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Specialized Dizzy Cycles Team: Nieves Carrasco, Andreas Carmona (Team Director) & Pablo Araya [Steven Villabolos is missing in this picture

Over the past couple of months, I have had the pleasure of being the team chiropractor for the Specialized Dizzy Cycles Team based out of Kitsilano, Vancouver. The team is currently composed of three Costa Rican National Champions: Nieves Carrasco, Pablo Araya and Steven Villalobos. Nieves is a three time National Time Trial Champion; Pablo is a five time National King of the Mountains Champion and Steven is a three time National Mountain Biking Champion. Pretty impressive, especially since their resume includes many more impressive finishes in South America!

We don’t speak the same language, but fortunately team director, Andreas Carmona, also from Costa Rica, is a fantastic translator. Andreas brings these cyclists over from Costa Rica to race the Western Canadian circuit; this prepares them for their upcoming South American season while exposing them to the Canadian cycling culture. Andreas drives this team with unparalleled passion. I have found the combined passion, discipline and determination of this team to be incredibly inspiring.

I have enjoyed learning some Spanish, working on professional athletes who treat their bodies like temples and helping them remain finely tuned for competition. It has been a fantastic experience and it has served to further cement my affirmation that you don’t need to speak the same language as someone to understand them, respect them, help them, learn from them and become friends with them.

Thank you Nieves, Pablo and Steven for being such a joy to work with and to you Andreas, for giving me the opportunity to be a part of your vision and passion!

For more pictures and information on the team’s results, check out my Facebook page as well as the Vancouver Sun, Pedal Magazine, and BC Cycling results pages.

Bicycle transportation has recently become a regular and very fun part of my life.  My husband LOVES riding his bike; he wants to bike wherever we go regardless of weather or time of day.  Recently, I have liberated myself from the Ontario suburban car-attached mentality!  The more we cycle, the easier it is to jump on my bike instead of in the car AND it is becoming increasingly enjoyable!

Here are some reasons to cycle instead of drive:

1.       It is the green choice.

2.       It is good exercise.

3.       It makes you feel alive.

4.       It provides the opportunity to interact with individuals in your community.  This truly increases our quality of life!

5.       It will inspire other people to bike.

6.       It gives you time to relax and clear your mind.

7.       It enriches your life in ways you may not expect.

8.       It prevents the issue of being stuck in traffic and being late for engagements, therefore decreasing the risk of road rage.

9.       It is cool!

10.   It is fun!

What do you think?  Why not give it a go?  Once you get out there, you will feel better about yourself and you will be surprised at how alive you will feel!

Lorraine Cupido at Muskoka triathlon transition

The other day I had a chat with a young woman who works in our local grocery store.  She works full time and has three children.  She has lost 75 lbs since the winter of 2007 and she looks and feels great which is very obvious.  My acquaintance told me that she has lost enough weight and now really needs to tone her body but she doesn’t have the time.

I asked her if she has 10 minutes in the day to spare.  My philosophy is “10 minutes is better than no minutes”.  I then asked her if she has stairs in her house and if she has a couple of soup cans.  I explained how she could begin to tone her body in a short space of time with very basic equipment.  I informed her that the soup cans could be used to work on her biceps, triceps, back, and shoulder muscles and the stairs could be used to do lunges, stepping and stretches on.  I encouraged her to take her children with her while she goes for short walks and they can ride their bicycles along side of her.  Her face lit up when she realized how she could begin to become more physically active with little time and simple equipment.  Then I mentioned to her that she would likely get hooked on that great feeling that comes from moving her body and doing something good for herself.  That wonderful feeling comes as a result of the release of hormones called endorphins which are often mentioned in connection with the “runner’s high”.  My bet is that her short activity sessions will eventually become important enough that she will search for time for whatever activity she decides to pursue, and at the same time she will be setting a good example for her children.

Remember, “Some minutes are better than no minutes” and once you start making yourself feel good you will be looking for more.

On Saturday, June 14^th, the weather co-operated for the town of Squamish to host the 2008 Test of Metal Mountain Bike Race. I attended this event with my fellow super-fans to support my husband and two of our good friends in this remarkably popular bike race. With one thousand entries, the buzz at the start was exhilarating. As soon as our Canadian National Anthem concluded, the cyclists commenced their sixty-seven kilometre pursuit to the finish.

During this event, racers need to fuel their bodies with energy, fluids, and electrolytes. Therefore, supporters select checkpoints throughout the race where they exchange water bottles with their athletes to ensure that they are replenishing their bodies suitably.

After the race, I abandoned by super-fan title and seized my designation as chiropractor again. From talking to my husband and our friends, it seemed that leg cramping was the most disabling issue during the race. This is extremely common for athletes to experience during either long or fast events.

The reasons for cramping are multifactorial. I believe in the case of our three athletes, lack of training at race pace and race distance played the largest contributing factor in their leg cramping. If the body is not accustomed to being put to the test, it cannot be expected to react positively to the demands placed on it during a race. Dehydration and imbalanced electrolyte levels are sure-fire ways to cramp during a race. Genetic factors, ATP (energy) replenishment, and muscle glycogen reserves can all play into leg cramping during races.

Therefore, in preparation for your next race, train hard and smart for your body to learn how to cope with the stresses of racing. During your next race, ensure adequate fueling, hydration and electrolyte replenishment. Log your workouts; log your diet (including fluids) both the day before race day and on race day in order to determine what is optimal for you. No one recipe will work for every athlete’s body; we are all different and need to establish what produces the best results for us, individually.

Here is to your next race with no leg cramps! Congratulations to those of you who defeated this year’s Test of Metal!

Yesterday, our very own Vancouver hosted the 2008 Elite World Triathlon Championships. I cheered with pride and I watched in awe as our Canadians represented our country brilliantly. Not only did I watch yesterday as a proud Canadian, but also as a chiropractor. I watched the cyclists zoom by with their rounded lower backs and their hips driving powerfully into hip flexion. I was therefore not surprised during the run, to see that the majority of the athletes were significantly limited in hip extension, at least partially due to tight hip flexor muscles.

Hip extension is the component of our gait when our leg comes back behind us. Hip flexion is the opposite of hip extension and it is the action of our leg coming out in front of us. While on a bike, it is impossible to be in any other position at the hip other than flexion.

There is a big muscle known as the psoas which attaches in the lumbar spine (low back) and runs through the pelvis to attach to the top part of the femur (thigh bone). The primary function of this muscle is to flex the hip. Therefore, the psoas muscles of cyclists are often terribly tight since not only are they in a shortened position for long durations, they are also working hard to drive the upward movement of their pedal stroke.

Why is this relevant to us this month more than any other? It is “Vancouver Bike Month” which means that even more Vancouverites are cycling to work and sitting in hip flexion for an entire day, only to then bike home. When the psoas is too tight, it can produce significant pain in the low back, the front of the hip, the abdomen, or all of the above. If you ride a road bike, rather than a cruiser or a mountain bike, you may be at an increased risk of disc injuries in the low back due to the amount of flexion the lumbar spine is in.

What can we do to help prevent injuries to our psoas muscles? We can stretch the psoas muscle with what is essentially known as a lunge. However, to intensify this stretch and obtain more lengthening through the low back attachment, take the arm on the same side of the leg that is back and reach it up over your head and tilt gently to the opposite side at the waist. You should feel this stretch through the front side of the hip that is back and possibly through the abdomen as well. Be gentle while stretching; hold this stretch for thirty seconds and repeat it at least three times a day on both sides of the body.

In attempting to mitigate some of the compressive load that is placed on the discs of the low back while cycling, every time you get off of your bike, reach your hands as far up to the sky as possible. This exercise tractions the spine to allow for decompression of the lumbar spine. I know this may not feel like it is doing much, but in fact it is and besides, it should feel good!

Whether you are a cyclist or someone who sits at their desk for eight hours a day, both the psoas stretch and lumbar traction exercise are perfect for you. There is nothing wrong with cycling, as long as you know how to guard against the negative effects it can have on your body! Here is to learning!