Training: Clocking on
When your body temperature rises… take off all your clothes! No, but enjoy the improved cycling performance that comes with it (Paul Smith)
Inhaling less emissions, better visibility, safety in the bunch, the daily commute, the motivation to stay with the peloton on the climbs – there are loads of good reasons why people choose to train when they do. Try using your body clock to maximise the benefit to your training and performance.
Although you might consider yourself a morning or afternoon person, daily fluctuations in bodily functions – known as circadian rhythms – are largely the same for everyone. So although daily peaks and troughs are useful to know for maximising training potential, the division between so-called morning and afternoon people is almost certainly a myth.
To prove the point, a team of researchers from Liverpool John Moores University took eight well trained cyclists who all had a preference for training in the morning, and each performed an identical time-trial at 7.30am and 5.30pm (on different days, obviously!), with and without a warm-up.
Despite considering themselves morning people, all the riders performed significantly better in the afternoon, regardless of whether they’d done a warm-up. The reason had nothing to do with residual sleepiness or stiffness, or anything else you may be able to ‘train away’ with regular morning rides; no, the researchers believe the improved afternoon performance was down to the cyclists’ internal body temperature being consistently higher compared to the morning.
Every body has rhythm
This fluctuation in body temperature is just one of more than 100 different circadian rhythms operating inside of us. They are all controlled by the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a biological clock in a part of the brain called the hypothalamus. Although scientists have yet to pinpoint the exact mechanism it uses to pace your body, they know that daylight, social contact and mealtimes are all factors.
“Practically every bodily function shows daily rhythmicity,” said Dr Roberto Refinetti, chief editor of the Journal of Circadian Rhythms. “So that means, in theory at least, you can improve your ability to do something simply by selecting the right time of day to do it.”
When it comes to the physiological factors that affect exercise, the improvements can be significant and wide-ranging.
For example, a study by Dr Boris Medarov of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York found that lung function was more than 6% better in the afternoon than at other times during the day, while Welsh scientists tested a group of 11 rowers and found they were able to work most intensely for a given buildup of lactate at around 9pm in the evening, which coincided with their peak core temperature.
Hotter prospects
With cycling, the performance peak seems to be slightly earlier but just as
significant. Researchers at the
Another study from the University of Basse-Normandie found that cyclists
peaked at
In each case the time of best performance mirrored very closely the daily
peak of internal body temperature. The link has been most commonly ascribed to
the fact that higher body temperatures
result in less viscous blood flow, meaning muscles are more supple and
consequently exercise feels easier because there is less energy loss from
internal friction. But James Waterhouse, Professor of Biological Rhythms, and
his team at
Why it’s important to keep your cool
In another study they looked at heart rate, core temperature and sternum
skin temperature during exercise and recovery at
This strongly reinforces the work done by a team from the
Your personal temperature gauge
Whatever the reason, body temperature seems to be the key factor in determining peak cycling performance, so it’s a good idea to try to work out exactly when your daily peak occurs. Fortunately this is very easy to do.
- Pick a day on which you’ve had good, normal sleep patterns for several days previously
- Then take your temperature every two hours
- Plot the results on a graph, connecting the points with a smooth line
- The resulting curve should give you a good idea of your daily temperature peak
That is likely to be the time when your cycling will be at its best, so try to plan time-trials or tough speedwork sessions accordingly.
User Comments
There are 11 comments on this post
Showing 1 - 11 of 11 comments
-
Hagrid
Posted Mon 23 Feb, 9:39 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
I don't quite follow the logic of this. Obviously, if these things were under my control, I would race/TT/beat the crap out of my "friends" at the best time of day for my body. But for training, all I want to do is apply the appropriate amount of stress to promote adaptation off the bike. I don't think it follows that adaptation will be greater simply because I trained at a more comfortable time of day for my body. Maybe. Maybe not. I just didn't see anything in this otherwise interesting article to justify that particular conclusion.
-
Hagrid
Posted Mon 23 Feb, 9:40 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
I don't quite follow the logic of this. Obviously, if these things were under my control, I would race/TT/beat the crap out of my "friends" at the best time of day for my body. But for training, all I want to do is apply the appropriate amount of stress to promote adaptation off the bike. I don't think it follows that adaptation will be greater simply because I trained at a more comfortable time of day for my body. Maybe. Maybe not. I just didn't see anything in this otherwise interesting article to justify that particular conclusion.
-
Hagrid
Posted Mon 23 Feb, 9:41 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
I don't quite follow the logic of this. Obviously, if these things were under my control, I would race/TT/beat the crap out of my "friends" at the best time of day for my body. But for training, all I want to do is apply the appropriate amount of stress to promote adaptation off the bike. I don't think it follows that adaptation will be greater simply because I trained at a more comfortable time of day for my body. Maybe. Maybe not. I just didn't see anything in this otherwise interesting article to justify that particular conclusion.
-
Paddifer
Posted Tue 24 Feb, 11:00 am GMT Flag as inappropriate
Isn't the point that you can train harder at peak times, so adaptation after training will be greater?
-
MyPace
Posted Wed 25 Feb, 9:49 am GMT Flag as inappropriate
Does this mean i might have a heart attack cycling to work in the mornings?
-
Hagrid
Posted Wed 25 Feb, 9:00 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
Paddifer - I'm not sure you're training "harder" at peak times. Your body just finds it easier to produce power at peak times, which is not necessarily the same thing. I mean, you may be right, but it could just as easily be that you get a better or equivalent work out in the morning because it's harder to get the same work done. After all, it would be foolish to say that you got a better work out at 20 mph with a tailwind than at 16mph into a gale simply because the first run was faster. All I'm saying is that there was nothing in the article to justify the conclusion that the training effect at peak times is better. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. More research!!!
-
C-S-B
Posted Thu 26 Feb, 8:11 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
They arent claiming that there is a greater training effect; they are saying that performance will be better at certain times. So if you want to finally crack that time for your local hill or loop, do it during your daily peak time. They dont claim this will make you faster in the long term (ie better training), just that you will have a better chance of doing so.
Or thats the sense I made of it
-
Hagrid
Posted Thu 26 Feb, 9:37 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
Maybe. But I think "tough speedwork sessions" means training.
I take your point about personal bests, though. For instance, I usually start sportives at the earliest possible moment in the day, which is often 6 or 6:30am. If I want to do a better time, I might be advised to start at the last possible moment instead.
-
rogerthecat
Posted Tue 3 Mar, 9:21 am GMT Flag as inappropriate
@ MyPace, no m8 it just means you will get home quicker.
-
baldbee
Posted Fri 6 Mar, 6:59 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
There was a 'Horizon' programme on BBC2 recently about internal body clocks. If I remember correctly, yes Mypace you are more likely to have a heart attack in the morning than the afternoon because of differences in blood flow.
-
psiturbo
Posted Mon 9 Mar, 4:48 pm GMT Flag as inappropriate
Whatever! I bet Lance and Cavendish follow these tips to improve there stamina.
- 1
Post this story to: