TRIA Orthopaedic Center Your Cycling Blog

By Chris Balser
Bicycle Fit Guru
Minnetonka Penn Cycle
Chris has been fitting people professionally for more than 20 yrs. His doctoral studies include anatomy, physiology, biomechanics and kinematics. He is a teacher and student of yoga philosophy, teacher training, and yoga therapy. His qualifications include Wobble-Naught (WN) Certification, Specialized (SBCU) BG bicycle fit with Dr. Andy Pruitt, Serotta International Cycling Institute (SICI), Fit-Kit, BIKEFIT, Bike CAD, and Body Mind Centering

Professional Bicycle Fitting Services

Bicycles are symmetrical, fixed machines that force the human body into an unnatural position and movements. Gravity, balance, and alignment are completely reorganized from standing, making comfort and efficient positioning difficult to find, subjectively. 

It is normal to think that your bike fit is “good” based on experience and what is familiar. Unfortunately, we endure sore feet, back, hands, butt, knees, neck, shoulders, etc., because these symptoms are common (not necessary) to cycling.

It is possible to go faster, longer, with less effort and more joy, by simply reducing the friction between human and machine. 

How?

Balance:

Your weight distribution is adjusted by manipulating saddle and handlebar positions relative to the bicycle bottom-bracket. In general, a lower handlebar, forward saddle equals increased hand, elbow, shoulder and back discomfort; higher handlebar, rearward saddle adjustments shift weight towards boot, low back and hamstrings.

My experience suggests that balance is entirely individual, based on size, morphology, history, limb-ratios, discipline and objectives. 

Muscle Function:

Proper balance and optimal muscle function are closely related. When a cyclist starts riding with 100% energy, the distribution of that energy will impact power and endurance. 

Optimal fucction includes, but is not limited to, the muscle recruitment patterns/sequence determined appropriate by the scientific community.

These are a function of integrating correct hip, knee, ankle, elbow, shoulder, and wrist angles with good balance.

Symmetry:

The evidence that we are not symmetrical is seen in a full-length mirror. These differences are seen in arch height, leg shape, hip position, shoulder height/angle, etc. Modifying equipment for optimal interface is what separates the men from the boys in the Fit-Community. 

Equipment:

I tend toward excessive; so let’s narrow our focus to Shoes and Saddles.

Cycling shoes should be comfortable, from the moment you try them on.  If they are not comfortable when standing in a store, you can bet they will be less fun on the road/track/trail. 

Select a shoe/pedal combination that is appropriate for your riding – Road, MTB, Tri, etc.

Check between the big- and little-toe knuckles for constriction, and ensure your heel does not pull out of the shoe when lifted. 

Tight Shoes = Numb Feet

Use Caution when offered insoles. Feet are extremely unique, most over-the-counter insoles are not, and the wrong interface can cause discomfort/injury. Podiatrists are the only people I would trust for foot modification, which is exactly what happens when an insole has arch that is too high, long, or in the wrong location.

Saddles are getting better, but what is great for me may not rock your boot.

The best way to choose a saddle is through trial and error. The butt measuring devices do not predict pubic bone pressure, pelvic angle, and/or ischial-taper for saddle selection. 

There are a number of good fitters in the Twin Cities area, though experience is a must. Your selection should tell you how long they have been fitting, have a good reference list, and provide some form of guarantee.  

Peace,
Chris

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As cyclists, we often experience pains that seem to come out of nowhere. Since the majority of us are not sports medicine or orthopaedic experts, we typically will either ride with the pain or stop riding altogether. Neither does any good for our cycling psyche, but, as untrained medical professionals, our options seem limited.

We are proud to offer the devoted readers a forum for these specific issues. Today, we’ll get the ball rolling with one popular question that plagues cyclists of all ages and skill levels. In the future, feel free to leave a comment and ask a question that we can answer here on the blog.

Our first question deals with lower back pain (LBP) and long-distance rides. So often, on rides longer than twenty miles, we experience some lower back pain. It’s troubling, but most of us can’t figure out why it’s there or where it’s coming from.

Thankfully, we have a TRIA Orthopaedic surgeon on board to answer this question, as well as all our questions in the future. For this particular question, Marc Swiontkowski, M.D. has provided us an answer to the question that has plagued us all, at one time or another, during our cycling career. Here’s what Dr. Swiontkowski has to say:

The way to avoid LBP on longer distance rides has several components. The first is to make sure you are set up on your bike correctly. A frame that fits accompanied by appropriate seat height adjustment, correct crank arm lengths, a well fit stem (the part that the handle bars attach to) with an aero bar extension will provide the best biomechanical situation for your back. Your local bike shop can help you be sure that your fittings and equipment are correct for you. Frequent rotation of hand positions around the handlebars and aero extensions will help take the strain off the back as well. Finally, standing out of the saddle for 60 seconds or so, 4-5 times an hour will help your back from becoming sore. Nothing can substitute for training miles though, and an available hot tub after the ride will fix what ails you.

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Strength Training
Dr. Josh Sandell
Spine and Sports Institute

The risk of injury is an ever-present aspect of cycling, but almost every great performance follows a long period of relatively uninterrupted training. Though many athletes believe either that an injury is just a normal part of training or an unfortunate random event, the frequency of injuries may be dramatically reduced by an injury prevention program that develops strength, flexibility, and elasticity in tissues that are at high risk for injuries. Use this program to prepare your body fully for the high-volume/high-intensity training that will come later in the season.

Strength Training

Strength training is a critical aspect of injury prevention, affecting the connective tissues and the muscles. Since cycling actions occur primarily in a single plane, the tissues that act in that plane become disproportionately strong while those that act side-to-side atrophy.

Programs developed only for performance enhancement usually neglect tissues that act laterally, therefore increasing the risk of injury. Several muscles that are neglected in strength training programs are the hip abductors, hip adductors, and the ankle dorsiflexors. When performing the weight training exercises, use relatively heavy weights and slow movements. Keep the duration of each set between 40 and 60 seconds.

Strength training can be accomplished by simply using your own body weight with the use of physio balls and balance trainers. These exercises should be performed slow and controlled with the use of rotational movement and frontal plane movements.

We’ll have some more information down the road about ability-appropriate workouts geared toward both the recreational and the racing cyclist, so stay tuned!

GET ON YOUR BIKES AND RIDE!

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Injury Prevention 101 – Flexibility
By Dr. Josh Sandell
Spine and Sports Institute

Flexibility

The Australian triathlon team was screened in November 2003 prior to the World Championships in New Zealand, and found two main predisposing factors to injury: thoracic spine stiffness and tight hip flexors.

This pattern is extremely common in cyclists. Cycling training is one potential cause of thoracic stiffness because of the time spent in the time-trial position. If good spinal posture is not maintained on the bike, the thoracic spine can become excessively hunched when the cyclist becomes fatigued. If this posture is not corrected and the mid-spine is not regularly stretched, stiffness can develop and a drop in cycling performance may follow as a result of the athlete adopting a less efficient aerodynamic position.

The thoracic spine’s mobility can be improved with lying on your back over a physioball or lying on one’s back with a towel on the floor.

Tight hip flexors are a major injury risk factor and are a common problem because of the length of time cyclists spend with the hip bent in the time-trial position while cycling. Low back injuries, hamstring strains, hip flexor strains and lower limb overuse injuries can be linked to tight hip flexors. Hip flexor and quadriceps stretching are essential to prevent this pattern from developing.

The muscle groups should be stretched daily, before and after activity (especially after cycling). Stretches should be held for approximately 30 seconds to one minute without bouncing, performed gently and slowly to the point of tension but never pain.
While an effective stretching program may reduce injuries, many athletes look to stretching as the answer to injuries. Athletes do become injured because of over flexibility. Be consistent with your stretching, but don’t go to extremes and don’t look to it as the injury cure-all.

Our next post will deal with strength training and injury prevention

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