sundaypunch

Diet and hormone levels have a huge effect on bone density. If cyclists do have more problems I doubt that it comes from the act of riding a bike. I would guess it's more likely related to diet and incorrect (or over) supplementation.

unterhausen

They looked at basketball players in training camp, and they had very similar bone loss. That's about as high impact sport as you're going to find. Calcium supplements fixed the problem. The idea that we are losing bone mass due to the same mechanism as astronauts seems laughable. I'll bet if they looked at vegetarian weight lifters they would find some bone loss too.

bigtea

And just how much research have you done on the subject? You are another, typical, HTFU-cyclist-know-it-all. I've ridden for almost 30 years and have a bone density problem that I'm dealing with right now. If you stick with the sport through your fifties you should plan on eating your words.

Rustyoldbikes

A number of "pro" riders, both male and female, have been forced into early retirement by weak bones. But, it is unlikely that RIDING is the cause of weak bones. The cyclists with weak bones have other factors...genetic factors...their diet...lack of "load bearing" exercise.

Problems with weak bones come from not having enough calcium in the diet, and from not doing enough "load bearing" exercise. Doing eight or ten hours a week of brisk walking or jogging will improve bone density in the legs and hips. Lifting weights will improve bone density in the upper body.

Rustyoldbikes

The folks who think weak bones are a "joke" don't seem to understand the problems that weak bones cause at age 60, age 70, or age 80. A broken hip when you are 40 is a nuisance...at age 70 it is often a life-changing, or even life-ending event.

Of course, to guys who are age 20 or age 30, being age 70 seems like a million years away...nothing to worry about...but, what really happen is, you wake up some morning, and there is a 70 year old man staring at you in the mirror...asking you why you didn't take better care of his health.

richard_dupp

That wonderful "load bearing excersize" herniated L4-L5 and L5-S1 a few years ago. I will stick to cycling thank you very much.

ironhorse3

Someone please tell my rear end this when I've been riding for about 4 hrs! Also, I have experienced some foot pains that resemble metatarsal pain from standing or walking too long. I think that research in this area would have to take age, sex, activity, and weight matched individuals prospectively and evaluate changes in bone density over a fairly long period of time to answer the question properly. I could not find such a study with 10 minutes of internet searching.

Another possible mechanism for bone loss in endurance athletes could be increased levels of cortisol, since this implies a relative increase in catabolic state which could contribute to bone loss. For similar reasons, decreased levels of testosterone post cycling, could cause decrease in testosterone anabolic effect and tend to promote the osteopenia.

fosmith

i was one of the test subjects in this study. my bone density was shockingly low at age 31! this stuff is for real.