Just like the engine in your bike, your muscles need to warm-up.. And performance drops off if an engine or muscles are starved for fuel. Cardio vascular performance keeps the flow of oxygen and nutrients to organs and muscles and is a critical part of temperature regulation. Core heat is carried to the skin where sweat cools the blood in surface capillaries before it returns to the heart. Because of this we get a triple payoff for doing cardio vascular training each week. Getting your heart rate up to an exercise level for 18 to 22 minutes or so, three times a week will do wonders for your riding. If you are not exercising now check with your doctor before beginning training. He or she will also advise you on a good target exercise heart rate. Our bodies have a number of ways to regulate temperate. As discussed above in warm weather core heat can be lowered by conduction (blood flow), evaporation (sweat) or convection (breath). In cold weather your goal is to conserve heat. Don’t wait until you feel really cold to stop and add layers or button up. By then you have already lost a lot of heat and your muscles will not be at peak operating efficiency.
