Arthritis and cycling

[rivergrl]

I just bought a road bike after a long time riding a hybrid. I'm so excited to eventually lose my fear of the clipless pedals and get on the trail!

I'm looking forward to riding but because my mother suffers from sever arthritis in her knees (three knee replacements) I'm wondering if cycling will help me to keep arthritis at bay or if it will speed up the inevitable (me getting arthritic knees). I'm curious if riding and gaining strength in my knees will help or hinder me later on.

[Trek420]

welcome to TE and surf on over to the getting to know you thread.

Cycling works for me

(is that like "hoocd awn fawnix werks fore me"? :) )

It's not so much gaining strength in my knees because your knees have no strengh, they are just a joint not a muscle. (is there a Dr. in the house who can explain this? Even a fishdr?)

What happens I feel and as my Orthopedic Surgeon explained is I gain strength muscles around the joint which supports your knee and in the end does some of the work my deteriorating ligaments and tendons used to do.

Also .... I lost weight therefore less pressure on the joints.

If you've seen x-rays of your knee you can see with that bone on bone thing? Less weight, less pressure.

Trek-if-I-was-a-horse-they'd-shoot-me-420

[stella]

hi, rivergrl. welcome to te! I have had arthritis in just about every joint (including knees) since I was 10y/o (I'm 40 now). From what my "bone md" has told me: the key is building the muscles around the joint and keeping myself flexible.

My arthritis will worsen but the muscle groups that I've built up, along w/the flexibility, has helped prevent the arthritis from limiting my motion.

I would encourage you to also check w/an MD (maybe your Mom's?) to find out if there is anything you can do to prevent and/or minimize the effect of the arthritis.

I only have my experience to share: cycling has been great for my arthritis: keeps me limber, moves my joints around, but isn't as painful as running.

[rivergrl]

Thanks for the info. I'm hoping that getting into cycling will help take some weight off and that will help. I have some popping in my knees now at 34 so I know It's my body probably telling me I'm too heavy.

I'm hoping to try and get some weight off and enjoy myself at the same time. These boards have been really helpful in motivating me.

[Patti37]

I do not know if riding willhelp fight off arthritis. I tend to think if you are talking Rheumatoid arthritis which is an autoimmune disease it will not help. Only an MD knows the answer, I guess.

I was recently diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. I still ride but cannot run. I usually feel incredibly awesome after a ride although sometimes my hands hurt.

[dachshund]

I'm kind of in the same boat. I have arthritis, along with pain in my lower back, knees, feet... hands. It's pretty clear to me, after the usual route of physical therapy and trying different things, that being active is much better than giving up and sitting around. Speaking for myself, of course - I considered giving up and sitting around :) The cycling will help build up your quads, but you can also do exercises to strengthen those muscles even better. And they don't require joining a gym - I learned a bunch from physical therapy that can be done at home.

You bought a bike, though - that's a good sign :) I hope it will be a fun experience.

[rivergrl]

Thanks Dashshund,

I'm hoping when the rain stops I can get on my bike and practice riding clipless. I'm hoping I won't crash this time. I'm looking forward to it. I've noticed from riding my Sedona that my arm muscles have gotten stronger and much more defined. That's motivation.

[donnambr]

I'm not a medical person, but I have heard that cycling is pretty easy on the joints so long as you're riding a bike that really fits you.

I know I've progressed from "scary heavy" to just plump because my knees no longer creak. Woo-hoo!

[betagirl]

Hi

I have a type of arthritis brought on by crohn's disease, called crohn's arthritis (duh). :D It's not degenerative like osteo or rheumatoid, but gives me nice joint pains in my hips and knees if the disease is active. I also have "bad knees" (thanks dad). I had knee surgery on my left knee at 14, and expect my right one to go out in a few years if I'm on his schedule - I'm 30.

For the most part, cycling is fine on my knees. Running is out of the question, at least any long distances. I notice that my joints start to hurt after about 30-40 miles on the bike. I'm fine on shorter rides. I don't really know why, but I do know if I pop a celebrex before a longer ride this doesn't happen. Since I'm only taking 1 pill as needed, I don't really worry about all the warnings with celebrex, since those problems occur at higher, maintenance doses.

Hope that helps :)

[Duck on Wheels]

I too have Crohns arthritis. Haven't had a joint pain episode recently, so I don't know how biking will affect it. My last serious flareups what I would do was put on long woolies under a windproof layer, then walk (straight forward) for miles until I'd walked myself warm enough to be able to turn, at which point I could walk home. Warming up the muscles did the job, but walking was pretty painful at the start. Next flareup I'm thinking the bike might work better. I warm up faster, and I don't have to swivel at the hips to turn. But I am testing bikes carefully before I buy. I need the bike to fit well so my back, neck, shoulders, knees are as comfortable as can be.

[betagirl]

Hey Bikeless, just as an FYI my GI prescribed the celebrex to me for the joint pains. He said because it's a COX-2, that it doesn't have the effects on the guts as other NSAIDS do. Something about it being targeted. In case you're ever looking for something to help with the joints. What was weird for me is I had the joint pains for years before the other symptoms really hit me hard. I just thought it was related to my knee surgery, though I had a hard time explaining it when it switched to my right leg :D Talk about hard core denial.

[Duck on Wheels]

Thanks Beta, I'll keep that in mind. Mine showed up when the guts were at their worst. I don't think I've had hip pain this past year that lasted past a hot shower, or maybe the first mile on my way to work. But back then there were a couple of days when even a long hot walk didn't help and I wound up taking a couple of vicodin -- which, as you say, are not so great for the stomach lining. If it builds up again I'll talk to my doc and ask what the latest news is on celebrex or others in that vein.
I've also got osteoarthritis in one ankle, after a bad break. For that I take ginger, turmeric, fish oil, and glucosamine. Occasionally I get ankle pain on a long hike, but it's been ok on the bike so far. So the vicodin stash remains untouched. :)

[Dogmama]

Remember to NOT push big gears, especially in the beginning. Your muscles will build up much faster than your ligaments & tendons will toughen up. You need to go easy at first. Heck, when I start serious riding in the Spring, I always spend a couple of weeks just spinning.

I have arthritis everywhere (thanks Grandma!) and recently had a cervical spinal fusion. The doc was aghast at the amount of arthritis in my spine as it didn't show in the MRI.

Re Celebrex - if you're allergic to sulpha, you can't take it. Bring back Vioxx!!

[rivergrl]

I have a little knee pain after riding. It seems to be a bit less now that I'm riding a clipless road bike as opposed to my Sedona. I know I'm over weight and that is causing my knee popping when not riding. My Mother has severe arthritis in her knees and shoulders. She's had three knee replacements (one they screwed up) and had to do over...anyway, she's not gotten much relief after all that. I'm trying to keep the enevitable at bay for me as long as I can by trying to ride and build up strength all over.

[dachshund]

I had always heard that keeping joints moving keeps the "inner parts" lubricated. Low-stress exercise should be therapeutic. I think swimming is probably the best form of exercise, quickly followed by cycling.

[mimitabby]

I had always heard that keeping joints moving keeps the "inner parts" lubricated. Low-stress exercise should be therapeutic. I think swimming is probably the best form of exercise, quickly followed by cycling.

the worst injury i have suffered was while swimming. I tweaked a shoulder
and it resulted in 1.5 years of immobility, frozen shoulder which i am still
feeling the effects of.
I'm not saying that swimming is bad, but put an uncoordinated person in the middle of the ocean (me) and they can hurt themselves even while not trying to do anything terribly difficult.
I'm saying that bike riding is GREAT!! even for folks with Arthritis!
A sensible bike rider can do a lot to stave off arthritic symptoms. Immobility
makes the joints worse, easy pedalling is what our doctor recommends.

[rivergrl]

I know my Mom felt like swim therapy helped with her knees but now she has arthritis in her shoulders and it's got her down really bad. Plus it's starting to settle into her back as well.

I tried jogging a few years ago but it killed my knees and I was told by a doctor that walking was much better for women and that cycling was also better than jogging. I'm really enjoying riding and I took my new bike out on a hour long ride yesterday. My first real ride clipped in. I was a bit nervous but I made it. I felt great and I could have gone another hour but my hands got a little sore. Then when I got home I noticed a little burning in my knees. I don't plan on giving up just because of a little pain, I'll just need to get my knees adjusted to the new workout.

[dachshund]

Oh, yeah, it's rough on shoulders, you're right. My mom went through this, too. Yeah, stick with cycling!

[Bad JuJu]

Read the book Younger Next Year , or Younger Next Year for Women: the authors talk about how continued activity--that is, doing regular exercise 6 days a week, for example, oh, I don't know, cycling maybe :D --can stave off not only arthritis but also some of the other effects of aging.

Both authors are huge fans of cycling as a sport that can carry us into our 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s.....