Injury-o-rama

[Nevadanteater]

I've been car free for the last 2 and a half years. Most of that time has been spent in a semi-major city where public transport is sublime and walking is completely reasonable, but i recently moved to Southern California. For the past 4 months I've been riding 7 miles to and from work and to get everywhere else too.

Rewind to last week. I was at a concert and dislocated my knee.

I've never wanted a car more than I do now. I'm getting by between, but damn it, this sucks.

And even worse, my supposedly good insurance provider can't get me an ortho appointment until the 25th. ****ers. Assuming nothing is seriously wrong, i'll be back on the bike a few weeks after that.

Mostly this is a pity party. Anyone got similar car-free injury stories?

:mad:

[Platy]

I went over the handlebars in November. Didn't break anything but I was very aware of one of my ribs for a couple of weeks.

Sorry about the knee problem, that's the pits.

[jimisnowhere]

Do you have a fixed gear? You could limp along with one leg pedalling and the injured hanging.

get well soon,


jim

[Eatadonut]

Do you have a fixed gear? You could limp along with one leg pedalling and the injured hanging.

get well soon,


jim

Could do the same with straps or clipless!

When my ankle got hot 'n heavy with my chainring, I spent 2 weeks with one leg hanging off. My strong one, even. Slow going, for sure, but I got there.

[bragi]

I've been car free for the last 2 and a half years. Most of that time has been spent in a semi-major city where public transport is sublime and walking is completely reasonable, but i recently moved to Southern California. For the past 4 months I've been riding 7 miles to and from work and to get everywhere else too.

Rewind to last week. I was at a concert and dislocated my knee.

I've never wanted a car more than I do now. I'm getting by between, but damn it, this sucks.

And even worse, my supposedly good insurance provider can't get me an ortho appointment until the 25th. ****ers. Assuming nothing is seriously wrong, i'll be back on the bike a few weeks after that.

Mostly this is a pity party. Anyone got similar car-free injury stories?

:mad:

Have you considered Flexcar or some other car-sharing program? I've never been injured enough to stop riding my bike, but I sometimes have to haul heavy stuff, like boating equipment or household appliances, or have to take a friend to the airport, and having access to a car on those rare occasions is really helpful. (Yes, I know you can haul a refridgerator on a bike, but I'm not that dogmatic...) Car-sharing would allow you to make accomodations for your injury without having to go to the expense, or irresponsibility, of actually buying a car of your own. Of course, I assume you've considered public transportation as well, and found it wanting. Personally, I like public transportation, but where you live it might not be very good...

[Roody]

I hurt my knee (arthritis, I guess) about 3 weeks ago and I haven't ridden since. My backup plans have been working well. I either walk or bus to work, and I either walk or (most often) get a ride home. (My shift at th hospital ends at 11:30 PM--no buses running :() I'm going to start iding again this weekend, as long as I don't have a relapse.

I've done some rsearch. Some of the sports medicine doctors are recommending that people keep exercising, even with mild to moderate injuries like tendonitis and arthritis. I'm going with this advice from now on, since I expect the arthritis will continue to flare up from time to time.

So good luck, Nevadanteater! Hang in there, and keep moving if at all possible.

[gerv]

I hurt my knee (arthritis, I guess) about 3 weeks ago and I haven't ridden since. My backup plans have been working well. I either walk or bus to work, and I either walk or (most often) get a ride home. (My shift at th hospital ends at 11:30 PM--no buses running :() I'm going to start iding again this weekend, as long as I don't have a relapse.

I've done some rsearch. Some of the sports medicine doctors are recommending that people keep exercising, even with mild to moderate injuries like tendonitis and arthritis. I'm going with this advice from now on, since I expect the arthritis will continue to flare up from time to time.

So good luck, Nevadanteater! Hang in there, and keep moving if at all possible.
I had some knee tendonitis or arthritis in November/December but was able to keep riding. Basically not as bad as in the past, just annoyingly clicking joints and minor pain. Also, had shoulder problems of the same sort. I found walking made it worse.

I did some research and came up with a plan:
* no hammering as lights turn green or on starting out
* stretches after riding
* glucosamine supplement
* more clothing covering knees and legs

It went away after a few weeks and I'm not sure if any of the above helped...

Anyway, good luck with your ailment. Hope you get better.

[Cosmoline]

There's no question about it, exercise helps reduce both the chance of injury and the healing time. From personal experience, I had a slip-and-fall on the ice in Dec. '05 before I started biking again. My left knee got tweaked and I was limping on and off till May. I had a much worse fall in October '06 that by rights should have snapped my leg, but I recovered from it within a week.

To further reduce injuries, yoga and other stretching is extremely helpful.

[ECDkeys]

There's no question about it, exercise helps reduce both the chance of injury and the healing time.

I took a fall last month on my bike and injured my ribs. I never realized how rib injuries could severely compromise your lifestyle. Breathing is difficult, and forget about coughing, sneezing, or laughing. Getting in and out of bed was an adventure. But two days after the injury, I had to get back on the bike; that was all I could think about. Once I found a good riding position, I was relatively pain free for the duration of my ride, as long as I didn't breathe heavily or get the sniffles (and when my nose did get the runs, I just let it drip all over the place). It was strangely more comfortable for me to be on a bike than off. While I'm not so sure it shortened the healing time, the psychological benefit was undeniable.

[Roody]

I had some knee tendonitis or arthritis in November/December but was able to keep riding. Basically not as bad as in the past, just annoyingly clicking joints and minor pain. Also, had shoulder problems of the same sort. I found walking made it worse.

I did some research and came up with a plan:
* no hammering as lights turn green or on starting out
* stretches after riding
* glucosamine supplement
* more clothing covering knees and legs

It went away after a few weeks and I'm not sure if any of the above helped...

Anyway, good luck with your ailment. Hope you get better.
Thanks gerv, and good advice. Another thing I found was that you can ice the joint for 20 minutes before and immediately after exercise to reduce inflammation. At first I thought I needed to rest the joint, but I have since found that exercise--as much as you can stand--is more likely to be helpful.

One prolem is that the pain seems to come and go on its own, so its hard to determine if what you're doing is really helpful or not.

Here's an article from the NYT that I found helpful. (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/fashion/11FITNESS.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin) It's geared for runners, but the same principles should apply to cylists.

[gerv]

Here's an article from the NYT that I found helpful. (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/fashion/11FITNESS.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin) It's geared for runners, but the same principles should apply to cylists.Interesting that a single aspirin before exercising might help. Also, the icing before and after.
I thought some cross-training, ie, walking, would help. But it seemed to make it worse. In fact, cycling -- going at an easy pace without hammering the peddles -- seemed to work best. Maybe because it kept the knees moving without providing much stress.

[cerewa]

* no hammering as lights turn green or on starting out

yeah, i have to keep reminding myself of this one. I like to get exercise and I like to go fast, but my knees are too weak to deal with mashing every time i stop. Gotta work on putting lighter effort in while starting up and more effort when the pedals are really spinning.

I thought some cross-training, ie, walking, would help.

I find walking can help my joint pain as long as I relax while I walk. Walking with tense muscles makes me feel worse though.

[twochins]

the worst thing to do is follow somebodies advice to take it easy and not do anything...this is a real bad plan...the human body is an amazing machine, by using parts that are hurting they begin to heal faster and properly...get on your bike and ride, your riding will slowly get back to normal

[I-Like-To-Bike]

the worst thing to do is follow somebodies advice to take it easy and not do anythingl
Yep the best thing to do is follow some anonymous Internet stranger's advice. Preferably somebody who doesn't have a clue about the medical issues involved. That's the ticket!

[Nevadanteater]

good news:

my orthopedic doctor and i are trying to get me through this sans-surgery. last week he drained 50ml fluid from my busted knee and it already feels loads better. i'm doing the at-home physical therapy thing (i had the same injury from soccer about 6 years ago, so i know the ropes) and on the road to recovery. next week i'm rejoining my gym to get on some stationary bikes and hopefully will be riding a century for my birthday in march. yeah!

bad news:

my orthopedic doctor said 'so you're like the 40 year old virgin then?' in response to my carlessness. honestly i'm suprised no one has made that comparison before.

word.

[Roody]

Nevadanteater, I'm glad you're doing better. I am too. And my friends were calling me "the 50 year old virgin" for a while after the movie came out.

There's no question about it, exercise helps reduce both the chance of injury and the healing time.I'm not so sure about this one, although I'm a true exercise nut. I've had a lot of injuries from exercise. And greater strength, endurance and flexibility--while always nice to have--have failed to protect me on some occasions.


Yep the best thing to do is follow some anonymous Internet stranger's advice. Preferably somebody who doesn't have a clue about the medical issues involved. That's the ticket!Thank God you're here to save us from our own stupidity. Luckily, I read this in time, just as I was getting ready to cancel my health insurance. Gosh, you're so much smarter than the rest of us. I never knew that the members here are not real doctors. And silly me--I thought they could examine my knee over the Internet. Thank you, O my wise hero. I am forever in your debt.

[I-Like-To-Bike]

Luckily, I read this in time, just as I was getting ready to cancel my health insurance.
Glad to see that your library is open on Sundays too. That way you can read my comments in time!

[Roody]

Glad to see that your library is open on Sundays too. That way you can read my comments in time!
Huh?