If you experience knee pain cycling don’t stop riding. Make a change! The benefits far out weigh any adjustments you might have to make. Remember, cycling is good for your heart, waistline and life span.
There are even health facilities like Revolve Fitness that base their whole business on a form of cycling called spining. If that was not enough cycling has even been linked to improving mental health.
Knee pain while cycling might be inconvenient, but it’s a pain in the knee that can be fixed.
Causes of Knee Pain Cycling
Ironically, cycling is recommended by doctors as a form of relieving knee pain. It’s also recommended as a way to recover from injury or surgery.
Are the doctors wrong or is the advice bad? Not at all. There are two main reasons people suffer from knee pain while cycling: overuse and having a poorly constructed bike.
Knee Pain Cycling: Overuse
Overuse is a major reason people suffer from knee pain cycling. Pushing through the pain or not giving your knees a break will not make the pain go away.
Suffering knee pain from overuse can affect the muscle or joints, such as tendinitis or a stress fracture caused by repetitive trauma. An overuse injury typically stems from either a technical error or a training error.
Cycling Overuse Relief Tips
Try RICE!
- Rest your knees for 2 weeks. If you are an active person who has a challenging time staying still then here are 20 Bad Knee Exercises & Activities to keep you busy.
- Ice the knees 2 to 4 times a day up to 20 minutes. Wrap the ice in a towel to help you complete the timeframe.
- Compress your knee by wrapping it with a bandage. Wrap the bandage tightly enough to support your knee without stopping circulation.
- Elevate your sore knee for a couple of days. Keep your knee above your heart to decrease the blood flow and swelling. The best time to do this is while you are in bed.
Knee Pain Cycling: The Bike
Finding a proper bike that fits your anatomical structure is paramount to cycling knee pain free. Most people purchase a bike on the basis of cost. However, buying a cost effective bike might be more expensive in the long run.
Relief Tips
Research professional cycling shops for a personal evaluation. In addition speak with a cycling trainer who can show you the proper technique and training tips for a successful pain free ride.
For an in depth look into individual anatomical structure and bike fitting read the article cycling knee pain by Martin Koban.
By understanding these knee pain cycling tips & issues you will slowly decrease the pain in your knees and increase the joy and fun in your life. Especially if you are an avid cyclist.