Post Exercise Fatigue

A cyclist may experience 4 distinct types of fatigue.

THE BONK (fatigue resulting from muscle glycogen depletion) usually develops 1 to 2 hours into a ride. It is a particular problem if "on the bike" glucose supplements are not used to extend internal muscle glycogen stores.

POST EXERCISE FATIGUE is a normal response to several hours of vigorous exercise and indicates we are pushing our training limits. It leads to improved performance the next time out.

OVER REACHING is the next step up - the fatigue we feel at the end of a particularly hard week of riding. It is really just an extension of #2, and will, with recovery, make us faster and stronger.

OVER TRAINING is the debilitating and often long term (lasting weeks to months) fatigue which limits rather than stimulates improvement in performance.