noodle soup

+1

Every couple of months I ride with a buddy of mine that actually wins Cat2 races(or podiums). I'm always just hanging on his wheel, unless we start a long climb. We did a 100.3 mile last year, in under under 5 hours(4:34 rolling time). I wish we had a chase car to feed us bottles and snacks that day. A 4.5hr century is fast for a mere mortal.

canklecat

I've had prednisone a few times for respiratory inflammation. If it helped on the bike it's only because I could breathe better.

Same with a new round of bronchial and nasal steroid inhalers from my immunologist. I don't feel any superpowers, but I can breathe freely without drowning in phlegm. For months before starting this stuff a few weeks ago I was literally hacking up a pint of phlegm and spit every ride. It was so gross I quit doing group rides until it cleared up. (Well, then the coronavirus pandemic came along so I'm riding solo anyway.)

Supposedly some asthma inhalers can enhance lean muscle mass, but I haven't noticed any particular advantage that I wouldn't have gotten just from improving my diet. That might be limited to clenbuterol, I don't know, not sure I've used it for awhile. The downside is bone density loss, which I'm already at risk for. I use it only as prescribed, not trying to make it into a PED.

No drug or workout was ever gonna make me a pro. Never had the stamina. I'm not even the fastest old dude in my area, or have the stamina to ride more than 50 miles too often. I can keep up with some group rides, and occasionally crack a top ten on a compatible segment, which is good enough.

BillyD

Botto? Is that you?

canklecat

BTW, avoid taking prednisone long term if you can avoid it. You won't like the effects. Neither will family and friends. It tends to cause 'roid rage, particularly in older men.

I was in health care for years, including as a caregiver for three older family members. And I've chatted with other caregivers. A common theme was the negative side effect of long term prednisone on older men taking it for COPD and related uses. It was particularly bad with my granddad and a former neighbor. The neighbor was a good guy when I first met him, pretty mellow. But he was a heavy smoker, couldn't or wouldn't stop or cut back, and ended up on prednisone and portable oxygen for COPD. He got to be a handful of chronic anger for his caregiver, apartment complex manager, postmaster, pretty much everyone who caught his ire.

I've only taken it for a week at a time, years apart. Mostly recently in winter 2018. Got a shot of the stuff in the arm at the ER (hurt like hell for about 15 minutes), and the usual 5-day oral course. No problems. But long term use can be tricky. My docs won't prescribe it unless absolutely necessary due to my auto immune disorder with premature bone density loss and other issues. The nasal and bronchial inhalers seem to work pretty well.

Digger Goreman

So there I was... about one year ago, looking for a better route back from the Hard to Recycle Center in Atlanta. Instead of over the huge hill, started through Grant Park. Quickly came to barriers and a young, safety vested man. He told me that, upon the next group of riders, I could scoot up the side of the circuit and out the other end, then be on my way.

I waited for the fast paced, whizzing line of road bikes to pass, and as quickly as possible rode my old Trek mtb up the outer side.... Just as I reached my exit point, three pro/semi-pro riders buzzed by me so close I could've flinched an elbow and hit them! My exit point was also one corner of the circuit. But, for one delicious moment, this old man led a race on a FrankenTrek... if only in my mind

dr_max

some people are genetically gifted

AMGwagon

I grew up as a Jr racing in Denver when Jonathan Vaughters (WT pro), Jimi Killen (US Jr Nat RR champ + World MTB Cx Champ), Colby Pierce (Continental pro), Greg Miller (Cat 1), Chris Wherry (USPro champ '05) and other future pros were either on my team or lining up to kill the rest of us. Then I went to CU Boulder and some punk from the ski team kept dropping us at Carter Lake and I just cursed the heavens for making love something I sucked at so badly. I feel like the ultimate KoM: King of Mediocrity. That ski punk was Tyler Hamilton.

Just ride and have fun!

noodle soup

He did the same thing to his amateur club in Massachusetts.

caloso

https://www.wada-ama.org/sites/defau...bited_list.pdf

GLUCOCORTICOIDS All glucocorticoids are prohibited when administered by oral, intravenous, intramuscular or rectal routes. Including but not limited to: Betamethasone; Budesonide; Cortisone; Deflazacort; Dexamethasone; Fluticasone; Hydrocortisone; Methylprednisolone; Prednisolone; Prednisone; Triamcinolone.

AMGwagon

That is hilarious! Is there more than one route in that manner??

caloso

Maybe. As a professional rule drafter, I can tell you it's very important to cover all the possible bases.

kraftwerk 

Times like this I miss Botto.

noimagination

I had a brief "altitude camp" experience when I was in my 20's. I went to my brother's college graduation in Santa Fe, as I remember I was there for 3 days, went running a couple of times.

Came back, went on a run (wasn't cycling at the time) and I was figuratively blasting up hills that I'd chugged up the week before. And this was after only 3 days at altitude. Unfortunately the effect didn't last for long, but man, I still remember that run even though it was more than 30 years ago now.

rebel1916

Cramping and early muscle fatigue has been my experience with prednisone.

noodle soup

botto wouldn’t last long on this forum now. He constantly insulted people that he disagreed with.

He’s incapable of having a disagreement with someone, and not insulting them.

guadzilla

You just described 99% of the people on the 41.

aliasfox

Chromic asthmatic here, controlled by an inhaled corticosteroid.

From my understanding, oral prednisone is great at knocking out inflammation in the correct dosage for the correct period of time. When my asthma acts up, I believe I take two doses of 20mg per day for three days, then taper it down to nothing by the end of the week. Generally not riding or running during that week - I mean, I'm taking it because I can't breathe...

However, if you end up having to take it for longer, bloating and water weight are common, as is a near insatiable appetite... none of which is good for any kind of performance. In my case, "longer" meant taking multiple 1-week courses over the winter when I was a child.

Definitely don't want to be on that stuff for longer than absolutely necessary.

WhyFi

Did not, you doody head.

botto 

you really have no idea.

burnthesheep

It's just delusions of grandeur. Looking at the lives some of those folks lead, I do not want to do that whatsoever.

I make great money and have plenty of time to ride my bike the way I want to.

The coulda woulda shoulda in my life was golf. I was a ranked junior. Played with Webb Simpson a couple times. I gave it up for a productive college degree/job path. Looking back, I've likely been happier doing what I do now seeing how little those guys make and how crap the low level golfers lives are living out of cars and crap hotels.

Bikes? I'm 36. I'll race once in a while for fun and take it more seriously than I should. Reminds me of golfers in the local tourney shooting 90 but standing over putts for 5 minutes.

If I had 12 hours a week instead of 5 or 6.......I could probably do pretty well in time trial. I'm an engineer and nerd into the science of it. I'm not very strong, but I'm pretty slippery. Adding the physical "oomph" to go with my science witchcraft of aeroness I could go a good bit quicker.

LAJ

WxGuesser

Ok Ryan F.... Does anyone else remember him?