Wonder Woman

Let's look at the differences between pro's and amateurs. An amateur doing the Epic is likely to be getting up and 4am in the morning to train, then go to work full day and only gets to do two long rides on Saturday and Sunday. Therefore even on his off day for training he is at work getting stress and pressure. He probably paid for the Epic out of his own pocket so when he gets a little flu symptoms before the Epic there is no way he is going to pull out. His aim is just to go and experience the Epic. The pro on the other hand gets up at 7am is out on the bike at 8am and can ride all day if he wants. He gets home, has lunch and a snooze and then hits the gym later. He goes in well rested and prepped for the Epic. His aim however is to win. So in my opinion, the motivation behind the drugs on the amateur and the pro is totally different and THAT makes a huge difference in my opinion. Doping comes down to motive, not to what the person is actually taking. So why test a middle of the pack guy who is there to just enjoy the tour? Seems a bit ludicrous to me.

If it does I then better start using some.

But then surely you have to punish professionals differently to the poor dude coming 380 in the Epic just trying to survive? Sorry, I guess I am on the wrong thread here Let me go home and leave you to it.

Would rotor rings work on a mtb?

We all didn't know this as some of us are totally out of the racing game So things have changed...hmmm, interesting. Is that number 300 in the pro's group still though? Well I guess these days everyone has to have a racing licence so they are now all under the same rules. Now the discussion makes more sense and is more likely for a number whoever to not know the rules. But still, a schedule 5 drug states more knowledge than the nobody taking an over the counter weight loss or USN product. I then have to agree with Eldron's 2 tier doping approach.

Firstly if you are a nobody entering the Epic and never won anything, you wouldn't be tested. So no one would ever know what you have taken. Testing is expensive, I raced for years with the ladies and haven't been tested once. Why, because I've never won a race. Yet even I knew to a large degree what was acceptable to take and what wasn't. If he was caught with Nurofen, fine it can be "swept under the rug" as "accidental". However a stage 5 drug already shows signs that he knew what he was doing. So even if this drug may not give him the performance enhancement some seem to think it was on the banned list and you can't just buy it over the counter. What does that tell you??

Well then you might as well stop watching cycling

I think Phil is getting a bit old for this...bwahahahaha. He used to use his engine for big boys like Ullrich, not skinny dudes that spin at 150rpms. He's like my mom....my name is Denise and my sisters is debby, she ued to call us DebNice. Okay, back to topic

I never got to watch any of it. out of curiosity were the sprinters passed on their first lap up Alp D'Huez while the climbers did their second lap? I was wondering if that was going to happen?

Grew up in RSA Rides under England Lives in Monaco Gotta love these sportsman. It really is sad how previous experience has tainted the sport so much that I think even those defending are in doubts to some degree. It's sad that the riders now really have to prove themselves clean to be believed but that's the way the sport is at present. It was still awesome to watch Froome and Quintana, it's the reason we watch the race.

Things I've learnt working in a bike shop, don't buy too big as the kid then can't handle the bike. Make sure they can pull the brakes, sometimes they are very hard which leaves the kid frustrated. I wouldn't spend too much yet at this age they throw the bikes around and really abuse them so get something that can take the abuse. Get a bike with gears, even if heavy they at least then can ride the hills.

You know what I fins hilariously funny. I've ridden on the road with these guys for years, they know me and my kit by now and yet when I'm on the MTB and they come past they never greet me. Crazy

Eat more during the day

Sorry, must have missed that. Busy looking at this eating academy diet, looks very interesting and definitely goes against anything learnt. I hope in 6 months time you'll be back here telling us how you have got things right.

The problem with this thing is it gets into your brain and you start believing you'll have a bad day even before the day starts so then of course you do. To be honest only God helped me get to where I am now. One day I'll be racing in the ladies vets again if I feel the will For now my little angel is more important and more the focus but I do need exercise and riding to keep me sane.

Oh, I live on rooibos tea and water and one cup of coffee allowed a day and my chocolate milk after exercise as a little treat, fat free milk with a little nesquick. My angel enjoys that as well No fruit juice, no gassie coldrinks, just water and rooibos mainly.

Manage diet...bwahahaha. When I hit those lows I eat waaayyy too much high sugary foods. My actual meals themselves are not too bad I think. I have fruit salad and fat free yoghurt for breakfast. A woolies low fat lunch and then like I said, lots of casseroles as I can put lots of veggies in them and hubby will eat it. But I really am not the healthiest person on the planet to be honest. Dipslick certainly eats better than me. I find a bit of a cheat around 11am with a biscuit or 2 is the norm and sometimes something around 3 but that normally doesn't happen with a 2 year old around. My riding has been minimised hugely since my daughters birth (can't believe we're 2 years down the line already). I've given up on the early morning rides as I was always exhausted and try get one or two exercise days in during the week arvies and saturday mornings I'm building back to a 2-3 hour ride. Sundays nothing anymore as we do church in the mornings now. I try keep an active lifestyle though, taking dogs for walks etc. Only just really crawled out of my depression now and working on losing a few kgs. My aim is only eat when hungry otherwise say no to the bad stuff that other people just offer. Otherwise keep it low fat, try low GI and overall healthy. Starting to slowly build up on the exercise again which has been quite an effort, everytime I started I just got sick but now the slow slow buildup is working and I'm feeling more energetic as the days go by. Biggest thing I've learnt is to not train too hard, keep the HR lower and rather go for longer, those High hard pushes push me over the edge. And get lots of sleep, I try sleep 9 hours a night.

I think what everyone is missing here is that food and (exercise for that matter) in large is also a huge mental thing. You need to enjoy it.

Just wondering What is the longest ride you do? 8 hours a week isn't that much. When I was racing I used to do 3 hours saturday and sunday as a standard but then when I got the time or free reign I would go and do a double lapper and suikerbos which was so awesome. get a good friend and now and then go do a good 4-6 hour ride (LSD) just having fun. Maybe stop being such a stickler on the diet, change things around a bit. Sounds like your body is used to what your doing and sounds like the frustration is actually making it worse. Find some fun with your food and your training.

Bwahahahaha. and then you're not working enough . More manual labour needed Lots of fruit and veggies. Do you like meat and crave it? I must admit, I don't know much about the eat for your blood group diet but my friend does and she's A+. She doesn't really like meat much so the diet suits her perfectly.

My after training drink, LOVE IT

I'm lucky, I only cramp afterwards and in my sleep, not in races Then it probably is the salt and maybe eat more bananas. Especially in a race, replace some formulated expensive trash for a banana.

Must admit, I've never tried carbo loading. All I'm saying is that for an endurance athlete we need quite a lot of carbohydrates more than a body builder who needs more protein. I'm talking in everyday diet. I know this from expereince, I tried cutting down carbohydrates to try lose weight, ended up at Dr Patricious with Coxsacchie virus and he sent me to the dietitian as it turns out I wasn't eating nearly enough carbo's for the amount of training. Changed my diet and lost weight without being hungry.

If you're craving chocolate it is normally a sign of not eating enough carbohydrates or your magnesium is low. But that means low GI NOT sugar. Craving biltong, I'm not too sure, maybe you need more iron or it could be the salt you actually want. Do you suffer from night muscle cramps?

What is it with cyclists having an issue against carbohydrates, if you train a lot you need a lot of carbo's to fuel you?