Has anyone any tips for continuing to ride with a Hamstring or other leg injury? It looks like I'm going to take a while to fix, and am putting in place how to continue with my normal active life in the mean time. I'm almost 55 and won't allow myself the option to cut back temporarily in the fear of never getting back to full fitness properly. I can walk well enough with a slightly odd gate, and bear weight if straight down, so am hoping to continue with hiking, boating etc using a brace for a while. I'm back to 5Km at a time on the cross trainer, working my way back up to 10Km sessions. The beauty of a cross trainer is the controlled, repeatable, repetitive nature of the movement. And am lifting weights again in the controlled environment of the Gym. Although I definitely can't bear weight on that knee when keeling. Of course the sudden inability to support myself due to a sudden sideways load when hiking will just result in a muddy arse and mild embarrassment, but stopping at a junction on a bike and finding I can't suddenly support the bikes weight would be more embarrassing and potentially expensive and painful. I can sit comfortably on my M1000 with no pain, my 1000SS/900SL hybrid is painful, and my 999 project feels somewhere in the middle. Is it really possible to ride a bike and always manage to support the bike on the same leg every time when coming to a halt? I don't see why not, but have never tried it.
So what have you done to your hamstring ? Some injuries are best left alone for a period of time whilst others can benefit from moderate exercise. IME, little and often is a better mantra than pushing through the pain barrier. I have also benefited sometimes from applying alternate heat and cold whilst sedentary in front of the TV. One of the physio exercises I was given when my achillies were detached to remove a haglands spur, is to stand on a stair on the balls of your feet and try and lift yourself up on your toes, then let yourself down with your heels below the horizontal. Won't deny it's painfull but stretching prevents tightening and losing flexibility. Andy
Thanks Chris Andy It's just a partial tear, only a grade 2, not 3, and is only too painful to work around if I kneel on it. The ruptured Bursa which started it all hasn't helped. The pain isn't the issue with holding a bike up, more a lack of strength or control with any sideways force. It's frustrating, I don't want to loose a summer of full on Bike and boat fun. It's been a couple of weeks now, and I'm getting there, but haven't tried riding a bike yet.
I was riding last year with a guy who had lost one arm and one leg, so it is definitely possible to always balance your bike on one leg. Mind you, he was riding a BSA Bantam, which is in a different weight category, and he had modified controls on the handlebars.
Sounds debilitating at this early stage of recovery. Have you tried alternating heat and cold pressed on your hamstring when you are watching the TV ? A hot water bottle followed by a bag of frozen peas for as long as you can stand it, will increase the blood flow around the tissue which will help. Trouble with a torn muscle is it needs time and MODERATE exercise but I’m sure I’m not telling you anything you haven’t already been told. Best wishes for a speedy recovery Simon. Andy
As above heat & cold plus rest! I did my hamstring some ten years ago and yes it was painful and I could hobble about, but my daughter laid the law down to me to stop being stubborn and rest it. She was I vved in sports injuries with her work at the time. So sprawl on the sofa, get your good lady to pamper to your needs and let it fix itself. Exercise will hamper healing. Then start with light duties or it will go again. As for mine, it’s never gone like it did but occasionally I get twangs from it as a warning.
Thanks guys. I am taking it a bit easier than usual, promise, but doing anything as mind numbing as watching telly for more than 1/2hr fills me with dread. I'll have to try riding the M1000 at the weekend and see how it feels deliberately supporting it on my Right side each time I stop. I might do that anyway, but without thinking, who knows. At least the M1000 will sustain less damage if it goes over.
Try stopping with both feet down, if you feel the weight going towards your weaker side it’ll be easier to counter if the other leg is already down. I do this most of the time but I don’t have a gammy leg, it just feels more stable. I use one finger on the front break to stop any roll when I do finally stop, never hold it on the rear break ( no real surprise on a Ducati really… lol) other than that, hope you mend soon!
Sorry to hear you've hurt yourself and are having hassels. As a not especially tall fellow, when I owned and rode an NX650 Honda (carthorse) I could only ever have one foot down at a stop. Wasn't an issue and quickly became a reflex action.
