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Old 12-25-11, 08:02 AM
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Peter_C
I am the Snail~!
 
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Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Near Akron, Ohio
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Bikes: 2010 TerraTrike Rover 8

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IMHO the answer is NO~! One knee replacement (so far) out of nine knee surgeries in the last 30+ years here. I am not any kind of Doctor - see the part about my opinion. I ride a recumbent trike now. I do love it, and have less pain everywhere *BUT* my knees - my knees seem to do worse on the trike than on my upright "Suede DX" comfort bike.

On any form of a recumbent it is *easier* to strain your knees due to being able to push against the seat-back. Even going to shorter cranks (152mm) has not offset the difference between bike and trike. Am 6'0" so shorter cranks are not needed for me, but rather to allow me less torque per pedal stroke.

I would advise two different things - do both - see a real Ortho if you haven't yet, and, go to a PT DR that is *into* cycling (like I did), and he will teach you exercises to strengthen any weak muscle areas.

Last point? The less you use them (your knees) the weaker the muscles will become - same idea with braces - they can both help and hurt you - so no brace unless an Ortho proscribes it for you
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