Forum menu
How do I tell if I'm on the verge of bonking or just ordinary, run of the mill exhausted ?
For me, I usually get a sudden hunger pang/empty stomach feeling. If I stuff down some high sugar food, I can usually avoid a bad bonk but I know if I don't do it quickly I'll be in trouble...
I seem to need to eat a huge amount on longer rides to avoid it - certainly way more than most people and as a consequence have experienced the bonk several times. The worst was when I was 25 miles from home, pre-mobile phone days, with no cash. It took me two hours to ride those 25 miles (despite managing to scrounge a banana from a petrol station) and I was so out of it, I hallucinated a massive banana by the side of the road and started heading for it before a moment of clarity showed it to in fact be a tree...
The only time I got it bad I didn't see it coming. I was young and mixing it with roadie hardmen. I just remember staring at this guys rear mech for miles (it was a Simplex BTW) then we turned a corner and the narrow flat lane seemed to act like an Alpine climb I actually remember looking around to see if someone was playing a trick, then a few yards later I ground to a halt.
There was something in last weeks New Scientist (1 May 2010)
"Energy drinks give your muscles an instant boost.
If you spit out an energy drink after taking a sip, it could still boost your strength. This pre-digestive effect is immediate and seems due to a newly discovered neural pathway that links taste buds to muscles.
Nicholas Gant at the University of Auckland in New Zealand previously showed that mouth-rinsing and then spitting out a carbohydrate solution immediately improved performance at sprinting and cycling - even though it takes at least 10 minutes for carbohydrates to be digested and utilised by muscles.
......... Gant say's it's likely that taste receptors detect carbohydrates resulting in a signal to fatigued muscles "that help is on the way" so they continue working hard."
Its not suggesting that spitting food out does any good, just that food in your mouth could prevent your body panicing just moments before it all turns horrible.
You get to know when it's going to happen if you listen to your body. There's a difference between running low on blood sugar and being exhausted. Try doing a really hard ride with plenty of carb drink, bars, food and whatnot - your legs will feel trashed but you'll be basically ok. If you are starting to bonk you feel crap all over and your brain starts to get fuzzy, your mood will drop, you'll struggle mentally...
If you start feeling weak in general, quite rapidly, then you're approaching bonk territory. Leg exhaustion is just.. well.. sore leg muscles.
molgrips - Member
You get to know when it's going to happen if you listen to your body. There's a difference between running low on blood sugar and being exhausted. Try doing a really hard ride with plenty of carb drink, bars, food and whatnot - your legs will feel trashed but you'll be basically ok. If you are starting to bonk you feel crap all over and your brain starts to get fuzzy, your mood will drop, you'll struggle mentally...If you start feeling weak in general, quite rapidly, then you're approaching bonk territory. Leg exhaustion is just.. well.. sore leg muscles.
yep agreed there,some people think bonking is just being knackered or legs in pain,well its no way near.
prob is with or what ive found with myslef,is if i do long rides and take a carb-energy mix in yer camelback or bottle it dehydrates me,.
Just looked through my sports science journals I guess in Laymans you lot are close but not hit the nail.
Should I offer the solution for cycling events?
Nah 😈
cackle cackle...just kidding.
I think I might create a website of sports science for roadies and mtbs noobs for my summer project for free of course if I can get the advertising.
How much detail would people want?
I've never bonked - am I a virgin? What do you call people who think that they have bonked but actually just got the symptoms a bit confused - dry humpers? Discuss. 🙂
I have problems with blood sugar control and get easily hypoglaecimic - with that I get about 3 minutes warning starting with blue/white vision and general diziness. I can go about another 15 minutes with glucose tablets but then need something more "proper".
With bonking I get less than a minutes warning - from reasonably okay to zero energy (even to brake) and no balance. I seem to be able to then go quite a while very slowly if I drip feed myself energy bars and glucose tablets with a gel.
My worst food mistake ever was grabbing what I thought was a packet of glucose tablets to discover 50km away from home in the middle of nowhere that they were 1 calorie breath mints.
Only had it once. On a commute home in the middle of winter. Blowing a gale and pouring rain with 12 miles done and 8 to go I totally lost it. Felt awful, got home, ate a mars bar, went to sleep, ate dinner my wife had made then went to sleep again. I was totally ****ed.
I never see anyone else on the second half of my commute in winter, I go across a moor road. I was standing holding my bike and a guy rode passed and asked if I was okay - I think I imagined it.
Always carry a chocolate bar now, just in case.
[i]they were 1 calorie breath mints[/i] I would have killed for them when I bonked.
It's your own personal hell...especially when you've got a long way to go. I hadn't done it for years then was re-introduced to it once last year. You'll probably get a major sense of humour bypass at the same time 🙂
Eat, drink, take the rest of the ride easy, though it's not as though you'll have any choice on the last one.
If you are going flat out in your granny gear on level ground and weeping gently. You've bonked.
That's pretty close along with the physical torture and associated mental slump you get.
😀dry humpers? Discuss
i had it when doing Sleepless last year. About 3/4 of the way into my 5am lap and it hit me like a freight train. I was dreaming about food all the way till i finished the lap. shaking and totally lacking energy.
I got into our area and proceeded to grab anything i could. I sat down rocking back and forth, ate an entire packet of chocolate hobnobs, a can of coke, a whole packet of fig rolls, a mars bar and a cup of tea.
I couldn't think straight and felt throughly confused.. it's an immense feeling and the daydreaming of food is overwhelming
[i]I was dreaming about food all the way till i finished the lap. shaking and totally lacking energy.p[/i]
That's the feeling I get as well. There could be a dozen gorgeous naked women next to me and I'd still be thinking FOOD, NOW!
Nothing else is needed - staunch vegans will be knocking on the door of the local greasy spoon begging for a bacon sarnie. Gourmet diners will scrape the last dregs of a lukewarm Pot Noodle in an effort to get any sort of calorific intake.
Crawling along a flat road or trail in low gear, willing the body to go on and it just won't, there is nothing there! One of the most depressing and demoralising feelings ever.
Spill it zaskar, I want detail. I'm a scientist.
The solution is just to eat or take carbs. It's simple 🙂
As for carb drink dehydrating you.. dunno how that'd be possible. Maybe if it was mixed too strong or too salty or something. All you really need is 3-4 scoops of plain maltodextrin powder per hour unless you are racing or in really really hot weather, then some electrolyte is nice. Flavour it with nothing, or some squash. Syrupy sweet yucky SIS type stuff is nasty.
FOOD, NOW!
Sometimes I've got back to the car and found only sugar-free gum. I still eat it, in vain hope...
carb drinks don't dehydrate you, that's impossible, they just don't quench your thirst. For long distances I'll take a carb drink in my camelback for energy then have a bottle of plain water on the bike to quench my thirst.
Kev
so its mi thrist that was the problem then,although looking back be 15 16 years ago it was that dextrain stuff,anyone remember that?probably because i mixed it twice as strong as it said too ha!
Bloody norah,and I thought Bonking was summit you do in dark rooms with music turned down,fluffy pillows and -(fill in as appropriate!)
Anyone else start peeing loads? Or have I got other issues...?!
It's never happened to me when cycling. I always make sure I've got a healthy supply of donuts or something with me. It's happened to me when I've gone walking a few times though. You know when a short stroll turns into an epic adventure. I walked a freind into the ground recently when I was looking for new trails in the area to ride my bike lol. I didn't realise he was tiring until he said he just can't go on any more.