Road Cycling - Strange pain.

Got on my road bike today and after about 3 or so miles of moderate riding my rite side started to hurt. To be more specific it was just below the rib cage on the rite side. It felt like someone was cutting me with the knife from the inside. No it wasn’t a muscle pain, I know what a muscle pain fills like, it was different. I just had to stop and go home, the pain was unbearable. When I got back the pain magically disappeared...:confused: It had happened to me once before. Had anyone else experienced such a problem? What are the reasons? It seems like I'm going have to pay a visit to my doctor next week.

See a doctor.

what side is the appendix on?

Originally posted by princebaal
what side is the appendix on?
It's on the rite side, but I had that removed a loooong time ago. Plus appendix is much lower then where my pain is.

I think you have a stitch in your side. From dehydration or not breathing correctly.

It's a stitch. We think it's caused by spasm of the diaphragmatic muscles. More often on the right vs. left. we really don't know what causes them but improper breathing, dehydration, improper warm up etc. may all contribute.
see link http://my.webmd.com/content/article/42/1676_50855.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4056-A91C-9531713CA348**

your guys think he's going to the doctor about stitch? god if hes been riding awhile then surely he knows what stitch is...... everyone knows what stitch is, i doubt something that simple could be his problem......

id see a doctor, and if you think it is stitch then dont waste his time.

Perhaps he has only just begun riding and was previously a relatively inactive person who has no history of side stitches. Besides the symptoms are typical of a stitch. I have had some pretty painful ones when i am pushing hard.

But thanks for your expert opinion.

Originally posted by SamDaBikinMan
Perhaps he has only just begun riding and was previously a relatively inactive person who has no history of side stitches. Besides the symptoms are typical of a stitch. I have had some pretty painful ones when i am pushing hard.

But thanks for your expert opinion.

tbh ive known what stitch feels practically my whole life, dont be a sarcy git, everyone knows what stitch feels like, theres no way you cant tell the difference between stitch and an "unknown pain"

id put money on it being something different, and btw about your sarcastic comment, its a public forum where views are shared, my opinion is far from expert..... but the whole point of a forum is to give your opinion so i did......

you need to rethink your attitude before you start sounding even more like a ****.

Ok, if he is going to pay money to see a doc let's see what else it could be:

Organs involved in the area in question include gallbladder, tail of pancreas, liver, right side of colon and of course the diaphragm and the lungs:


Could this be a pulmonary embolism (blood clot ) to the lower right lung fields where it apposes the abdomen and diaphragm? Aftrerall, a blood clot can cause sharp, sudden pain. However, it does not get better with rest, there is usually marked shortness of breath and even coughing up blood.

Could this be the gallbladder. This can also give sharp sudden, unbearable pain in the area in question. However, usually an acute gallbladder attack occurs 20mins to 4hrs after a meal (when gall bladder contracts) and there is associated nauseau and vomitting and also does not abate with rest.

could this be the pancreas, or pancreatitis? see above. symptoms very similar.

could this be hepatitis or liver problems? Hepatitis does not give sudden sharp pain unless there has been blunt trauma and associated hemmorrhage.

Spasm of the upper flexure of the right sided colon. Perhaps. Strange it should happen during activity.

In summary....it's a stitch or transient ischemia to the diaphragm and associated muscles and blood supply.

But if you are still worried, by all means, see the doctor. But he/she will feel your liver and abdomen...if there are no palpable masses, he /she will tell you it's a stitch!!!


By the way, Some people experience different degrees of "stitches" so one person's experience can't be generalized to others.

Originally posted by sheepy
tbh ive known what stitch feels practically my whole life, dont be a sarcy git, everyone knows what stitch feels like, theres no way you cant tell the difference between stitch and an "unknown pain"

id put money on it being something different, and btw about your sarcastic comment, its a public forum where views are shared, my opinion is far from expert..... but the whole point of a forum is to give your opinion so i did......

you need to rethink your attitude before you start sounding even more like a ****.


Chuvak, you probably want to ignore this since it is just a blatant attempt at being a jerk. I think you will find my response a reasonable and subjective analysis of what you are feeling. I hope that is all it is and nothing more serious.

This sheepy fellow sounds a lot like a troll to me so hopefully he will refrain from continuing to ruin this thread.

you must live in a ****hole if theres open sewers, and since when was my post slamming yours? get over yourself...... this blokey must be a complete ****** if he doesnt know what a stitch is..... im sorry for assuming everyone knew what stitch was...... its not as if its a rare condition suffered by cyclists :rolleyes:

Originally posted by cbhungry
It's a stitch. We think it's caused by spasm of the diaphragmatic muscles. More often on the right vs. left. we really don't know what causes them but improper breathing, dehydration, improper warm up etc. may all contribute.
see link http://my.webmd.com/content/article/42/1676_50855.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4056-A91C-9531713CA348**

Thanks for the link. I think it's only a stitche now. The reason I was thinking it's somethng elce is because I almost never have them, even when I push hard.

Maybe its a tumor.

And maybe I'm next L.A.!

it does sound like a "stitch"......i sometimes get them when i jog and have not run for a while...it can hurt....never get them biking though...i must like to bike better :)

cbhungry has a good differential listed....i would add spontaneous pneumothorax....(collapsed lung).

it does happen to young/thin athletes (more male than female).

if your symptoms all resolve...you are unlikely to have one though

Sounds like a stitch to me also. Were you feeling short of breathe? Was it hot?
I usually experience a stitch in one, or a combination of the following:

Heat
dehydration
shallow breathing, panting
need of rest

Hot is the word:crash: . Yes, I was feeling somewhat short of breath if you can call it that. The thing is when I tried to take the deep breath the pain increased drastically, so I had to take small, short breaths.



Originally posted by bandaidman
it does happen to young/thin athletes (more male than female).
Despite my monkey appearence, I'm not thin:D