Chequeen como funciona cada una de las partes de la bicicleta de montaña en http://travel.howstuffworks.com/mountain-bike.htm
MBA. Andrés Duarte 5562-9018
viernes, 26 de octubre de 2007
martes, 23 de octubre de 2007
lunes, 1 de octubre de 2007
A 210 km/h en bicicleta
| Posted: 28 Sep 2007 05:29 PM CDT
Ver más en http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/09/bike-hits-1307-.html |
viernes, 28 de septiembre de 2007
Guía para comprar una Bicicleta de Montaña (Ing)
Before You Buy a Mountain Bike - A Buyers Guide
From Kevin Tisue,
Your Guide to Mountain Biking.
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Buying a mountain bike can be a bit frustrating and can take some time. This guide will help you put some thought into it before you lay down the cash and make the process go a bit smoother
Determine Your Price
There is virtually no limit to how much money you can spend on a new mountain bike. To keep your spending under control, figure out what price range you are willing to pay for your new bike and try to only look at bikes within that price range. I do not recommend buying a bike from a mass-merchant store such as Wal-Mart or Costco. Support your local bike shop and get a better product and much better service.
Find Your Style – What Kind of Riding Do You Want To Do
Mountain bikes are designed for several different riding styles and terrain. You will need to figure out what type of riding you will be doing most of the time. Is it smooth trail riding, cross-country racing, all mountain cruising or lift accessed gravity mayhem? Make sure the bikes you look at fit your riding style and not the sales staff’s.
· Do I Need a Women's Specific Bike
Full Suspension or Hardtail ? – Comfort vs. Efficiency
I always recommend a full suspension mountain bike if you can afford it. Hardtails, without rear suspension, are lighter weight and pedal more efficiently but full suspension designs offer more comfort and better control. You will want to decide based on your price range, riding style and terrain.
· FAQ - Full Suspension Vrs. Hardtail
The Component Conundrum – Find Your Favorites
It is nearly impossible to compare mountain bikes component to component. There are simply too many combinations. I recommend finding a few components that are most important to you for comparison and make sure the rest fall within some sort of minimums for your price range. I usually start with the fork and then look at the wheels and rear derailleur.
Sales, Seasons, and Bonuses – Get a Good Deal
Mountain bike prices can fluctuate significantly during the year. The main buying season is from spring through summer. If you are lucky enough to be able to wait until the right price comes up, usually in the fall and winter, you can save a few hundred dollars. You will also find that a lot of bike shops will offer discounts on accessories or other products and services when you buy from them. There is nothing wrong with buying last years model if it fits your needs.
Find a Good Dealer
Finding a good dealer can be more important than getting a good price. Find a dealer that cares more about selling you the right bike than selling you the more expensive one. A good dealer should have a clean repair shop and you should feel like you can trust them.
Test Ride, and then Test Ride Some More
Test ride as many bikes as you can in your price range and riding style category. You will find that some bikes will just feel right while others don’t. The more bikes you ride the better feel you will have for what you like and what you don’t.
· How to Set Your Tire Pressure
Do Some Research – Read Some Product Reviews
Product reviews are a great way to find out about a mountain bikes performance and reliability. Look your bike up before you buy it and make sure there isn’t anything someone else discovered that you might not like.
Important product disclaimer information about this About site.
Related Guide Picks
viernes, 21 de septiembre de 2007
El Mito de "Bajar la panza haciendo abdominales o usando una faja" entre otros. (ing)
By Jim O'Neill |
| The Facts About the Spot Reducing Myth There are a lot of people who are dissatisfied with one area or another of their body. You will often hear these people saying things like, "I need to get rid of this stomach" or "I need an exercise that will slim my thighs down". The premise behind these types of statements is that you can lose excess fat in any one given area on your body without affecting any other part of your body. Maybe if you just knew the right exercise to do, you could lose the fat in just the area you want to lose it in. The plain and simple truth is; there is no such thing as localized fat loss. When you do a specific exercise for a specific part of your body, the muscles of that particular body part will develop and get stronger and grow bigger, but it will do nothing for getting rid of the fat in the area. Usually the reason people who do exercise get stronger but do not visually see the muscle development is because the excess fat is still covering the muscles. Here are the facts about the spot reducing myth: Physiologically speaking, muscle tissue is always firm. Muscle only feels like it not firm because of the presence of too much fat. Body parts that do not look toned simply have too much fat covering them. People are genetically predisposed to carry more fat in certain areas of their bodies, thus accounting for the extra buildup in these areas. When you want to lose body fat, you must create a calorie deficit within your body. This means that you will have to consume less calories than you burn throughout the day. While you will typically seem to notice more rapid fat loss in your "trouble spots", you will actually be losing fat from your whole body because when your body goes into fat burning mode, it can not select different areas to do it from. When you start to lose body fat, it is genetically determined where the most rapid loss will occur first. Areas that do not store as much body fat will only have so much to lose, so you will see more fat loss in the harder spots as you go. Despite the popular saying, it is impossible to turn fat into muscle. They are made up of completely different types of cells and one can not convert into the other. You can only lose fat and replace it with increased muscle size. Also, you can not firm up fat, nor can you firm up muscle. Fat and muscle cells are what they are, and you can't change their composition. Simply put, softer muscle = more fat present and harder muscle = less fat present. Muscle tone is simply the visual appearance of muscle in the absence of fat. Sensible eating coupled with moderate exercise will help take off any extra fat, even from trouble areas. Just because you can't "spot reduce" doesn't mean you can't lose the fat in those areas. You just need to make the little changes in your eating habits and introduce a little exercise into your life that will make getting rid of that stubborn fat a reality. Article Source: Health Guidance | |
martes, 4 de septiembre de 2007
Como el spinning puede ayudarte a ser un mejor ciclista (en ingles)
By Roy M. Wallack, published in City Sports Washington and City Sports Florida, March, 2000, then later in City Sports and Competitor California.
In 1998, when triathlete Ruben Barajas of Torrance, CA finally qualified for the Hawaii Ironman after many years of trying, he credited his success to one major change in his training:
Spinning. Specifically, Spinning taught by cyclists.
That qualifier is critical when serious cyclists analyze the benefits of the popular pedal-to-the-music health club classes.
"I learned from instructors who were real bike riders—people who knew about proper body position, sprinting, hill climbing, using hamstrings and calves, not just quads" says Barajas, 35, the director of the Scott Newman Center, a drug prevention charity. "You don’t get that from converted aerobics instructors."
The point is well taken. Most spin-class teachers are indeed aerobics teachers in clipless pedals. Many have never even ridden a bike on the road. They know how to select good music and exhort their followers through a killer 45-minute workout. But can they make you a better cyclist?
Emilio DeSoto says yes— and no. "Yes, you’ll get a great workout and see some increases in leg speed [due to the momentum of the 44-lb. flywheel of a Schwinn Johnny G Spinner]," says the president of De Soto Sports triathlon clothing, a former pro triathlete and popular twice-a-week instructor at La Jolla’s Personalized Workout. "But no, you won’t "learn" much cycling."
"Instructors who don’t come from cycling often will stress things like ‘Jumps’ (popping up and down off the seat) and doing pushups on the handlebars—things that have nothing to do with real cycling," he says.
BE YOUR OWN TEACHER
For that reason, you have to be your own coach if you are an outdoor cyclist on the inside, according to Chris Kostman, the teacher of triathlete Barajas and hundreds of instructors nationwide through his instructor workshops (www.adventurecorps.com).
"While you can’t rely on the instructor since few are real cyclists, you can easily build outdoor cycling skill in any class with a little knowledge and discipline," says Kostman, a one-time Race Across America finisher and founder of the RoadRacers indoor cycling program at the L.A.-based Bodies in Motion fitness chain.
"Spinning classes are an ideal place to work on classic, old-time technique—a traffic-free laboratory environment that can go a long way toward replacing the on-the-road instruction once handed down by veteran riders," he explains. "It’s a great place for cycling novices to improve two aspects of cycling that will quickly make them a better rider: climbing and speedwork/turnover.
"By the same token, it’s a great place for the vets to refresh their technique—as long as they remember NOT to ride an indoor bike the same way they do their ‘outdoor’ bikes."
Here’s what Kostman means:
1. CLIMBING:
Face it, there is no greater confidence builder—and time saver— than good climbing. That’s why it is crucial to learn how to use all the muscles of the leg—not just the quads. There’s no better place to focus on this than indoors.
a) SEATED CLIMBING: Most outdoor cyclists know that they should pull up on the pedals on the upstroke, which activates your calves and reduces the load on the quads—but they rarely do it for long outdoors. Here’s the technique for indoors: Suck in your lower abs to help push your butt to the back of the seat, then drive the pedals down with your heels lower than the toes. Keep the heels low when you pull up, too; as soon as you lift the heel above the ball of the foot, you turn off the calf muscle. Most outdoor cyclists sit too high on an indoor bike and don’t hinge their torsos forward enough, says Kostman, keeping their heels up and pulling up with their shins and quads, not calves.
b) STANDING CLIMBING: To cultivate the hamstrings, glutes and back muscles as you would outdoors, you must adjust your posture for the lack of angle, says Kostman. On an outdoor climb, the front end of the bike is tipped up. To replicate the position on an indoor bike, hinge at the hips, keep you back straight and parallel to the ground, and push your nose down to within a few inches of your handlebar.
In addition, since a stationary bike cannot be rocked beneath you, simulate the effect by moving your body side to side.
2. SPEEDWORK:
Road cyclists are locked into a "90 rpm mentality" says Kostman. While the spin bike’s weighted flywheel will push any rider’s cadence higher, huge gains can be had with specific techniques.
a) STANDING SPEEDWORK: To build explosive power and raise your lactate threshold as well as rapid turnover, stand straight up and "run" on the pedals, says Kostman. The key to is put the entire weight of the body on the quads. The technique: Stand tall, with ears, hips and bottom bracket in a straight line, the upper body stabilized by tensed abs, with no hand pressure on the bars (using only fingertips for balance). Then blast your cadence up to 200 rpms—which blows away the 150 rpm most top cyclists can manage outdoors.
b) SITTING SPEEDWORK: Ideal for building rapid turnover, this technique is easy: Use very little resistance, sit forward on the saddle, suck in abs to stabilize hips and upper body, and go like hell. Again, shoot for 200 rpms.
3. GRADUAL WARM-UP
A big problem indoors is that many classes redline from start to finish. "That shoots your heartrate up—and once it’s up, it’ll never come down (the rest of the session)," says Kostman. "Consequently, you never train for recovery—allowing your heartrate to drop— a key to cycling endurance."
What that means is that a truly fit person will see his heartrate drop by as much as 50 beats on a 30 second downhill. That is important because it allows the body to rest. The problem with charging out of the gate and freezing your heartrate at a high level is that you never train your heart to rest. "You’ll burn out," says Kostman.
Warm-up goal: Warm muscles in conjunction with a gradually rising heartrate. Never do speedwork until 12 to 15 minutes into the class. Regardless of what your class is doing (unless you’ve done your own spin warm-up before class began), ride the first two songs seated with light resistance, followed by a seated and standing climb for one song each. Then, go for it.
miércoles, 11 de julio de 2007
One-Day Carb-Loading
One-Day Carb-Loading
In an even newer carbo-loading iteration, scientists have developed carbo-loading lite, a one-day carb-loading regimen that is as effective as the harder-to-follow older methods. The new method calls for consuming 10.5 grams of carbs for every 2.2 pounds of body weight the day after either a short-term, high-intensity exercise bout, or on a rest day following a typical week of training. When tested on athletes, the one-day approach resulted in supercompensated muscle glycogen stores within 24 hours.
This is important because the one-day protocol allows athletes to follow their normal training preparations right up until the day before a competition. Scientists also found that for those who can’t consume a high-carb diet the day before a race, the one-day loading protocol can be initiated several days before the competition. If followed by rest and a moderate-carb diet (4-5 grams of carbs for every 2.2 pounds of body weight), the resulting supercompensated glycogen levels can be maintained for at least three days.
So, if you are a triathlete interested in achieving high muscle glycogen stores prior to your next event, make sure your carb intake is high (about 10.5 grams of carbs for every 2.2 pounds of body weight) for at least one day before your event. In addition, somewhere in the 3-4 days leading up to your event, be sure to significantly reduce muscle glycogen stores either through a longer training session at moderate intensity or through a short-term, high-intensity training session.
Andrés Duarte, derechos reservados de Powerbar
New Fluid Replacement Recommendations from ACSM
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recently updated their position on how to best hydrate before, during and after exercise.1 Is your hydration strategy up to speed? Read on to find out what the experts are saying.
Is hydration important to performance?
Absolutely! Exercise generates internal heat. To function at your best athletically, that heat needs to be released. As your internal temperature rises, your body responds by increasing blood flow to your skin and initiating sweating. More blood flowing to your skin transfers heat away from your core and toward the exterior of your body where it can be released. The evaporation of sweat in warm or hot weather is the primary avenue for losing heat and so sweat losses can be substantial. Sweat is composed of water and electrolytes and if they aren’t appropriately replaced, dehydration can result. Conversely, if too much fluid is consumed, overhydration or hyponatremia can occur. Both dehydration and overhydration impair physical performance and can pose serious health risks. So, having a hydration plan is critical to athletic performance and important for your health.
Don’t zone out
On average, athletes typically lose anywhere from 500 to 2,000 ml (17 to 67 fl oz) of sweat per hour. That equates to roughly 1 to 4 pounds worth of sweat. You give yourself the chance to perform at your best if you don’t lose anymore than 2% of your body weight due to fluid loss during exercise.
So, if you weigh in at 150 pounds before exercise, you need to remain somewhere between 150 and 147 pounds during exercise to perform at your best. This 2% rule is called your hydration zone. Know it and stick to it. It’s a strategy that will pay dividends.
What happens when you exceed the 2% weight loss hydration zone is that the very same exercise you did yesterday with relative ease is going to feel more difficult to do. You’re going to have to strain to keep up the pace. Falling out of your hydration zone also affects your ability to think clearly and tactically, especially in hot-weather conditions. Give yourself every chance to be your best by hydrating sufficiently to stay in your hydration zone.
Know your sweat rate
A key message from the new recommendations is that sweat rates vary tremendously from one athlete to the next, and from one activity to the next. Athletes in the National Football League and cross-country runners can work in the same scorching heat and for the same length of time, yet football players typically lose over twice the amount of sweat as runners. Why the difference? Because fluid losses are determined by a variety of factors including body weight, type of clothing and equipment worn, and how acclimated athletes are to heat.
Sweat rates vary and you need to know your own because state-of-the-art hydration today means every athlete has an individualized hydration plan. In other words, the right hydration plan is based on your personal sweat rate, not the sweat rate of your training partner. One-size-fits-all fluid intake recommendations no longer fit; especially if top performance is your goal. To measure your sweat rate, use PowerBar’s online Hydration Calculator. You’ll be guided through a simple one-hour test workout that will calculate your sweat rate. Conduct the test workout at an exercise intensity and in climate conditions similar to the conditions you encounter during training and competition. Better yet, test yourself at different exercise intensities and in different climate conditions, and as your fitness level changes. By repeating sweat rate testing under varying conditions, you will better understand how your body responds to different conditions. This will help you fine-tune your hydration plans for whatever you encounter during training and competing.
Putting your sweat rate to good use
Knowing your sweat rate is half the battle. The other half is actually consuming the fluids you need and knowing what type of fluids to consume.
Lots of athletes find it difficult and uncomfortable to consume fluids at a volume that matches their sweat rate. If you are in that camp, don’t despair. Remember that your hydration zone is losing no more than 2% of your pre-exercise body weight due to fluid loss during exercise. So, you don’t need to exactly match your sweat rate. You just need to make sure that you don’t drop out of your zone while you are exercising.
Putting this into practice:
Let’s say you weigh 150 pounds, you lose about 2 pounds of fluid per hour during exercise according to your sweat rate test (~31 fl oz per hour), and you plan to compete in an event that will probably take you 3 hours to finish.
If you do the math, your hydration zone weight is between 150 and 147 pounds. Given your sweat rate, after the first 90 minutes of exercise you would be at the low end of your hydration zone, and you would drop out of your zone thereafter. However, by consuming fluid at just half your sweat rate (~16 fl oz per hour instead of 31 fl oz per hour) throughout the event, you could remain within your hydration zone for the full 3 hours of exercise.
The point is to know your sweat rate and hydrate strategically so that you remain comfortable and within your hydration zone. You may also be able to gradually train yourself to absorb more fluid during exercise. So, if you’re having trouble consuming enough fluids, start at a volume you are comfortable with, and gradually increase the volume consumed per hour during training until you reach a more acceptable level of intake.
Sport drink versus water and the lowdown on electrolytes
Water only contains fluid. A well-designed sport drink like POWERBAR® Endurance sport drink contains fluids, carbs, and electrolytes. Which drink is best for you depends on what you are doing and for how long.
For low-to-moderate intensity activities in mild conditions that are less than an hour in length, water is generally fine for rehydrating.
For endurance events of one hour length or longer, and for events in hot-weather, a sport drink is generally a better choice. The carbs in a sport drink can help sustain or extend your ability to perform athletically. The key electrolytes in a sport drink are sodium and chloride which together form salt. Of the electrolytes in sweat, these two are lost in the greatest amounts during sweating. Including these electrolytes in a sport drink helps you replace those lost from sweating, retain consumed fluid, and stimulate thirst. In addition, flavored sport drinks help increase the amount of fluid ingested compared to plain water.
Carbs and electrolytes can also be consumed in non-fluid sources like gels, energy bars, and other foods, just as long as they are paired with sufficient water to meet your fluid needs.
Finally, when it comes to caffeine, the ACSM recommendations indicate that the evidence available suggests caffeine consumption may help sustain exercise performance and it probably doesn’t alter hydration status during exercise.
How can you tell if you’re rehydrated?
Let’s say that yesterday’s workout was a long one, and in very hot conditions. You followed your usual rehydration and refueling strategy, but want to make sure that you’re fully rehydrated before engaging in another workout. What can you do?
According to the new guidelines, a practical method for assessing your hydration status or balance includes a combination of measuring body weight and evaluating urine color. The catch is that each method needs to be done properly.
Measure your body weight upon arising in the morning, after urinating, and compare this to your typical body weight. Your typical body weight should be the average of repeated body weight measurements taken in the morning. Changes in eating and bowel habits, and timing within the menstrual cycle can influence body weight, so multiple measurements are needed to establish a valid baseline value.
In addition to measuring body weight, urine color can be evaluated in the first morning urine sample or in a urine sample taken after several hours of stable hydration status. Downing large quantities of fluids after exercise can lead to the production of dilute urine long before you are actually fully rehydrated, so don’t be fooled by a urine sample taken soon after chugging a water bottle full of water or a sport drink. Testing your urine color several hours after actively rehydrating is advised. Urine that is dark in color (highly concentrated), is a sign that you’ve not yet fully rehydrated. The goal is a urine color that is light yellow in color, something close to the color of lemonade.
Hydrate before exercise
Before exercise, and when the timing is feasible, ACSM recommends that you consume fluids at least 4 hours before exercise. If you are well hydrated this should lead to urine production. If it doesn’t, or the urine that is produced is dark in color, you should drink more fluid about 2 hours before exercise. This will allow sufficient time for urine to be eliminated before starting exercise. According to ACSM, the amount of fluid to consume before exercise depends on your body weight:
Pre-exercise body weight Volume of fluid to consume 4 hours before exercise Volume of fluid to consume 2 hours before exercise (if needed)
100 lbs ~8-11 fl oz ~5-8 fl oz
150 lbs ~12-16 fl oz ~7-12 fl oz
200 lbs ~15-22 fl oz ~9-15 fl oz
Consuming a sport drink with sodium, small amounts of salted snacks, or sodium-containing foods at meals will help stimulate thirst and retain the consumed fluids. Also, fluids that are cold in temperature, contain some sodium and carbs, and are flavored can enhance the appeal of beverages and help promote fluid consumption.
Rehydration after exercise
After exercise, the goal is to make up any fluid deficit resulting from exercise and to replace electrolytes lost from sweating. How fast to rehydrate depends on when your next training session or competition takes place. If you just ran your first marathon and don’t plan to step foot into those running shoes for at least a few days, then normal meals, snacks, and beverages will generally rehydrate you within about 24 hours.
If you’ve lost excessive fluid (more than 2% of your pre-exercise body weight) and need to be fully recovered in less than 12 hours in order to be ready for another workout or competition, a more aggressive rehydration program is needed. The new ACSM recommendations suggest that you drink about 23 fl oz of fluid for every pound of weight lost during exercise. Drink the necessary fluid gradually between the time you finish your first workout and 1-2 hours before you start your next one.
Also, consuming sodium while rehydrating during recovery will help you retain ingested fluids and help stimulate your thirst. You can get sodium from your recovery beverage, sport drink, energy bar or gel, salty snacks, and meals.
PowerBar tools and products
PowerBar provides easy-to-use tools and state-of-the-art products to meet the individual hydration and fueling needs of athletes:
Hydration Calculator: Calculate your sweat rate
Recovery Calculator: Get specific hydration and sports nutrition recommendations to promote recovery after a workout or event
For optimal hydration and fueling before, during, and after exercise, you can rely on PowerBar:
POWERBAR® Performance bars – each serving provides 41-45 grams of carbs, 8-10 grams of protein, and up to 210 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Endurance sport drink - each 8 fl oz serving provides 17 grams of carbs and 190 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Gel - each packet provides 27-28 g of carbs and 200 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Recovery shake – each 10.6 fl oz ready-to-drink serving provides 34-40 grams of carbs, 13 grams of protein, and 180-220 mg sodium in creamy chocolate and vanilla flavors.
POWERBAR® Recovery sport drink- each 16 fl oz serving provides 40 grams of carbs, 6 grams of protein, and 500 mg of sodium in a lighter tasting orange flavor you can chug.
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recently updated their position on how to best hydrate before, during and after exercise.1 Is your hydration strategy up to speed? Read on to find out what the experts are saying.
Is hydration important to performance?
Absolutely! Exercise generates internal heat. To function at your best athletically, that heat needs to be released. As your internal temperature rises, your body responds by increasing blood flow to your skin and initiating sweating. More blood flowing to your skin transfers heat away from your core and toward the exterior of your body where it can be released. The evaporation of sweat in warm or hot weather is the primary avenue for losing heat and so sweat losses can be substantial. Sweat is composed of water and electrolytes and if they aren’t appropriately replaced, dehydration can result. Conversely, if too much fluid is consumed, overhydration or hyponatremia can occur. Both dehydration and overhydration impair physical performance and can pose serious health risks. So, having a hydration plan is critical to athletic performance and important for your health.
Don’t zone out
On average, athletes typically lose anywhere from 500 to 2,000 ml (17 to 67 fl oz) of sweat per hour. That equates to roughly 1 to 4 pounds worth of sweat. You give yourself the chance to perform at your best if you don’t lose anymore than 2% of your body weight due to fluid loss during exercise.
So, if you weigh in at 150 pounds before exercise, you need to remain somewhere between 150 and 147 pounds during exercise to perform at your best. This 2% rule is called your hydration zone. Know it and stick to it. It’s a strategy that will pay dividends.
What happens when you exceed the 2% weight loss hydration zone is that the very same exercise you did yesterday with relative ease is going to feel more difficult to do. You’re going to have to strain to keep up the pace. Falling out of your hydration zone also affects your ability to think clearly and tactically, especially in hot-weather conditions. Give yourself every chance to be your best by hydrating sufficiently to stay in your hydration zone.
Know your sweat rate
A key message from the new recommendations is that sweat rates vary tremendously from one athlete to the next, and from one activity to the next. Athletes in the National Football League and cross-country runners can work in the same scorching heat and for the same length of time, yet football players typically lose over twice the amount of sweat as runners. Why the difference? Because fluid losses are determined by a variety of factors including body weight, type of clothing and equipment worn, and how acclimated athletes are to heat.
Sweat rates vary and you need to know your own because state-of-the-art hydration today means every athlete has an individualized hydration plan. In other words, the right hydration plan is based on your personal sweat rate, not the sweat rate of your training partner. One-size-fits-all fluid intake recommendations no longer fit; especially if top performance is your goal. To measure your sweat rate, use PowerBar’s online Hydration Calculator. You’ll be guided through a simple one-hour test workout that will calculate your sweat rate. Conduct the test workout at an exercise intensity and in climate conditions similar to the conditions you encounter during training and competition. Better yet, test yourself at different exercise intensities and in different climate conditions, and as your fitness level changes. By repeating sweat rate testing under varying conditions, you will better understand how your body responds to different conditions. This will help you fine-tune your hydration plans for whatever you encounter during training and competing.
Putting your sweat rate to good use
Knowing your sweat rate is half the battle. The other half is actually consuming the fluids you need and knowing what type of fluids to consume.
Lots of athletes find it difficult and uncomfortable to consume fluids at a volume that matches their sweat rate. If you are in that camp, don’t despair. Remember that your hydration zone is losing no more than 2% of your pre-exercise body weight due to fluid loss during exercise. So, you don’t need to exactly match your sweat rate. You just need to make sure that you don’t drop out of your zone while you are exercising.
Putting this into practice:
Let’s say you weigh 150 pounds, you lose about 2 pounds of fluid per hour during exercise according to your sweat rate test (~31 fl oz per hour), and you plan to compete in an event that will probably take you 3 hours to finish.
If you do the math, your hydration zone weight is between 150 and 147 pounds. Given your sweat rate, after the first 90 minutes of exercise you would be at the low end of your hydration zone, and you would drop out of your zone thereafter. However, by consuming fluid at just half your sweat rate (~16 fl oz per hour instead of 31 fl oz per hour) throughout the event, you could remain within your hydration zone for the full 3 hours of exercise.
The point is to know your sweat rate and hydrate strategically so that you remain comfortable and within your hydration zone. You may also be able to gradually train yourself to absorb more fluid during exercise. So, if you’re having trouble consuming enough fluids, start at a volume you are comfortable with, and gradually increase the volume consumed per hour during training until you reach a more acceptable level of intake.
Sport drink versus water and the lowdown on electrolytes
Water only contains fluid. A well-designed sport drink like POWERBAR® Endurance sport drink contains fluids, carbs, and electrolytes. Which drink is best for you depends on what you are doing and for how long.
For low-to-moderate intensity activities in mild conditions that are less than an hour in length, water is generally fine for rehydrating.
For endurance events of one hour length or longer, and for events in hot-weather, a sport drink is generally a better choice. The carbs in a sport drink can help sustain or extend your ability to perform athletically. The key electrolytes in a sport drink are sodium and chloride which together form salt. Of the electrolytes in sweat, these two are lost in the greatest amounts during sweating. Including these electrolytes in a sport drink helps you replace those lost from sweating, retain consumed fluid, and stimulate thirst. In addition, flavored sport drinks help increase the amount of fluid ingested compared to plain water.
Carbs and electrolytes can also be consumed in non-fluid sources like gels, energy bars, and other foods, just as long as they are paired with sufficient water to meet your fluid needs.
Finally, when it comes to caffeine, the ACSM recommendations indicate that the evidence available suggests caffeine consumption may help sustain exercise performance and it probably doesn’t alter hydration status during exercise.
How can you tell if you’re rehydrated?
Let’s say that yesterday’s workout was a long one, and in very hot conditions. You followed your usual rehydration and refueling strategy, but want to make sure that you’re fully rehydrated before engaging in another workout. What can you do?
According to the new guidelines, a practical method for assessing your hydration status or balance includes a combination of measuring body weight and evaluating urine color. The catch is that each method needs to be done properly.
Measure your body weight upon arising in the morning, after urinating, and compare this to your typical body weight. Your typical body weight should be the average of repeated body weight measurements taken in the morning. Changes in eating and bowel habits, and timing within the menstrual cycle can influence body weight, so multiple measurements are needed to establish a valid baseline value.
In addition to measuring body weight, urine color can be evaluated in the first morning urine sample or in a urine sample taken after several hours of stable hydration status. Downing large quantities of fluids after exercise can lead to the production of dilute urine long before you are actually fully rehydrated, so don’t be fooled by a urine sample taken soon after chugging a water bottle full of water or a sport drink. Testing your urine color several hours after actively rehydrating is advised. Urine that is dark in color (highly concentrated), is a sign that you’ve not yet fully rehydrated. The goal is a urine color that is light yellow in color, something close to the color of lemonade.
Hydrate before exercise
Before exercise, and when the timing is feasible, ACSM recommends that you consume fluids at least 4 hours before exercise. If you are well hydrated this should lead to urine production. If it doesn’t, or the urine that is produced is dark in color, you should drink more fluid about 2 hours before exercise. This will allow sufficient time for urine to be eliminated before starting exercise. According to ACSM, the amount of fluid to consume before exercise depends on your body weight:
Pre-exercise body weight Volume of fluid to consume 4 hours before exercise Volume of fluid to consume 2 hours before exercise (if needed)
100 lbs ~8-11 fl oz ~5-8 fl oz
150 lbs ~12-16 fl oz ~7-12 fl oz
200 lbs ~15-22 fl oz ~9-15 fl oz
Consuming a sport drink with sodium, small amounts of salted snacks, or sodium-containing foods at meals will help stimulate thirst and retain the consumed fluids. Also, fluids that are cold in temperature, contain some sodium and carbs, and are flavored can enhance the appeal of beverages and help promote fluid consumption.
Rehydration after exercise
After exercise, the goal is to make up any fluid deficit resulting from exercise and to replace electrolytes lost from sweating. How fast to rehydrate depends on when your next training session or competition takes place. If you just ran your first marathon and don’t plan to step foot into those running shoes for at least a few days, then normal meals, snacks, and beverages will generally rehydrate you within about 24 hours.
If you’ve lost excessive fluid (more than 2% of your pre-exercise body weight) and need to be fully recovered in less than 12 hours in order to be ready for another workout or competition, a more aggressive rehydration program is needed. The new ACSM recommendations suggest that you drink about 23 fl oz of fluid for every pound of weight lost during exercise. Drink the necessary fluid gradually between the time you finish your first workout and 1-2 hours before you start your next one.
Also, consuming sodium while rehydrating during recovery will help you retain ingested fluids and help stimulate your thirst. You can get sodium from your recovery beverage, sport drink, energy bar or gel, salty snacks, and meals.
PowerBar tools and products
PowerBar provides easy-to-use tools and state-of-the-art products to meet the individual hydration and fueling needs of athletes:
Hydration Calculator: Calculate your sweat rate
Recovery Calculator: Get specific hydration and sports nutrition recommendations to promote recovery after a workout or event
For optimal hydration and fueling before, during, and after exercise, you can rely on PowerBar:
POWERBAR® Performance bars – each serving provides 41-45 grams of carbs, 8-10 grams of protein, and up to 210 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Endurance sport drink - each 8 fl oz serving provides 17 grams of carbs and 190 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Gel - each packet provides 27-28 g of carbs and 200 mg of sodium.
POWERBAR® Recovery shake – each 10.6 fl oz ready-to-drink serving provides 34-40 grams of carbs, 13 grams of protein, and 180-220 mg sodium in creamy chocolate and vanilla flavors.
POWERBAR® Recovery sport drink- each 16 fl oz serving provides 40 grams of carbs, 6 grams of protein, and 500 mg of sodium in a lighter tasting orange flavor you can chug.
viernes, 18 de mayo de 2007
Cómo lubricar rápido una cicle de montaña
Disculpa la traducción pero la traduje en Google y se entiende,
Las bicis de la montaña requieren cierto mantenimiento. Una lubricación
rápida antes de montar es esencial y debe de hacerse cada vez que se monta.
Esto no sustituye al servicio general que hacen en los talleres
especializados cuando acumules 30 horas de uso. Esto es lo que hago cuando
quiero un colaso seguro, sin piezas gastadas y silencioso.
(disculpen a google por la traducción)
Tiempo Requerido: 3 minutos
Las bicis de la montaña requieren cierto mantenimiento. Una lubricación
rápida antes de montar es esencial y debe de hacerse cada vez que se monta.
Esto no sustituye al servicio general que hacen en los talleres
especializados cuando acumules 30 horas de uso. Esto es lo que hago cuando
quiero un colaso seguro, sin piezas gastadas y silencioso.
(disculpen a google por la traducción)
Tiempo Requerido: 3 minutos
Cómo se hace:
1. Cadena - Antes de lubricar debes de limpiarla, con un trapo gira la
cadena al contrario mientras le pasas el trapo. Luego de que se vea
relativamente limpia, aplique una cantidad abundante de lubricante también
girando la cadena al revés. Ayuda el encontrar un punto donde la mano pueda
apoyarse para no echar aceite donde no se deba. Si se echa por el lado de
afuera o dentro, no importa. Luego sigues girando la cadena para que el
lubricante penetre y al final vuelves a pasarle un trapo, ellubricante
necesario está dentro, el que está fuera solo servirá para atraer polvo.
2. Descarrilador delantero y trasero - mLimpialo con un trapo, lubrica con
una gota los pivotes y muevelo varias veces, vuelve a limpiar.
3. Pedales - algunos pedales clipless (automáticos del tipo necesitan tener
el mecanismo del lanzamiento lubricado. Lubrique solamente su mecanismo del
lanzamiento si usted tiene este tipo de pedal y su pie tiende para conseguir
pegado cuando no se lubrica.
5. Ponga todo en el movimiento - cambie de puesto sus engranajes, pedal
alrededor, despida su bici alrededor. Si cualquier cosa hace que un chirrido
considera si tiene piezas móviles que puedan ser lubricadas.
6. Limpíela - después de que usted ha lubricado todo y movido lo todo
alrededor de simplemente limpio todo retrocede. Utilice un trapo para
limpiar lejos todo el lubricante que usted puede por todas partes de usted
lubricó incluyendo la cadena. Esto sale del lubricante inbetween las piezas
pero las limpia lejos de por todas partes donde su no necesario. Esto guarda
su bici de recoger la suciedad que seca todo hacia fuera mientras que usted
monta.
Consejos:
1. Familiarícese con su bici. Escuche donde genera ruido. si en ese punto
hay piezas que friccionan unas con otras lubríquelas de vez en cuando .
Intente recordar estos puntos y lubricarlos periódicamente antes de que
hagan ruido la próxima vez.
2. No te saltes el "trapo él" paso limpio. Su bici permanecerá mucho más
limpia y le guarda de tener que lubricarla como a menudo.
3. Limpie y lubrique su bici después de cada paseo. Esto realmente necesita
ser hecha después de que particularmente sea fangoso y los paseos sucios. La
suciedad seca todas sus piezas móviles ascendentes y los aumentos usan y se
rasgan.
Qué Necesitas:
• Lubricante: Cera White lightning es lo mejor. Trata de no utilizar WD 40 y
mucho menos Penetrante porque se seca demasiado rápido. Tampoco uno muy
viscoso como el Finishline X Country (verde) si no es invierno, En invierno
nos ha funcionado aceite de caja automática.
• Trapo relativamente Limpio
MBA. Andrés Duarte 5562-9018
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06:05 p.m.
miércoles, 14 de marzo de 2007
Como arreglar un pinchazo
1)Soltar el cable del freno. Sacar la rueda de la bicicleta. Si es la
trasera es bueno pasar al piñón más chico porque después es más fácil
colocar la rueda.
trasera es bueno pasar al piñón más chico porque después es más fácil
colocar la rueda.
2) El primer paso es sacar el interior de la válvula, desarmar la cubierta y
retirar la cámara.
A partir de este punto debes decidir si vas a colocar un tubo de repuesto y
el otro lo parcharás en tu casa o si no llevas, lo parcharás de una vez. Si
vas parchar sigue al paso 3, si no pasa al paso 5)
3) La manera más fácil para detectar la pinchadura es inflarla para
descubrir el escape de aire.
Para descubrir donde está el pinchazo se puede usar la típica de hundir en
agua la cámara y ver dónde sale las burbujas. Pero si estamos en el medio
del camino lo que podemos hacer es pasar la cámara por debajo de la nariz.
Resulta que los pelitos que tenemos en esa zona son súper sensibles y pueden
detectar el menor escape.
4) Después hay que raspar la zona de alrededor de la pérdida para lograr
mayor adherencia del pegamento. Limpiar la zona sin tocarla con los dedos.
Pasar el pegamento en una superficie mayor que el parche. Lo dejamos secar
hasta parecer bien seco (varios minutos.
Una vez seco, retirar el papel protector del parche, colocarlo sobre el hoyo
y apretar con fuerza un minuto.
5) Cuando el remiendo esté bien pegado y seco, antes de ajustarla es ideal
comprobar que ya no salga aire o tenga otro hoyo (paso 3) .
6) Antes de poner nuevamente la cámara dentro de la cubierta hay pasar la
mano por la superficie interna de la cubierta para comprobar que no quedo
ningún clavo o pinche que traspaso la cubierta, pasa varias veces si no lo
encuentras. Si el aire se salió súper rápido y en una zona con piedras, es
muy probable que haya sido un mascón (snake bite) si se salió poco a poco,
sigue buscando hasta encontrar esa espinita o volverás a pinchar.
En caso de no contar con las herramientas necesarias aconsejan sacar la
cámara y rodear la zona con cinta aisladora; o cortarla, atarla fuerte con
un nudo
e inflarla de nuevo.
Otra solución es rellenar la cubierta con pasto, hojas o ramas pequeñas y
flexibles, para finalmente, atarla a la cámara.
Quieres aprender más de mecánica? Llámanos y te enseñamos mecánica básica de
sobrevivencia, de mantenimiento y de competencia.
--
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04:51 p.m.
lunes, 15 de enero de 2007
Como mantener bien tu cadena y por qué
El secreto para extender la vida util de una cadena es la lubricacion y no cruzar la cadena.
Siempre debe estar lubricada.
Existe productos especificos para esta tarea, lo mejor es comprar uno que no dañe el medio ambiente.
Para lubricarla cadena primero hay que limpiarla, para esto tambien hay productos especificos que sacan el polvo y el lubricante.
La cadena debe lubricarse a menudo.
Si vas a salir por lugares secos y con polvo hay que lubricar, dejar pasar una hora y luego limpiar el excedente de lubricante para que el polvo no se pege y se meta en los puntos claves y ayude al desgaste.
Si vas a andar en lluvia, barro o nieve lubricar y no limpiar. Asi el excedente ayuda como impermeabilizante.
Si andas por arena, limpia la cadena a la vuelta!
Hay que evitar usar los cambios cruzados ya que fuerzan cada eslabon y adquieren juego mas rapidamente.
Siempre es posible encontrar un cambio no cruzado con la misma relacion.
Los cambios cruzados son plato grande y piñon grande o plato chico y piñon chico. Pero esta ultima no es muy util.
El primero se usa para llevar la cadena tensa y mover solo el descarrilador trasero. Llevar la cadena tensa sirve para que no se salga, por ejemplo si vas a saltar o hacer piruetas.
Si ya estas acostumbrado a estos cambios lo mejor sera alargar un poco la cadena.
Para hacer un cambio tardío en una subida, lo que tienes que hacer acelerar para tomar velocidad, luego seguir pedaleando pero sin presión en los pedales para que la cadena gire pero sin tensión, ese es el momento para hacer el cambio.
Porque tanta preocupacion por la cadena?
Porque cada vez que cambies la cadena tendras que cambiar los piñones y posiblemente los platos. Todo el conjunto se va gastanto a la par. Pero cuando se pone una cadena nueva en un piñon viejo lo mas probable es que la cadena se zafe.
Cuando la cadena y piñon son nuevos cada eslabon se apoyan en un diente pero cuando la cadena es nueva y el piñon viejo, solo se apoyan bien los dientes superiores.
Andrés Duarte
Móvil: 5562-9018
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