I was riding some rough, rocky trails at the weekend and by the time I got to the end the quads in my trailing (left) leg were aching. Leading leg was fine and no pain or complaints elsewhere.
These are trails I've ridden since the 90s on various different bikes so I know them well and never normally get excessive pain.
My new bike is well set up and in my mind my body position is correct (hinging rather than squatting).
Am I just getting old?
Am I just getting old?
Possibly, it's something that I suffer with and it doesn't seem any less so when I've been doing regular leg sessions at the gym
Sounds like you need to get your balance tweaked on the new bike so that you are not loading one leg more than the other. And some isometric strength stuff like wallsits might be useful.
Where in your quad is it burning? Top towards the hip flexor (you're letting your trailing leg hang around and need to sort your weight distribution back a little) or just above the knee (you're putting too much weight into that leg). That might help work out what the problem is.
This thread might be helpful too.
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/bike-forum/thigh-burn-on-descents/#post-13691814
Alternate your leading leg? Yeah, I know, one leg always feels wrong!
Cycling puts a lot of strain on specific muscles, and when you think about how you stand on the bike when descending you're often pushing more with your front leg than your back leg.
An imbalance has been building up for a long time and now you're feeling it, it'll be a mixture of tightness and weak muscles, I have a similar issue with my lower back (left hand side) which is only fixed after a day of standing on my feet and moving around a lot.
See a physio for proper advice, or spend time doing your own research into it.
Am I just getting old?
Possibly, it's something that I suffer with and it doesn't seem any less so when I've been doing regular leg sessions at the gym
Hopefully this thread can help you too in that case!
Sounds like you need to get your balance tweaked on the new bike so that you are not loading one leg more than the other. And some isometric strength stuff like wallsits might be useful.
Where in your quad is it burning? Top towards the hip flexor (you're letting your trailing leg hang around and need to sort your weight distribution back a little) or just above the knee (you're putting too much weight into that leg). That might help work out what the problem is.This thread might be helpful too.
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/bike-forum/thigh-burn-on-descents/#post-13691814
Above the knee to mid thigh. What would that suggest?
FFIW, I have been getting left knee pain unrelated to biking for a while. Like more so when I haven't been riding for a while, and then getting out for a ride makes it feel better. Doesn't bother me when on the bike.
I'll check the other thread, and look into wallsits. Thanks!
Alternate your leading leg? Yeah, I know, one leg always feels wrong!
Tried that but it felt completely alien! I did manage to successfully learn to snowboard switch many years ago so it's not out with the realms of possibility to learn to ride switch footed on my bike... but snow is a lot more forgiving than rocks and roots!
Cycling puts a lot of strain on specific muscles, and when you think about how you stand on the bike when descending you're often pushing more with your front leg than your back leg.
An imbalance has been building up for a long time and now you're feeling it, it'll be a mixture of tightness and weak muscles, I have a similar issue with my lower back (left hand side) which is only fixed after a day of standing on my feet and moving around a lot.
See a physio for proper advice, or spend time doing your own research into it.
Appreciate the reply. I guess the research has started with this thread, but perhaps physio is something I should look into too.
It's normally fine, but the trails I was on at the weekend are a lot more rocky than what I usually ride... which are still sufficiently rough, but not as janky on the bike or body.