Fixing muscle imbalances

This post will hopefully serve as some help to those with concerns such as:

“I feel wonky.”

“I think I have some muscle imbalance.”

“My hips don’t feel straight while I am riding.”

Let’s get to it. The causes of issues like these are numerous and often take a while to sort out. I will go through them in a progressive order but if you think I missed something please let me know. I don’t mention trying to “correct” them while riding as this is mostly wasted effort in my opinion. The way to go is going after root causes OFF the bike.

Side Note: Riders with dual sided power meters looking to even out power balance:

1. Check your cleat position. Cleat position dictates which muscles are recruited by the nervous system during the pedal stroke.

2. Check your function. The book Anatomy for Runners is great for this. The goal is fairly even strength, stability, and mobility between sides.

3. Calibrate your power meter. This is my favorite as it is the easiest to fix!

First of all, we have to talk about structural asymmetries. This includes things like leg length differences, scoliosis in the spine, one foot that turns out more than the other, or a rounded upper back. You are BORN with this stuff usually and it is challenging to change so it is best to accept that humans are all a bit crooked and get to work on what you CAN change. These include:

1. Bike Fit

2. Flexibility/ Mobility

3. Strength

4. Motor Control

Bike Fit: Get a kickass bike fit from someone with a really good reputation...not just someone with fancy equipment or who used to be a pro rider. Someone with proven outcomes and references. That might be me…or someone else.

Flexibility/Mobility: Begin Max Shank’s 5 Minute Flow in the morning and stretch at night. Yoga is good too. Here is what is important. Pay attention to differences in left and right side for each stretch or movement. The goal is to be close to similar from left to right. If one side is tighter do twice as much stretching for that side. It WILL improve. Good resources include Max Shank, Kit Laughlin, and GMB Fitness. Research it and be consistent. Foam rolling is okay but not mandatory. Same for massage, lasers, all that stuff.

Strength: Simply getting stronger helps many cyclists and runners. Bilateral AND single side movements are important. If you can take a kettlebell lesson with someone Strongfirst or RKC certified, DO IT! Extra bonus if they are FMS certified. Good resources here are Dan John, Jay Dicharry, and Chris Johnson. Seek out equal strength and balance on each side through a variety of movements.

Motor Control: This is how your brain communicates with your muscles and it is wired pretty strong. To improve this get a hold of Todd Hargrove’s book A Guide to Better Movement and read it. All of it. Then do the lessons in the back 10 to 15 minutes 3 times a week for 3 months. Another good one is Moshe Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement.

Sounds like a bunch of work right? It IS! You can find lectures or videos from all these folks on YouTube if you don’t like to read….It took ten or twenty years for your body to get twisted up and will take a few months to sort out, sometimes longer or shorter. I grew up playing baseball and soccer, so I had plenty of weird stuff myself. I did the things above, and got lots better. It works, I promise. Don’t stress over doing the perfect routine, just get to it and do something besides sit at a desk and ride your bike. 

Road bike pedal options

Road Bike Pedal Options

Choices, choices... It is good to have them in bike part land! The hard part is choosing between all the component options so this will focus only on road bike pedals.

I should mention first that you can ask 20 riders about pedals and get SO MANY different answers. The risk here is you might not know the experience base of folks you get advice from. Think of it like this...you want to go out for a nice date with your partner but you have never eaten out. Your buddy Joe has though and he thinks Chipotle would just rock for a really nice date night. It is his absolute favorite, matter of fact. What is the problem? Well, Joe is nice, but has never eaten anywhere other than Chipotle so of course it is his favorite. Careful on what advice you take, y’all.

*One note before I jump in though about float. Float does NOT waste energy. I have spent years watching how riders feet and knees move while pedaling. Almost everyone has some natural side to side rotational heel movement during the pedal stroke due to the mechanics of the knee joint. This assertion is quite simply not a legit concern and I wish it wasn’t 

Probably the best way to sort through options is to list them in order of how often I recommend them to my bike fit clients:

Shimano - They work, period. Great durability. Excellent foot stability on the pedal and almost always my suggestion for riders over 180-200 pounds. The 105 model is the workhorse but with the Ultegra and Dura Ace models offer a 4 millimeter wider pedal axle which LOTS of riders would just love. The yellow tip SH11 cleat is best for most riders. Riders under maybe 110 pounds be careful with Shimano as the effort to clip out of them can be pretty stiff when new.

Speedplay - Skip the X series and go for the Zero...if you have trouble clipping out get the Zero Ultra Light Action. Best adjustability of any pedal out there. Numerous pedal widths are available as is an aluminum adapter plate to move the cleat back 14 millimeters further than normal on the shoe. Get the Aero cleat covers so you can walk in them without jacking up the cleat screws. Some larger riders will feel some instability with Speedplay and will be better off with Shimano. Be really careful with cleat installation, it is easy to mess it up. I have seen some real disasters here. 

SPD - No they don’t look cool and are not road pedals BUT they are really easy to walk in and super durable. Great option if you get into dirt roads also or simply want the same pedals on multiple bikes. XT is the winner here. Easy entry and exit.

Look - Wear faster than the others, crappy hardware, less adjustable. The free float is nice and the 9 degree cleat option is cool too. Not my favorite really. Easy to clip out of.

Time - Fair. The float is spring centered which is an issue for some riders with knee problems. Durability is only okay. Again, not a favorite. Easy to clip out of.

Crank Brothers - Multiple options which I always cringe at when I fit a bike with them. I do my best to get folks away from these unless they just absolutely love them. I will mention that make one of the widest flat pedals on the market which I have set up multiple riders with who won’t use clip in pedals. 

Yoga for endurance athletes

Between the clinic and the bike shop, I am often asked for my thoughts on yoga so I might as well share them here also.

My general answer to any exercise question is "Yes, it is awesome, go do it." Most folks just need to do something, anything, so I encourage all of it. So yeah, I like yoga pretty well. We will focus on cycling here with some of the benefits:

1. Flexibility: Main reason people do yoga and well, it works. I see more people who are tight and restricted than not, so flexibility work is nice. For y'all that don't need to stretch....call me in twenty years :)  If you don't work on it, you get worse every year until you are 70 and can't touch your toes.

2. Posture: Kind of in line with flexibility, but if you want to stand up a bit taller, yoga is proven to work. 

3. Strength: Cyclists are great all around strength athletes...they work all four quad muscles! Other than that, most are lacking in posterior chain strength, lateral strength, and plenty else. Yoga is a convenient way to build strength for the bends and twists of life off the bike. 

4. Chill time: Rush to the office, rush to get on the bike, hammer for 90 minutes, rush home. See a pattern? Relaxing time isn't a luxury. It helps you recover from the rest of life. An easy yoga session at night checks this box.

I'll also give a few warnings:

1. Don't neglect rows and pullups and monkey bars. Yoga misses these pulling movements big time, so get them covered!

2. Don't be a one trick pony. Try a variety of yoga classes. Power, core, yin. They all have their place but if all you do is stretch your hamstrings...guess what you will be good at? Stretching your hamstrings. Weak at everything else.

3. Bone Density is very important for cyclists. Cycling is a low impact sport which means it doesn’t do much for bone density. Neither does yoga! Hit some weights, walk with a light backpack or do some jumping type exercises. 

For starters:

1. Take a class if you can. One on one instruction rules.

2. If you can't take a class, try some beginner sessions from youtube. I will link below to my favorite channel which I think has something for everyone.

3. Go easy, muscles and joints need time to adapt. I have had multiple patients in clinic cause they went bonkers in a yoga class. Easy does it.

Anyone else love yoga? Hate it? Would love to hear your opinions.