Biking and kidney stones

Oye. So, today I had surgery to remove kidney stones that we noticed on Monday when I woke up in the most incredible pain imaginable. I am no stranger to pain, as I also have migraines and endometriosis, but I do have trouble dealing with the stones. My family has a history of UT problems and my mom had stones when I was a kid, so I know I am predisposed to it. As a kid I had various UTI's and my urologist believes I am just prone to such things.

I do drink a TON of water, but because of my steroids which I am on for asthma and my migraine medication, it seems to not always matter! I never want to do this again, so I want to be as careful as possible.

Do any of you ladies have UT/kidney stone issues? How do you cope with them and prep/ride/recover? Is drinking a lot of water enough or are there other things to consider. I had someone tell me to drink stuff with citric acid, but I am allergic. I know, I'm a blast. But seriously, I love biking a lot and being off for a week and a half has KILLED me. I just want to get back on the bike as soon as my doctor clears me. I have a stent in now, but pretty soon I will be good as new he says!

Hope you feel better soon. I've heard cranberry juice helps.

Take it easy and let your body heal.

I was diagnosed yesterday with a kidney stone. Five days ago (my last ride) I was so tired and my heart rate was racing up so high that I had to cut my ride in half. I knew then that something was wrong. I chalked it up to dehydration but then the back pain started. I've got an appointment with a specialist today and I plan to ask lots of questions, including when I can get back on my bike. Honestly, I'm too scared to ride right now. We're experiencing temps in the high 90s...by 10 a.m. it's already 85 with 100% humidity. My worst fear is that I'd be out in the country, alone, and my kidney stone would decide it wants "out"! I'll re-post after I speak with the specialist today. Hopefully this thing will resolve itself soon and I can get back on my bike. Seeing other cyclists on the road has me burning up with jealousy!! :mad:

I had a kidney stone, it passed on its own. (HUGE relief!) However... I didn't want to reach in and retrieve it (long story) so I don't know what it was made of.

My doc said there are two different materials they can be made of, and the dietary restrictions are radically different for the two. Since I didn't grab mine, she couldn't tell me what foods to avoid and what to eat more of.

Be sure to ask for the lab report on your stones!

Thanks for the replies. Yeah, I am definitely going to get the report back on my stones from the urologist when I go Tuesday. I already feel tons better, but with temps in the 90's through the weekend, I am almost glad I am on bedrest. I would be too tempted to do something stupid.

I know cranberry juice is great for UTI's and uric acid stones, but not calcium stones, so I will be sure to get that information. I am easily drinking 1/2 a gallon of water and two bottles of G2 a day, so that is good. I was told minimum 6-8 glasses of water today and I have done that already this afternoon.

I also have to strain my urine (ick!) to catch anything that was left. I am sooooo sick of doing it though. They should better be able to tell me what is going on when I go back for my follow up. Now, though, even with the stent in I am 10x's more comfortable.

Do you drink tea? Apparently the tannic acids have a tendency to bind calcium and form precipitates. (So, black tea with milk or taking calcium supplements with tea is not a good idea...) Depends, of course, on what your stone is...

I had a kidney stone when 6 months pregnant. Ouch. They assume the pre-natal vitamins with their mega-calcium dosage was responsible. They could only give me Tylenol 3 for relief. Trust me, giving birth was less painful than the stone !

Anyway, I was able to catch the stone. This might be TMI, but it was like fine beach sand. The lab was able to verify that it was a calcium based stone. I am fine now as long as I hydrate often. FYI, with everyone now days pushing extra calcium in diet and supplement form....you must be wary, if your stone is a calcium type. My Dr. doesn't want me to supplement calcium, just take in what I get in my normal diet.

Hope this helps someone.

I feel so, so sorry for you ladies who had them while preggers. Many of the women I talked to got them then. It's awful pain - misery. I don't take calcium supplements because my psychiatrist does not recommend taking ANY supplements with my antidepressant/OCD meds. However, I get far more than my daily amount of calcium just because I LOOOOOVE dairy and drink about half a gallon of milk in a day in a half easily. I passed part of a leftover stone this morning early, so it will be analyzed. And no, I don't drink tea. Even with living in the UK for a year, I couldn't stomach it. I am a coffee drinker - I have about 4 shots of espresso in the morning. I know coffee, too can be an issue, though, but the doctor didn't want me to quit cold turkey thanks to withdrawls making me pretty sick.

Have you ever had a kidney stone before this? When I had my first one, I was told that most likely it would be an isolated incident, and that I really shouldn't worry unless I got another.

You mentioned migraine medication, but didn't say what kind. Topamax can cause kidney stones. My neurologist was going to have me try it for a preventative, but decided to try a few other things first because we know that I'm prone to forming kidney stones. (Pamelor/nortriptyline works great for me.)

I habitually drink about a gallon of water a day, more on hot days when I'm riding a lot. It was hard at first (I know every bathroom in town!) but has been worth it.

Yep, it's Topomax that I am on. I was warned about it and took EXTRA care since there is a genetic history of kidney stones, UTI's, etc. Mom and Dad have both had issues with them. I would switch if I knew something else would work to stop them, but I haven't had luck with anything else. Right now, I am in between places. When I move to Missouri in a little over a month, I will get a great neurologist that comes highly recommended and go from there.

Stent caused a lot of pain tonight and I was SURE I was going to die. Still in a ton of pain, but it helped to hear from my doctor. Left a message, they paged him and he called me in three minutes. It's just the stent, nothing else is wrong and I am very healthy otherwise. Reminds me that I need to take biking slow when I go back.