Most Common Cycling Pain And How To Fix It | KBO Bike
You could be riding an electric bike for the fun of it while toning your calf muscles at the same time. Riding an electric bike is one of the few physical activities that can pass for both fun and exercise or sport. Everything is fine and good until severe pain comes in. Like other exercises, riding electric bikes could bring some discomfort because of the toning of muscles and burning of fat that occurs in the whole leg, causing stabbing pain in the left groin in both female and male riders.
When you start to feel pain, it's advisable to cut back on your riding and address the issue before it worsens. However, addressing the problem is frequently easier said than done. Pain can be caused by a variety of factors, including riding form and bike fit, gear and pre-existing ailments, and in many cases, a combination of these.
Bike posture is the most common cause of pain for newbie riders and veteran riders who have recently modified their electric bikes setup. Having your seats, cleats, and handlebars in the precise, perfect places relative to your body is challenging, and the disparity in pain between getting it right and getting it wrong can be significant. The solution is to get your bike fitted by a specialist. Although a custom fit can be pricey, the rewards of comfort and speed are well worth it for frequent bikers. Plus, getting a bike fit is much less expensive than visiting a physical therapist after becoming hurt while riding a bike that isn't properly fitted.
In general, riding regular bikes or e-bikes could give you a continuous burn in your legs and some other expected places like inside thigh pain and gracilis pain. It also speeds up your breathing, but the pain should not be so severe or difficult to handle before paying attention to it. This is why we will be discussing common cycling pains and how to fix them.
Low back pain
A large percentage of cyclists complain about having pain in the lower part of their backs after riding. This low back pain often progresses to stabbing pain in both females' and males' left groin and the inner leg pain. This can be due to the unnatural forward position the body isn't used to or due to the saddle being too high or relatively too low. It could also be because you are hunched over on your bike or because your saddle and bar height level are too apart. One way to know if your saddle is too low is if your knee is not at the hip level at the peak of your pedaling cycle.
How to fix it
To start with, make sure that your saddle is just your height, not too high or too low. Having an e-bike that has an adjustable saddle will make it possible to move your saddle until it's your height. If your saddle is too high, it will make your hips move side to side when you begin to pedal, and that will result in the lower back and inside thigh pain. Also, ensure that your handlebar is not too far from you, as this will put you in an outstretched position. Raising your handlebar and bringing the saddle to the same level will give a more upright position.
Hand and Wrist Pain
Many people have believed that cycling comes with a lot of finger numbness or wrist pain. Very slight twitches and numbness should be expected for a minute or two, especially when the bike doesn't fit you completely, but if the pain gets severe and hard to deal with, it might be an indicator of a bigger problem somewhere. Hand pain is usually due to the saddle inclination and handlebars or grips that are too low or too far.
How to fix it
Having an e-bike with a saddle that fits you completely is a big deal as it is the leading solution to many other problems that come with riding electric bikes. When you have a bike that doesn't fit you well, you could get some accessories to replace or change some parts completely to make the situation comfortable.
The saddle inclination is the first thing to take note of. If its nose is even slightly down, you're putting too much pressure on your hands and wrists. You might need to raise the saddle or lower it depending on the situation and your height. Adjust the saddle to fit you perfectly or change it entirely if it is such a big issue.
It is also necessary that you have a good grip because your hands contact it throughout the ride. If you use too low handlebars, you are more likely to get hand or wrist pain after cycling because you have applied too much pressure to the wrist. You can try a higher rise stem to see if it works better for you. While cycling, using too much or too little stress on your wrist or hands would leave you feeling numb, so finding the perfect fit is essential.
Groin pain
Cyclists complain about having inside thigh pain for the first few times they ride their bikes, but if you don't have a bike that fits, it will be somewhat inevitable after every ride. Generally, any form of inside thigh pain, gracilis pain, crotch pain, inner leg pain, and stabbing pain in the left groin or right groin are referred to as groin pain or gracilis pain in some cases. Riding a bike with a saddle that does not fit will cause stabbing pain in the left groin female or male area. As you cycle, a combination of heat, pressure, and friction with the saddle could also give you a bruised groin. Groin pain can mostly be noticed in the female upper inner thigh though men are prone to it. If your groin hurts or any crotch pain, inner leg pain, knee, and groin pain linked, then you're likely to be diagnosed with gracilis pain.
A significant cause of gracilis pain is the wrong saddle shape or wrong saddle level. Anywhere you sit on a saddle that doesn't fit your physique will be uncomfortable and give you upper inner thigh pain. You feel the hard bones; your saddle must support your weight on these hard bones or the pubic rami rather than your soft tissue.
How to fix it
If your saddle position is too high, it will put more pressure than necessary on the perineal area, thereby leading to crotch pain, and in severe cases, your groin hurts. Therefore, try as much as possible to get and maintain the correct saddle level, shape, and size for your bike. It should also be noted that you can also have inside thigh pain and upper inner thigh pain if you keep a lousy posture during cycling. An example of a wrong position is reaching out too far to the bars. This can cause you to place great weight on your sensitive tissues and result in a bruised groin.
Knee pain
The causes of pain in the knee, pain in crease of leg and knee and groin pain linked can be linked to the wrong saddle height or the wrong positioning of the cleat. The position of the cleat is most times overlooked by a lot of cyclists even though it is one of the causes of knee pain.
How to fix it
Do not not pedal toe down but with heel drop. When you do this, stress is removed from your knee by the use of your calves to stabilize and get more power from the glutes and ham strings. This in turn relieves your inner leg pain and reduces the pain in crease of knee. If the pain persists in front of your knee, then the saddle level of your bike may be another problem to check out for as it might be too low. Whereas if you experience pain at the back of the knees, then the saddle level might be too high.
Foot pain
Foot pain in cyclists, in most cases, is a result of the cleat being too forward. This usually happens when you are pedaling with your toes, and it is not a very good idea. The flexor muscles present at the toe joint are not meant to function as a force generator, which is why stinging and cramping occurs after you pedal with your toes. The wrong choice of shoes could also be a cause of foot pain. Something as tiny as the shoe you wear when cycling on your electric bike can make a huge difference.
How to fix it
Get a bike that has its cleat positioned within your feet' reach and not too far forward. If your foot is leaking around all over the place when you remove your shoe's insole and stand on it, then your shoes are too tiny, and this will result in compression, stinging, and numbness. Adjust the shoe clasp to be snug but not too tight over the top of your foot. If your feet continue to suffer, customized footbeds or orthotics may be required.
In conclusion, there are many precautions to avoid the possible pains that come with biking, but the most significant of them is getting an electric bike that fits properly. Getting an ebike fit before purchasing the bike will also be a lot of help. If getting a new bike fit would be expensive, you could get the bike parts that need to be replaced and fix them appropriately and with the right level.
