Leg Soreness

[homerjay]

Ouch. Skied my first day of the season on Sunday, and I'm incredibly sore. Quads, hammies, glutes, all of it. I've been eating well and hydrating, stretching constantly. Last night, spun on the spin bike for 30 mins to loosen up, then hit the hot tub. Took some Vitamin I, not too much.

Is stretching good for sore muscles? What else can I do to remedy this?

(You'd think that months of cycling training would get me somewhat fit, but apparently not)
Thanks.

[Vinman]

basically what you are experiencing is DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness).

Ib, warm soaks, stretching are all good. But most studies have shown that DOMS will typically last 2-4 days no matter what you do. So although there is really nothing that will make it go away other than time, you can be glad to know that in a couple days it will be gone.

You could be as fit as Lance on the bike but it won't help prevent muscle soreness from your first time out. This is basically because cycling involves concentric muscle action. (muscle shortens ans it fires). Skiing is totally different becuase it involves eccentri muscle action (muscle lengthens as it fires). Eccentric muscle action is the main reason DOMS occurs. Basically he muscle is lengthening under tension, this causes micrtears in the muscle fibers >>> DOMS.

[lemon boy]

I don't find that stretching helps this at all (actually, I've stopped stretching altogether) but that the best thing is some light activity, spinning, vigorous walks, stairclimbs etc... (NO LIMPING). Regardless you'll still be sore.

[Conundrum]

My old roommate was a pro mtn biker and would spend 15 minutes or so with this contraption after his first few training rides of the year. I was skeptical but checked it out after my first couple of backcountry days, it's pretty cool.

http://www.shapeupshop.com/fitness/r.../the_stick.htm

[aspenskibum]

i've never actually felt any difference, but you know they say eating citrus things like oranges helps with lactic acid breakdown somehow. i kinda think that for it to do any good you'd have to eat like 10 oranges, but its a thought.

[Vinman]

Lactic acid is not the cause of muscle soreness.

[Szyslak]

So, Vinman, are you telling me that the one thing that I thought I learned from AP Biology I didn't learn right, or was taught wrong? You know the Crebs cycle, lactic acid, and muscle soreness thing? Damn, now I feel even dumber than before.

[Vinman]

muscsle soreness is caused by what i wrote up above, microtears of the muscle from eccentric contraction.

The burning snesation you get during ecercise is caused by H+ ion building up in the muscle not from Lactic acid.

[CantDog]

muscsle soreness is caused by what i wrote up above, microtears of the muscle from eccentric contraction.

The burning snesation you get during ecercise is caused by H+ ion building up in the muscle not from Lactic acid.

So to make energy you produce NADH in the oxidation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate, which is an intermediate in the glycolysis pathyway(glucose--->pyruvate)

The NADH made is used to reduce pyruvate to lactate durijng anaerobic glycolysis so you maintain electron balance. Usually lactate(same as lactic acid, just another name) is transported to heart or liver to be converted back to glucose or catabolized through respiration. But if you have too much your body cannot get rid of it, so it sits in muscle tissue. To maintain balance your blood pH drops, and this neat thing called the Bohr effect takes place. The Bohr effect is a mechanism to release every drop of oxygen you have to compensate for the lack thereof. The Bohr Effect lowers oxygen affinity of hemoglobin, so oxygen pops of blood cells. Lots of H+ around drives this reaction to pop off oxygens, hence the "acid burn" feeling.

So yeah, its kinda from lactate, but thats not the whole thing. AP bio doesnt go into enough depth.

Wow, I'm a total nerd.