Last June 9th, I was getting my Tour de France on with our friends at the 2016 Bicycles Battling Cancer (BBC) charity event. For the 7th year in a row, my husband and his teammates rode 30, 70, and 100 miles to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
When Vincenzo Nibali won the Tour de France in 2014, he named Team’s Astana’s acupuncturist Eddy de Smedt as his secret for success. I was excited to see acupuncture finally getting some press for helping high profile athletes perform better, but it was even better to see the results first hand. On the eve of the BBC ride, I did acupuncture on our cyclists to help release tight leg muscles, focusing on the quads, calves, and hamstrings.
Two things became apparent after they finished their ride:
- Muscles that usually cramped up… did NOT; and
- Legs were noticeably stronger, especially the quads.
If you want to know why and how these (totally legit!) needles helped, just ask. And if you know of any Tour teams looking for an acupuncturist, please holler. I won’t pass up a chance to finally visit Europe!