8 Cycling Injury Prevention Tips
Whether you are cycling outdoors in the warm spring weather, participating in a spin class, or competing at the professional level in cycling, it’s important to take steps to prevent injury. Cycling is an excellent low-impact activity that improves overall fitness, cardiovascular health, and core and leg strength without placing too much stress on your joints. However, cycling injuries can occur due to overuse, improper bike setup, and lack of a proper warm-up and cool down. Check out our 8 tips to prevent injury when cycling this spring!
Common Cycling Injuries
Common cycling injuries include knee pain, neck pain, back pain, hamstring strain, IT Band Syndrome, hand and wrist pain, and foot numbness.
Knee Pain: Knee pain is particularly common among cyclists. Front knee pain can be caused by having the saddle too low, pedaling at a low speed, overusing the quadriceps when pedaling, or muscle imbalances in legs (strong quadriceps, but weak hamstrings). If the bike seat is too high, this can place pressure on and cause pain in the back of the knee.
Neck Pain: Neck pain can result if the handlebar is too low or if it is at too great or short a reach. If the saddle of the bike is excessively tilted downward, that can also cause neck pain. Holding such positions for an extended period of time places undue strain on the neck, causing tightness and subsequent pain.
Back Pain: Low back pain is quite common due to the bent-over, forward-leaning posture that is maintained for an extended period of time during cycling, Low back pain can result from inflexible tight hamstrings, a low cadence (the rate at which cyclist pedals), overuse of quadriceps when pedaling, poor back strength, or handlebars that are too low.
IT Band Syndrome: The IT Band is a long thick tissue that runs down the side of the leg from the hip to the knee. During an extended period of cycling, the IT Band can rub up against the hip and knee bones, resulting in irritation and tightness and making it painful to pedal.
Hamstring tendinitis: Hamstring tendinitis involves irritation and inflammation of one or both of the hamstring tendons, which connect the hamstring muscles to the pelvis, knee, and shinbones. This can result from tight hamstrings, too high of a saddle, and poor hamstring strength.
Hand & Wrist Pain: Irritation and pain in the hand and wrist during cycling can result from a short reach in the handlebars, poorly placed brake levers, and the downward tilt of the saddle, placing too much stress on the hand and wrist muscles and tendons.
Foot Numbness: Pain, numbness, and tingling in the foot can result if the seat and pedal heights are not fitted to the cyclist. When the cyclist is bent over for a long period of time, the sciatic nerve can become irritated and cause pain and numbness to travel down the length of the leg to the foot.
Physical therapy can effectively address and treat all of these common cycling injuries. Treatment includes pain-reducing modalities (ice/heat); targeted stretching and strengthening exercises; a customized exercise program; manual therapy; core strengthening; and aquatic therapy.
8 Tips to Prevent Cycling Injury
Proper bike fit and set up: To prevent injury, it is critical to ensure your bike is properly fitted to your body. If you are standing next to the bike, the seat should be at the height of your hip bone. When you are seated on the bike and drop your leg to the pedal, you should have a slight bend in the knee. The handlebars can be placed where comfortable, but keep in mind that the lower the handlebars, the greater the strain that may be placed on your low back.
Warm-up properly: It’s essential to engage in a dynamic warm-up for 5 to 10 minutes. Cold muscles are more prone to strain and injury. When warming up on the bike, start with minimal resistance and slowly and gradually increase the RPM (revolutions per minute).
Always cool down: Use static stretching to cool down after biking as the body is in a flex position continuously when biking. Target the forearms, chest, calf, glutes, and quadriceps.
Cross-train: Cross-training, or alternating your exercise routine regularly, improves and maintains overall fitness without overstressing or overusing certain parts of the body. On days you are not cycling, try swimming, running, or strength training.
Target specific muscle groups for strengthening exercises: Muscle weakness and imbalances can contribute to common cycling injuries, like hamstring tendinitis, knee pain, back pain, and IT band syndrome. Target your quadriceps and hamstrings for balanced strength and flexibility and strengthen your core to support your low back when cycling.
Wear a helmet when cycling outdoors: Cycling without a helmet when outdoors and in new terrain heightens the risk of injury to the head. A helmet is crucial to protect you when cycling outdoors, in the city, or in rough terrain.
Brake correctly: When braking, brake with the hands at the ends of the levers for optimal pressure. If you need to make a quick brake, press brakes firmly and slide your behind to the back of the saddle to keep the rear of the bike down to prevent forward momentum from catapulting you over the handlebars. If biking in wet weather, lightly tap the breaks, applying intermittent pressure to the brake.
Avoid pedaling in high gear for a long period of time: Remaining in high gear for an extended period of time places undue pressure on your knees and can lead to an overuse injury. Shift to lower gears and faster revolutions to get more exercise with less stress on your knees.
