I’ve regularly given blood for years but I don’t seem to be bouncing back as quickly as I did it could (read this as is probably) be down to ageing or it could just be that I have more numbers accurate to tell me I’m down on where I should be for far longer than I thought). Anyway riding with lead legs is no fun so I’m keen to find the best way of recovering as quickly as possible.

Does anyone know whether you get a quicker recovery by doing longer easier rides, doing threshold sessions, or power sessions? I’m more or less a roady these days down to family life and work time pressure so I can make distinctions between the two.

Hi,

Donating in Sheffield, living in Rotherham. Always getting there and back on the bike. Return leg, despite all being on flat seems to be feeling like bloody mountain stage of TdF xD

I’m 45 now and recovery time definitely is longer now than it was a few years back.

Does anyone know whether you get a quicker recovery by doing longer easier rides, doing threshold sessions, or power sessions? I’m more or less a roady these days down to family life and work time pressure so I can make distinctions between the two.

No idea what it is all about. I just like riding my bicycle 😀

Cheers!
I.

I just like riding my bicycle

So do I, the only person I compete with is myself but I hate loosing. Just looking for the fabled super compensation when I should be riding like a champion (I used to ride Rutland CC’s Tea Cake run so I am under no illusion that even when fully fit I am not in any sense a good rider).

It sounds to me like you need to just get out and enjoy riding your bike rather than trying to push out numbers.

So many people have accused Strava of ruining their rides, but it’s not Strava is it, it’s how you look at Strava.

Get out on some MTB rides and I guarantee your recovery to having fun will be faster.

When I gave blood a good few years ago they wouldn’t take it if I was going home on a bike – to dangerous apparently. The end of my donating blood!

Fair comment about pushing out numbers but people don’t ride, or for that matter, do many things for a single over riding reason. Seeing how far I can push myself is just one of those reasons. Road biking (a commute) rather than MTBing just fits in better with my life as it is at the moment. Making the commute interesting is where the numbers come in.

I’m not sure how dangerous riding home on a bike is. I currently donate in Nottingham and a fair proportion of people turn up and leave on bikes without comment. I guess it comes down to when they ask you if you are doing anything dangerous or strenuous (sorry after 6 gallons I still can’t remember the question) in the next 24 hours, it comes down to your own definitions. In younger and fitter days I’ve done fell races within that period with no ill effect other than getting spectacular value for money out of the two pints I had after the race. Advising other people to do the same would probably end up in a court case.

Sorry long winded way of saying I’m not giving either thing up I just wondered if there was a consensus on how to do one of them better/sooner after the other.

I really wouldn’t worry too much about the danger. It sounds very risk averse unless you have a history of passing out.

I suspect your best way to get the recovery done quicker would be to do recovery rides only for the week after giving blood.

I understand that commuting is a great way to keep fit with kids, do the same myself and it’s nice that realistically I could do the commute and no more and keep my fitness reasonable. But it’s important to find time for yourself and the commute is never the same as a nice couple of hours in the countryside, even if I take the nicer route (not that the less nice route is bad tbh.)

I guess it comes down to when they ask you if you are doing anything dangerous or strenuous (sorry after 6 gallons I still can’t remember the question) in the next 24 hours, it comes down to your own definitions.

Yeah, they are asking that question. I’m always replying that I’m OK with that and did it before so no issue.

I would ask GCN, they seems to be replying to many weird questions.

And I would also try to stay on top of replenishing ferroglobin and add beets to your diet.

These two from SWMBO, as she is suffering with low recurring anemia based on auto-immunological condition.

Cheers!
I.

I always find donating blood makes me much more tired for about 5 days afterwards. I don’t do a bike commute but always schedule donating for a Monday to give me maximum time until the next weekend and will delay it a week if I have a biking event on the weekend.

As for recovery, I try to take in more fluids than normal and don’t do any more than light running in the week of donating. I have not found any magic way to speed up the recovery but it hasn’t put me off donating blood which although is a personal thing, is something we should probably all think about as you never know when we might need to be on the receiving end of some.

I donate and then ride home every time.

I get a bit of a dead arm sometimes.

If you are struggling you need to reset more.