cycle-powered
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Munich Germany (formerly Portland OR, Texas)
Posts: 1,848
Bikes: '02 Specialized FSR, '03 RM Slayer, '99 Raleigh R700, '97 Norco hartail, '89 Stumpjumper
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there have been all kinds of studies and "headline eye-catching" stories about this as it DOES attract the reader...
bascially it goes like this:
1) LOTs and LOTs of riding appears to cause some damage from continual compression of the blood vessels in the area (like say a 6 hours ride). most of this appears to be short-term and go away 10-30 minutes after riding, but long-term is still not quite clear... (this affects the blood flow and ability to have and sustain an erection) --- note: road cycling is here worse than mountain biking as more time is spent ON the saddle and the sit position is more forward with more weight on the frontal area)
2) forcefull blows to the area like crashing and landing with the xbar between your legs has shown to potentially damage the sperm (this genrally does not affect your erection -capability but rather your "potency" or sperm-quality) ---- this is the basically same as getting a kick in the crotch in soccer or a baseball in the nuts so it's not limited to cycling (some earlier studies showed a higher incidence among MOUNTAIN BIKERS and not road bikers and the "supposition" was that it was due to off-road crashes where the crotch is receives a hard blow)
3) most studies have shown that cyclists have FEWER sexual disfunctions as they are generally healthier and have better blood-flow --- e.g. most studies of pros show general higher fertility than in similar compare groups and lots of pros are also fathers
-->>
#1 IF you get numbness in the area you should do something about it
#2 you should avoid hard blows to your genitals (duh! and most people do anyway as they're not fun)
#3 otherwise, If you ride less than say an average of 2 hours a day you pretty much have NOTHING to worry about...
#4 If you ride A LOT then you should get your sit position and your saddle and all checked out - not only for "this region" but also for comfort, back-considerations and to maximize performance (if you're riding so much then it's worth it)
bascially it's just a good mechanism to sell magazines and newspapers!