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Maybe there's something wrong with me but, I got in again today from a ride, not that long maybe 2.5 hours or so. I got pretty wet on the legs and feet as is standard and feet especially felt pretty cold out, but that's fairly normal for a lot of people. It's cold today, the ground was boggy as hell and there was a good bit of wind about.
When I get in though, and eventually start to feel the warmth of the house, my shins and feet start tingling and itching. Fairly low-level at first but getting stronger.
Then, I get in a warm shower. Holy shit. An intense wave of itching, tingling and like an intense redness come all over my stomach, inner thighs, calves and feet, oh my god, the feet!
I'm scratching and pressing and squeezing at my feet and legs to try and calm the intense itch and pain. Some toes are stark white, some stark red. It's all I can do to stop myself tearing my skin off.
I sit in the bottom of the bath hugging my legs under the spray, rocking and moving my feet to try to get the itch to stop.
Must be about ten-fifteen minutes before things start to subside. Absolute agonizing hell! 😳😭😱
I've had this before this time of year. I did a long ride a couple of weeks ago and had the same thing but that time I was straight in the shower. This time I tried to sit for a bit inside first and have a cup of tea, but still the intense itching, redness and pain.
Now, I know I'm not normal but, am I normal?
I notice that when I drive to a ride it tends not to be so bad. Presumably because I get changed but don't shower, then drive the van an hour or so back gradually getting back to normal as I reach home. This happens on rides from my house.
Anyone else get crazy pain like this warming back up or is it just me with me cat aids and that? Got any strategies to lessen the effects?
Yup, I have Reynauds. The defrosting is possibly worse than the frozen digits. It's ****ing agony. You have my sympathy.
Yep. Used to know it as chill blains, or hot aches as a kid. Perfectly normal.
Yup, I have Reynauds. The defrosting is possibly worse than the frozen digits. It’s ****ing agony. You have my sympathy.
Shit. I'd not really come across that before. 😓
Yep, hot aches are really common and not just restricted to people with circulatory issues. I'm fairly certain they arise when you get so cold that the blood supply to your extremities is limited and re-perfusing the tissues on re-warming is the painful part. I met some american ice climbers who referred to them as the screaming barfies and also had a mother of two say they were worse than child birth.
The only trick I've managed to use to lessen them is to avoid getting so cold in the first place. For hands I use the same method that I did when climbing - before my hands get too cold stop and do windmills with my arms until I can feel the blood pooling in my fingers*. Has the added advantage of warming up the upper body a wee bit.
For feet I haven't found a similar technique so just have to take a lot of care to keep my legs and feet warm. There are a lot of threads on here about how to do that (I use some horribly expensive shoes and looong ski socks).
Reynauds here too. Welcome to our world!
If (when) I get into that state the only thing that works for me is to warm up as quickly as possible. Best for me is hands / feet into luke warm water and gradually add more hot to it over 2 or 3 minutes.
Doesn't avoid the pain but gets it over with as quick as possible.
But yeah, the only real way not to suffer that is to not get cold in the first place...
stevious
...For feet I haven’t found a similar technique so just have to take a lot of care to keep my legs and feet warm...
I get off and walk when my feet start getting cold. Don't have to go far for that to work.
I get off and walk when my feet start getting cold. Don’t have to go far for that to work.
That's never seemed to work for me - wish it did! Maybe all my shoes are too stiff or something.
Run and ride with big dogs, every twenty mins, warm up your hands in their leg pits. They don’t seem to mind..
Agree with above, really go out of your way not to get as cold. Also I try to warm up slowly, no jumping into hot showers etc.. I find putting on a down jacket and hat on my head, once home, soon starts warming me up.
Warm drink* and warm clothes before any bathing ftw.
* with biscuits. 🙂
You're warming up to fast, causing your capillaries to burst and this causes the intense itch. Give it a few hours before having a bath or shower and don't sit in front of the fire, put dry clothes on and have a warm drink instead and take a layer off if you start to itch. I've found Snowfire is the only thing that gives relief once it starts, I don't think you can buy it in chemists anymore but amazon has it
As others have said, don't jump straight into a hot shower or bath. Warm clothes, mug of tea & have the shower later.
Cheers folks I'll try that.
It's hard when you're, you know, PROPER muddy!
Harder still as we don't have a garage, shed or anything to change in and de-mud myself.
It’s in line with what’s been said, but if I get that cold, it’s warm clothes ASAP when getting home, something hot to drink and some food, then head out to clean the bike and any other jobs I can do that involve stomping about. Seems to get the blood moving more effectively than shivering on the sofa and infinitely better than a hot shower and feeling like your the skin on your feet is trying to crawl off on its own.
Edit- I find leg warmers or over trousers are your friend. Basically making sure that all the mud is on a layer that can be peeled off outside without scaring the neighbours. That or I’ve used an old pair of combats with drawstrings around the ankles to keep the mud in until I cans get changed in the bath.
Pot of Tea and some hot food , soup and toast or jacket potatoe
Plus warm, dry clothes and a good few layers , maybe a beanie too.
Mine used to be fron winter windsurfing , then stripping off a wetsuit in a windswept car park at 9'c ish . brrrrrrrrr
You will warm up eventually , and without trying too quick with hot water
My OH does sea swimming even at this time of year and the key advice from others was to warm up from the inside, not from the outside, with a hot drink.
She has hot drink waiting in a thermos and then warms up slowly before getting in shower
Maybe take hot drink with you on the ride?
Ah, the 'Hot Hurts' as we like to call them.... I get the R thing too and have learnt to keep my core as warm as possible, thus fooling my body into pumping blood to the extremeties for longer. I also use Pogies to keep the wind off my hands and the warmest boots I can get (they are rated to neg 25) and fit flat pedals. I was out twice today, first time in neg 12, then this afternoon in neg 5; no issues with the Hot Hurts cos well, it hurts too much to not improve my kit to prevent it happening!
There are some heated insoles you can get for around £60 from ebay and they last for 3 hours or so for when its really grim.
Ski gloves.
Ski trousers (from Aldi for about a quid) and just manage without padding in the ass department whilst its cold.
Hand warmers/ toe warmers (though I don't rate toe warmers much as they run out of oxygen to keep going for long)
Stop wearing a traditional bike helmet with all those vents and get a scooter style motorbike helmet.... wear goggles to keep the wind off your face.
Bike fashion will take you so far.... practical kit will keep you riding.
Take all this with a pinch of salt as I wear my bibs outside my shirt in the summer cos it makes me faster at pit-stops!
Fashion over pain; not today.
Doesn’t everybody get the hot-aches?
Always happened when I came in from playing outside as a wee lad. Less so now but that’s mostly because I have better cold weather clothing and don’t get as cold.
Doesn’t everybody get the hot-aches?
Dunno like.
Thing is, yesterday for example, I didn't FEEL cold in my body as such. Everywhere was mud and my fatbike was wheelspinning and so I was working hard just to keep moving slowly even.
The only bits that started to feel cold were feet and lower legs (I had 3/4 tights on which I basically wear all year round, and Fiveten Freesponges).
I had a base layer up top and a riding top and an Endura waterproof. I feel like if I wear more I'd basically just be sweating and feeling over-hot.
Quite a hard thing to get right, if indeed it can be gotten right. The best thing would be to keep extremities dry I suppose but then that's an eternal problem with flat pedals but where you don't want to be wearing builders wellies or something.
I was thinking of trying some hiking trousers, maybe just full length tights would help over 3/4's. Not too sure about the shoes.
Warm up slowly, by getting back into bed with someone else.
I have brilliant circulation, I'm very hot blooded, but I still recognise the OP's symptoms if I've got cold enough. The worst it ever happened for me was an attempt at ice/winter climbing whilst wearing non-waterproof gloves, and the mixed route we ended up on turned out to be running with water. So my hands were basically in icy water for ages. First it was ok, then I got cold, then they went numb which wasn't great. But when they warmed up, holy shit. Seriously painful.
All I can suggest is don't get in the shower until you've defrosted. My mum always told me that going from really cold to really hot had this effect. In primary school back when no-one cared about this stuff we used to play football in frosty weather wearing our normal kit, gloves were unheard of. When we got back in my fingers were so cold I couldn't undo my shoe laces. Putting your hands in hot water was agony, so we put them in cold water which really helped. Basically your problem is too much heat on chilled body parts.
robcolliver
...Stop wearing a traditional bike helmet with all those vents and get a scooter style motorbike helmet…. wear goggles to keep the wind off your face.
Getting the the helmet right is one of the trickiest things. I did a lot of experimenting to find the right balance. Not enough vents (eg BMX helmet), sweat on uphill, freeze on downhill. In one of the early 'Puffers I rode with a skullcap under my helmet and it turned into actual ice on the exposed parts on the fast descent.
I found the best compromise was selectively duct taping the forward vents on the helmet but leaving enough open at the back for the steam to escape. Worn with a Buff which can be worn single or double layer is a method that works well for me. The Buff is thin enough to not collect moisture and allows vapour to pass through.
Feet - first priority is adequate insulation of the foot and keeping it dry. There has to be enough loft in your socks so that there's sufficient air gaps - too many socks, or too tight shoes will negate the advantage of warm socks by crushing the loft, no matter how thick they are. Most cycling shoes are on the tight side which is why I prefer boots (or sandals with SealSkinz) and flat pedals.
That done, if your feet are never warm, they're either wet, or you're insufficiently dressed elsewhere. If the blood going to your feet is pre-cooled by inadequate leg covering, your feet will never feel warm.
BTW no amount of insulation is any good if your boiler isn't stoked, so if you are working hard pedalling you're using up the same fuel your body uses to produce heat. Refuel, hot not not cold drinks, and keep moving.
There is another factor with cold feet, but it's unfashionable. A lot of the reason feet get cold is because they are exposed to the spray from the front and rear wheels.
Mudguards that protect the lower part of the body go a long way to stopping that. When you consider the heat transfer rate when you're wet is considerably faster (25 to 40 times) than when you're dry they make sense. Most mudguards for mtbs only stop the cosmetic stuff, ie thrown on to your upper body which is easy to waterproof and insulate. Find a way to stop spray on your feet.
Quite a hard thing to get right, if indeed it can be gotten right. The best thing would be to keep extremities dry I suppose but then that’s an eternal problem with flat pedals but where you don’t want to be wearing builders wellies or something.
Knee length Sealskinz - absolutely incredible and by far the best solution I've seen and I've tried a lot of stuff. No more cold splatter on shins either. Couple with 3/4 length waterproof Endura shorts for the perfect solution flats or SPDs.
Warm from the inside out. I was taught this from the RNLI at a talk about dealing with casualties who had been in the water. Worse thing to do is stick them in a hot shower/bath. Blood rushes to the surface abandoning the internal organs where it has concentrated (to try and keep them warm) and can cause people to collapse.
Best to start with a hot drink and slowly let the body adjust to change in environment.
Op
Try hot ribena in your camalbak. Mine has the insulated tube and padded back section. It's lush when it's frosty out and if you blow a bit back doesn't freeze. I keep my bladder in the freezer so. No mold or black growths if it keeps you warmer for longer then why not
No mold or black growths if it keeps you warmer for longer then why not
It probably doesn't. The amount of heat in 1.5l of warm liquid is nothing compared to the heat in 80kg of meat which is generating its own warmth and losing it at a fair rate of knots through the skin.
It's probably nice to drink but the sugar in it probably has far more effect than the heat.
I get this if I get properly cold. Always called it prickly heat. As others have said slow warming up is the best option, rather than jumping in a hot shower or thawing yourself our inches from a roaring fire.
You say you were "properly muddy". I'm failing to see how you can be if you've every square inch of your body covered up while you're riding. Have some warm clothes at the door, strip off as soon as you get in and put these warm clothes on. Have a hot drink. Let your body warm up before thinking about having a shower.
How about a room temperature shower rather than a hot shower if you're dirty?
Should be less of a shock temperature change?
I've had this a few times after getting caught out with hail or freezing rain on a 'local ride' and getting back so numb I can't get the key in the lock. I know not to warm up too quick but even just being in the house was painful, sat on then floor with a towel wrapped around my burning hands! Next time I will try going in just long enough to towel off and put a load of clothes on, then go back outside to clean the bike or muck around in the garage for a bit to see if it reduces the pain. (not that I'm planning on getting that cold on purpose)
You say you were “properly muddy”. I’m failing to see how you can be if you’ve every square inch of your body covered up while you’re riding.
Not every inch (25.4mm) is covered. I usually have a bit of hero-leg exposed. A small section from the bottom of my 3/4 tights to the top of my pulled up On-One Thickys.
A good first step might be to cover this. The Sealskinz socks sound like a good thing to try but boy oh boy, the price! I used to have some years ago and they left me less than impressed, but I suppose they were the short ones.
I might try a set of them Decathlon RC500 tights. Reasonable cost to try out.
Have some warm clothes at the door, strip off as soon as you get in and put these warm clothes on. Have a hot drink. Let your body warm up before thinking about having a shower.
This I think. Might have to employ the Ikea bag change method.
Its a 3ltr Camalbak full of Hot Ribena, wich also works like a radiator for your back, keeping your spine and rearward organs nice and warm
If a 300ml cup of tea works , then shirly 10x the volume will make a difference too.
I use boiling water , and its too hot for an hour or so, then perfect for an hour or so , then stays '''warm'' for 3hrs after that
On on of PhilConsequences ( Whhoooooooooooooooooo ) sexy swinley rides it was -7'c . Most peoples bite tubes froze , mine was fine. Try it , you might like it.
You may think I’m joking, but do you have a turbo? 15 mins on that will warm you up nicely and would be a good finisher to a ride.
I purchased some neoprene toe covers which fit inside shoes. They are supposed to be for skiing- my feet are never cold in ski boots but we’re always cold on winter MTB. These helped a lot.
Buy a cheap onesie. Leave it by the door. Put on over any mud/kit you can’t remove.
Wander round house, make cup of tea, run the bath, eat some food etc. After 20 minutes of wearing that temperature shock probably less extreme, and less desperate for a really hot bath/shower.
Just stick onesie in wash with bike kit. Inside of house stays clean.
I’ve just bought a pair of Craghopper waterproof trousers and they have been a god send
Water doesn’t get sprayed on my bare legs so no freeze that way and the water stays out my socks so no freeze that way either
And I also stay clean and dry apart fae a bit of Baw sweat
I was actually trying to see if I could find the winter green run I used to use as a kid in bad cold mornings when playing football
Wondered if a spray of deep heat might do the trick
I Wear a quilted gilet from decathlon which keeps the core warm and carry a spare jersey in a carrier bag to either change if we stop for food or just layer up when cold
My Father in law has walked outdoors for years and he always said the best way to keep warm was start with less layers and layer up as the journey went on instead of whacking all your gear on first and then overheating and getting chilled from the sweat when you stop and the cold sets in