Bénédicte le Panse, a top-level sportswoman (world champion in athletic strength in 2009) and researcher at the University of Orléans and in the world of medical sports, advises top-level sportspeople and celebrities on how to rebalance their diet with a specific aim in mind. In preparation for the Raid des Alizés-Martinique, she has a wealth of advice for you to follow before and during the Raid, to help you perform at your best while respecting your body during training and competition.
Did you know that all it takes is a 2% lack of water in the body to reduce its capacity by 20%? The sensation of thirst is triggered by brain receptors activated by changes in blood concentration. By the time the signal sounds, it’s a little late. That’s why you need to drink as regularly as possible, even if you don’t feel the need to.
Warming up is compulsory because it helps to avoid any cold injuries, and also because your body is a machine that needs to be woken up before you ask it to make an effort. Warming up varies according to the type of effort you are going to make and the outside temperature.
A few basic principles:
A complete warm-up consists of six elements:
An example of an application for warming up on a bike.
Every cyclist should try it out and find the formula that suits them best.
Routine :
Some general advice:
Frequency:
The first question you ask yourself is how many times will I (should I) ride/run this week? That depends on your objectives. There’s a difference between the objectives of a weekend racer and a competitor.
What is my potential? We all have different levels of potential. It’s up to us to find out where it lies.
So let’s talk in terms of minimum and maximum sessions per week:
Intensity:
The level of effort in training must be systematically increased over a certain period of time in order to achieve improvements. This is called the load increase principle. If you always do the same thing, ie: always ride at a slow speed, always ride on flat ground, your body will adapt to this level of effort and no improvement will be possible.
Reliable measures of intensity include heart rate (pulse) and breathing. The key is to know when to go all out and when to go moderately. These are known as intensity zones.
Specificity:
It goes without saying that competitors should train on all types of terrain in order to be better prepared for race conditions. All that remains is to determine, in a training plan, how to balance these 4 basic principles.
Example of a typical training session to be carried out each week one month before the Raid (Trail, Mountain bike or Canoe-kayak)
A specific session in the heart of nature:
– Duration: 3 to 6 hours
– Intensity: 60 to 90% of your maximum heart rate (HR max = 220 – age)
– Significant ascent and descent
– Wearing a rucksack
– An intermittent workout comprising 2 to 3 15-minute efforts, at 90% of your maximum heart rate.
One week before the raid:
D Day:
On the morning of the raid: Prefer larger portions of food containing carbohydrates (e.g. cereal bread, cereals, banana, yoghurt, bowl of fresh fruit if you wish).
1 to 2 hours before : Hydrate regularly!
Stretching helps to prevent muscular damage, improves recovery and maintains our flexibility, and therefore the amplitude of our stride. It also increases our body awareness. But stretching is often poorly done, so it’s useless or even the opposite of the desired effect, resulting in micro-lesions or defensive contractions that are the opposite of the desired relaxation.
There are, however, a few basic rules to guide us, such as never doing abrupt stretches, with momentum or with small jerks to gain amplitude and, above all, coldness. You have to be careful not to over-stretch the muscles you think are easiest to stretch, whereas you should put just as much emphasis on the stiffest muscles.
The side stitch
If the pain is on your left side, it seems to be due to a contraction of the spleen.
If the pain comes from the right, it is said to be due either to a temporary congestion of the liver, a pocket of gas in your colon or a diaphragmatic cramp. It’s also linked to simultaneous digestion and physical activity.
More often, the cause is poor breathing and contraction of the intercostal muscles. If this is the case, you can get rid of them by breathing in and out deeply.
You need to slow down your speed and your pace, and this may simply make it go away.
Cramp or muscle cramps
