Bicycling at any level is excellent healthwise, but the specific physical repetitive motions and postures can wear on a cyclist’s body, causing strains and injury to the:

• Muscles
• Ligaments
• Tendons
• Nerves
• Spine

Injuries can be caused by falls, overused muscles, joints, posture, and/or balance problems, whether riding a bicycle for fun, health, or sport. Chiropractic decompression can treat cycling-related injuries and help prevent common injuries by helping cyclists with conditioning and exercises. Chiropractic adjustments, combined with health coaching and nutrition planning, can maximize the body’s overall athletic ability and increase/improve:

• Endurance
• Strength
• Flexibility
• Respiration
• Heart rate variability

Common Cyclist Injuries

Competitive cyclists, commuters, and weekend riders all experience common cycling injuries that include:

• Delayed onset muscle soreness
• Cyclist’s palsy, carpal tunnel, and ulnar neuropathy
• Tennis elbow and/or elbow dislocation
• Cyclist’s knee
• Quadriceps tendonitis
• Thigh and hip flexor strains
• Foot pain, arch pain, numbness, tingling
• Plantar fasciitis
• Shoulder joint sprains
• Clavicle fractures

Back Soreness and Pain

Many cyclists suffer from back pain overuse injuries that are caused by:

• Incorrect saddle/seat height or an uneven seat/saddle
• Not bending the knee at the end of a pedal stroke forces the cyclist to rock the pelvis side to side to generate enough power, placing added stress on the low back muscles.
• Handlebars that are too far forward can cause over-stretching of the spine.
• Constantly tilting the head can cause neck and shoulder pain.
• Staying in the same position for an extended period strains the spine.
• Repetitive hip flexion causes the muscles to become tight and perform less efficiently, straining the rest of the body to make up for the lost support.
• Hamstrings that become tight can shorten in length, causing the body to pull on the pelvis and the spine.
• Lack of core strength allows more stress to penetrate the glutes, back, and hips.
• Riding on bumpy or rough terrain increases body jarring and spinal compression.

Chiropractic Decompression

Chiropractic decompression for cyclists can rehabilitate the body from injuries, alleviate pain, improve blood and nerve circulation and maintain the body’s flexibility. Advanced decompression techniques personalized to the individual realign and release the body from obstructions and toxins in the neural pathways. Nutritional and supplementation recommendations are incorporated to enhance the body’s natural healing abilities, and exercise/stretches to sustain the adjustments.

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Spinal Decompress

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References

Schultz, Samantha J, and Susan J Gordon. “Recreational cyclists: The relationship between low back pain and training characteristics.” International journal of exercise science vol. 3,3 79-85. 15 Jul. 2010

Silberman, Marc R. “Bicycling injuries.” Current sports medicine reports vol. 12,5 (2013): 337-45. doi:10.1249/JSR.0b013e3182a4bab7

Streisfeld, Gabriel M et al. “Relationship Between Body Positioning, Muscle Activity, and Spinal Kinematics in Cyclists With and Without Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review.” Sports health vol. 9,1 (2017): 75-79. doi:10.1177/1941738116676260

Thompson, M J, and F P Rivara. “Bicycle-related injuries.” American family physician vol. 63,10 (2001): 2007-14.

Virtanen, Kaisa. “Cyclist injuries.” Duodecim; laaketieteellinen aikakauskirja vol. 132,15 (2016): 1352-6.