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How do you deal with BURNOUT

1332 Views 20 Replies 18 Participants Last post by mtnbykr©™, Aug 1, 2004

tiSS'er

Discussion Starter · Jul 25, 2004

Lately I feel burnt out. I know it is psychological, but in the past month I have had a rash of bad things happen. My Spicer TI broke again, my car was hit by someone, and they ran, and I can't seem to keep up with my riding buddies. I have had to ride by backup bike, a KHS SOLO-ONE (at least I have a decent backup). I also had to send my F100X back to Fox to be repaired. I have ridden the past 2 weeks rigid, and it has only worsened the situation. In Phoenix where we ride it is tremendously rocky and rough, so I started to get really sore wrists, shoulders and back. I know there are a lot of people in Phoenix who do ride rigid and I only have the greatest respect for those people.

But as you can see, it seems like my little world is coming down around me. 4 months ago I was ranked 3rd in the Arizona state SS championships, now I can hardly ride a 15 miler without dying. Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

1 - 20 of 21 Posts

dirtdrop

· #2 · Jul 26, 2004

tiSS'er said:
I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut.

2005?

Sorry man couldn't resist.

In one word - beer, cheers.

Ziggy-Stardust

· #3 · Jul 26, 2004

Try mixing it up. Do a little road riding. Do a little jogging, try a little tennis. Play some intense frisbee, go on a serious backpacking trip, do some rock climbing. Then come back (after putting a darned shock on your bike) and train on some gnarly hills. It's all good man.

Oh yeah, eat lots of nutritious food and drink lots of clean water too. You'll be knockin' em dead in no time.

Good luck

tiSS'er said:
Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

tiSS'er

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jul 26, 2004

Not really

The Dean should be in even sooner than September, but we will see. I know there are several people that have had problems with Dean in the past, but my brother ordered one 3 months ago and it was done in 5 weeks. One of my riding buddies has friends that work there, so I kind of have "connections". I have been told that Dean is slower than normal right now, so I can only hope. It has only been about 2 weeks, so in about 2 weeks I will call to get a status. But I figured for $1600 I am getting a double butted ti frame that is crafted exceptionally, so the wait will be worth it.

dirtdrop

· #5 · Jul 26, 2004

It'll be good no doubt. Good luck.

xrmattaz

· #6 · Jul 26, 2004

Preskit.

I just experienced a "Rudy visit". My slump is gone....just GONE.

C'mon up and visit us in Prescott. We have a nice place for you to stay, we can ride and talk bikes and such.

I can ALMOST guarantee getting you out your current affliction. Almost....

You buy the burritos.

See you Friday. Email me at lacey at cableone.net.

Mateo

tiSS'er said:
Lately I feel burnt out. I know it is psychological, but in the past month I have had a rash of bad things happen. My Spicer TI broke again, my car was hit by someone, and they ran, and I can't seem to keep up with my riding buddies. I have had to ride by backup bike, a KHS SOLO-ONE (at least I have a decent backup). I also had to send my F100X back to Fox to be repaired. I have ridden the past 2 weeks rigid, and it has only worsened the situation. In Phoenix where we ride it is tremendously rocky and rough, so I started to get really sore wrists, shoulders and back. I know there are a lot of people in Phoenix who do ride rigid and I only have the greatest respect for those people.

But as you can see, it seems like my little world is coming down around me. 4 months ago I was ranked 3rd in the Arizona state SS championships, now I can hardly ride a 15 miler without dying. Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

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FatFrank

· #7 · Jul 26, 2004

Take a month or two off

I consider myself a sailer and a rower not a cyclist, but I was in the same kind of rut. The summer here is the off season for sailing because of lack of wind, but I usually row all summer. I did pretty well in a clinic this spring but I was having back problems and other issues. Rowing takes a lot of time for transportation if you can't keep you boat on the waters edge so I began cycling again as something easy to do.

It has really been great. I like riding my teenage boys like it and it has actually helped my rowing! I'm not sure why I every got off the bike but I'm sure glad I started it up again. I'm going to be in a big rowing/sailing race this fall and I think I do the best I've ever done.

Try to find something east to do that will build or maintain your fitness. Tennis, rowing, roller blading, soft ball and swimming are sports that come to mind. If you are young and your joints are still in good shape you might want to take up running, but keep in ming that running more than 4 miles a day does more harm to your joints than it does good for the rest of you.

The key is to find something different that lets you recharge and stay fit. Road racers do it all the time by mountain biking and doing cylclocross racing in the off season.

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dodjy

· #8 · Jul 26, 2004 (Edited)

Ride more.

dd..''

.........................................................................

JRA

· #9 · Jul 26, 2004

Re: "Rudy visit"

xrmattaz said:
I just experienced a "Rudy visit". My slump is gone....just GONE.

I think everyone should have a "Rudy vist" at some point in their cycling life. Thankx for the memory boost for a Monday!

Fast Eddy

· #10 · Jul 26, 2004

If rigid is your problem

try borrowning a big DH tire from someone; even one that's pretty worn down will work for a couple of test runs. If you're trying to ride rigid with a 35-40psi xc tire up front, I'm not surprised it hurts some. Get something you can ride at around 20psi. I like Tioga DH or Kujo DHs. I've got a Maxxis now that's pretty cushy, but heavier than I'm used to.

Zen_Dude

· #11 · Jul 26, 2004

Steroids

pacman

· #12 · Jul 26, 2004

Summer in Phoenix?

Maybe the heat affects you more than you realize even affecting your skill at riding rigid.

Ichabod

· #13 · Jul 26, 2004

tiSS'er said:
Lately I feel burnt out. I know it is psychological, but in the past month I have had a rash of bad things happen. My Spicer TI broke again, my car was hit by someone, and they ran, and I can't seem to keep up with my riding buddies. I have had to ride by backup bike, a KHS SOLO-ONE (at least I have a decent backup). I also had to send my F100X back to Fox to be repaired. I have ridden the past 2 weeks rigid, and it has only worsened the situation. In Phoenix where we ride it is tremendously rocky and rough, so I started to get really sore wrists, shoulders and back. I know there are a lot of people in Phoenix who do ride rigid and I only have the greatest respect for those people.

But as you can see, it seems like my little world is coming down around me. 4 months ago I was ranked 3rd in the Arizona state SS championships, now I can hardly ride a 15 miler without dying. Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

You sound like you're overtrained. Everything goes wrong when you're overtrained.
Find another hobby for a while, until you're desperate to ride your bike again. Like maybe until you have your Dean...

xrmattaz

· #14 · Jul 26, 2004

Ain't THAT the truth??!!

That leetle dude can certainly instill the "soul" right back into ya! The most passionate, considerate, humble human being I have personally ever met. I love the guy!! Momma loves 'im too.

Happens every time. Although I'm now riding mostly fixed gear offroad, with them funny WTB Dirtdrop handlybars...got two sets......Rudy's fault. 8^)

I can't wait to get down to Tucson....when it cools off down there, of course.....

JRA said:
I think everyone should have a "Rudy vist" at some point in their cycling life. Thankx for the memory boost for a Monday!

The_Real_Cyclesmith

· #15 · Jul 26, 2004

Works for me...

Kool-Aid...lots of Kool-Aid...

SSteel

· #16 · Jul 26, 2004 (Edited)

tiSS'er said:
Lately I feel burnt out. I know it is psychological, but in the past month I have had a rash of bad things happen. My Spicer TI broke again, my car was hit by someone, and they ran, and I can't seem to keep up with my riding buddies. I have had to ride by backup bike, a SOLO-ONE (at least I have a decent backup). I also had to send my F100X back to Fox to be repaired. I have ridden the past 2 weeks rigid, and it has only worsened the situation. In Phoenix where we ride it is tremendously rocky and rough, so I started to get really sore wrists, shoulders and back. I know there are a lot of people in Phoenix who do ride rigid and I only have the greatest respect for those people.

But as you can see, it seems like my little world is coming down around me. 4 months ago I was ranked 3rd in the Arizona state SS championships, now I can hardly ride a 15 miler without dying. Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

Vacation...
Do a road trip to a different type of terrain and just ride for fun. You're in desert/rocks, head to NorCal or Oregon or Ohio or whatever and find some new terrain to conquer.

djkellycx

· #17 · Jul 27, 2004

tiSS'er said:
Lately I feel burnt out. I know it is psychological, but in the past month I have had a rash of bad things happen. My Spicer TI broke again, my car was hit by someone, and they ran, and I can't seem to keep up with my riding buddies. I have had to ride by backup bike, a KHS SOLO-ONE (at least I have a decent backup). I also had to send my F100X back to Fox to be repaired. I have ridden the past 2 weeks rigid, and it has only worsened the situation. In Phoenix where we ride it is tremendously rocky and rough, so I started to get really sore wrists, shoulders and back. I know there are a lot of people in Phoenix who do ride rigid and I only have the greatest respect for those people.

But as you can see, it seems like my little world is coming down around me. 4 months ago I was ranked 3rd in the Arizona state SS championships, now I can hardly ride a 15 miler without dying. Whats going on? And how do you fix it? I have ordered a new Dean, it should be in by September, I think that will help, but man am I in a rut. Thanks for listening

Sorry to hear your troubles, nice to know we aren't alone in the rut though. Are you too focused on training/racing? If you overtrain, your body and mind will both be tired. Get some quality sleep,get a massage, go ride your bike to the nearest pond/lake, sit on a bench and feed the birds like the old guys do. New bike is not the cure, but it is pretty cool..

I'm confident we (and others) will find our way out..
PS. whats wrong with your F100x? Pretty new fork to be sending to Fox already. (I have one also)

striker

· #18 · Jul 27, 2004

My 15 cents?

Take your computer off. Put away the heart rate monitor as well as take a few days off doing something completely different. I believe it happens to everyone now and then. I tend to ebb back and forth between riding lots of road and then back to riding lots of singletrack. Go visit someone you haven't seen in a long time.

Of course, we all now the new Dean will cure just about any woes you currently have. Hang in there.

ATXSS

· #19 · Jul 31, 2004

Interesting question

The last time I had a major burnout feeling was what motivated me to convert my old Bontrager to a SS for the first time. Just to try something new I guess. That was the best decision ever.

Did anyone else get into SS'ing as a result of a burnout?

PS: this time around I would build a new bike, but I prefer odd project bikes for burnout fixing...

Maurice

· #20 · Jul 31, 2004

No burn out here but...

I guess being married and having 3 kids helps, the little one being 9 mos. old...

Ten years or so ago I was a hardcore roadie, racing every week-end from March to October and all. Training was intense, 200 to 300 km a week, excluding the 100-150 km week-end race. Did that from the age of 16 to 22, with serious burnout periods in them. I found out it mostly came when the people around me where expecting too much out of me (yes, I won many a race...) and when results weren't there I could _feel_ the disappointment all around like smog in London.

Then I got a full-time job, got married and left all that behind.

I picked up mountain biking seriously a year ago, almost day for day. During the road hiatus I tried road biking once in a while, but got seriously bummed by the lack of shape (still riding my race bike with the "balls-out" gearing, tough time turning those cranks...) and mostly the increasing amount of brain-dead cagers.
I bought a full-suspension bike and started riding again. I found myself riding more, longer. And progressively faster. I rode through the winter this year, in sub-zero conditions, crashed on ice patches more than once, but kept on riding, alone on the trails.

And then I found out there were MTB races around here (I'm not US-born, came here 4 years ago) and my wife told me to try out. First race was a disaster, in beginner. Got nauseous like crazy, fell while going balls-out downhill and almost broke my collar-bone, last lap I couldn't even climb anthills...
But it was FUN ! Don't even know how I placed, my wife drove the whole way back home as I was wasted. Second race was a few weeks later. I decided to enter Sports since Beginner only did 7 miles or so and Sports double that. It was raining that day, something I always loved road racing. Took the start, easy at first, and then full on the rest of the time. Didn't fall once, but found it confusing with the staggered starts and all. In the end, had lots of fun again, and after cleaning up a bit in the nearby lake decided to head home, the whole family being stacked in the car waiting for me. When I looked at the results online it turns out I had finished 3rd.

Since then I raced some more and didn't place badly. Meanwhile I converted an old MTB frame I had from the days I tried it when I was still road racing. Took it for some rides and instantly fell in love with the concept. Full-rigid, but the geometry is quite good. Frame is almost 7 lbs heavy but overall that bike is much lighter than the FS. So last race (State championship series) I decided to try it on the SS. That was my first win in 6 races, Sports... Next year I'm moving up to Expert, ready or not.

The bottom line is that my family is behind me all the time. They're watching and cheering on the side of the trail. They were proud of me the first day I raced even though I didn't do anything beside finishing. It made me so happy. The rest is sort of coming together naturally. We picked up a MTB for my wife and she goes out twice a week on epic rides while I enjoy the park with the kids. And they don't complain about leaving early on race day.

Add to that the fact that I can't ride as much as I'd like because of the other stuff we do as a family, and I hope I won't have that bleak feeling that anything I do is useless.

Having someone around you understanding your passion is great.

Maurice

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