet, and in a flash, my quads quickly relaxed. I was blown away! I got on my bike and finished the rest of the ride, no cramps at all.

So since then, I realized, it’s really important to take measures to avoid cramping, even though recently I cramped on a long hot climb from, yes, not drinking enough water. It’s easy to forget to drink enough, so it’s a good idea to keep reminding yourself to keep drinking your water.

Especially on hot summer rides with a lot of climbing, I’ve found it greatly helps to drink a full bottle of water before getting on the bike. Then have two full bottles of water on the bike. And I found later out those gel caps I took while sitting on the road in Napa were something called Endurolytes. They, too, are definitely good to take before and during a tough hot ride.

Plenty of water and electrolytes, not to mention enough food, is what keeps you pedaling free and easy. I’ll talk about nutrition on a ride next time.

So until next time, don’t forget to strap on a helmet before every ride, and if at all possible, keep the rubber side down.

-- Mark Eric Larson

Mark Eric Larson has written two books of essays, "The NERVE...of Some People's Kids," and "Don't Force it, Get a Bigger Hammer. To read, visit: 
http://www.scribd.com/Mark%20Eric%20Larson/shelf