Form & Fitness Q & A: Recumbent biking (KNEES)

Decided to stick with my own story.

In 1965 on Okinawa punctured my rt knew on a broken
knob on an air compressor.

Army orthopod removed meniscus rt knee 1965,
and placed knee/leg in long leg cast from crotch to Toe for 30 days. They know better now.
Things went well untill 2004 though the knee had a
limited range of motion.

Winter 2004 built a recumbent bike. Sitting on bike
and fell over (didn't know to hold brake) and the
leg curled back up under all my 200 LBS creating
immediate full range of motion and essentially ripping
apart what the long cast had allowed to set 39 years
before. Healing took place and pain subsided over
a two year period of time. Did not go to doctor.

Year 2006 rode a Tour Easy 3100 miles. Could then
hardly walk and pain was out the top. MRI and x-ray
showed the knee to be worn out and knee replacement
only cure. My knee and I said no. Have plans to take
this one to the grave.

BTW: The Tour Easy had 130mm cranks. I thought
short cranks would help knee....wrong. Need
long cranks for leverage. I now use 175's most
of the time.

2006-2008 averaging 1000 miles/year. Increased water
intake and regeared bikes and ride smart. Now
have minimal pain with some stiffness on longer rides.

My belief: My vegan lifestyle helps this worn out knee get
better nourishment that lets it keep cranking. I'm 70
and we'll see.

 

Buddy, on another web board I monitor, the moniker of a gentleman is:

"I plan to live forever. So far, so good."

I think you need to adapt that one also!!!

70 and still going strong!!! GO BUDDY!!!!

 

Thanks for this info. I bookmarked it for when I am better. I used crutches today to keep pressure off my knee and it swelled right back up. I've been off it now 3 weeks. Swelling goes away if I stay in bed. I can't sit up either or it swells. I'm real confused about what is wrong. I am trying some new NSAID cream called Voltaren that is supposed to take out inflammation just buy rubbing on the knee. Will see. I am soooo dissappointed about this. Wish I knew how to prevent this before I did it :-(((. I wuz so dumb.

 

I also am severely knock kneed. It feels better to turn my toes out. Is that ok. Riding straight makes it worse. Also my knees tend to rotate inward towards the center frame of my trike. I am 5'2" with short legs. They actually weave back and forth toward the frame with my downstroke. It seema to be unavoidable.

 

Knee care must include total well being.

Back in the 1950's and 1960's I was in the US Air Force
at the same time a young physician by the name of Col Kenneth Cooper M.D. I was impressed with him because he stresses prevention and developed the 5-BX program and attempted to get the Air Force to have comprehensive
wellness for all airmen, but they wouldn't and Dr Cooper
parted ways with the USAF and developed the Dallas Center. It has become a standard for prevention
and total well being. Take a look and watch some of
the vidios.

 

I'm from Dallas originally and have heard of him vaguely. I'll watch the videos if I can get them on Kimonia. It they are Adobe flash I can't watch them. Will see. If not I'll search You Tube for compatable videos from him. I'm stuck laying around so it will give me something to do. There is a saying when I rode my Harley "Ride within your limit". In otherwords, don't try to ride like you've done it 20 years if you just learned how. Well, I pushed myself waaaaay hard after a winter layover. I should have started off on neighborhood streets again real slow instead of hitting the highway on my Terra Tour. But I didn't know all this stuff. I used crutches today and I still swelled up. So I have to stay in bed period or else I get this "baseball" on the outside of my knee.

 

Mike is the company doctor here, but I've had my share of
knee pain. I say inflamation is pain or pain is inflamation.
For that I take a couple tablespoons of freshly ground flax
seed ground in a small coffee grinder. I take it on whole grain cereal or on a green salad. All my wellness doctors
suggest this. It's an omega 3 fatty acid. Good for arthritis too. Take it daily. If you get a nose or throat bleed, skip a day and cut back to 1 tablespoon ground.

 

Knee Savers For Your ‘Bent Lifestyle

By Jose A. Hernandez
​

Few things can bring your bent pedaling joy to a screaming halt as effectively as an injured knee. A healthy knee is a terrible thing to waste. Yet, many of us just take this wondrous hinge joint for granted. Unquestionably, cycling is a lot gentler on your knees than other sports but if you’re not careful you can still injure your knees in more ways than one. If you’re new to our bent world, the tips that follow this brief intro may help you avoid unnecessary pain and injury. If you’ve been pedaling for a while, you’re probably already familiar with these tips but who knows, there may be something here for you too. There’s no way I can go over every possible knee saving tip. So why not share your own knee saving tips in our message board and feel free to correct me if you think I happen to be wrong about any of this (Heck, it wouldn’t be the first time)

The Mother of All Tips


This is the one tip that gives meaning to all other tips. Ignore this and you’ll be acting on blind faith (not a good thing in my book). One of the very first things I think you should do is YOUR HOMEWORK. Take a couple of hours to go over the basic anatomy and physiology of the knee. Learn how the knee bones and its surrounding muscles, tendons and ligaments all work together to stabilize the knee while it does its job with as little wear and tear as possible. Figure out silly things like why the knee joint can’t do its job right without its kneecap or with a misaligned or dislocated kneecap. Learn about the shock absorbing qualities of cartilage. Don’t be surprised to learn that proper knee function is often dependent on other seemingly unrelated, sometimes “distant” parts of our anatomy. If you’re reading this, you already have the means to get all of this information. Just do a simple web search under knee anatomy and physiology, sit back, relax and read.

Pain is YOUR Friend


Acknowledge pain and embrace pain. But not in the “no pain, no gain” sort of way we sometimes hear about. Understand that pain is one of the ways your body communicates with you and lets you know that something is not up to spec.
Do not ignore pain. Try to understand and analyze its cause. Sometimes the cause of pain is obvious. Sometimes the cause is elusive. But try to understand it anyway. Ask yourself if you’re doing something different. Have you suddenly increased the duration or intensity of your ride? Does the pain go away when you stop pedaling or does it get better?
A little pain that lasts a day or two is probably OK and is something most of us experience from time to time. But when the pain is severe and lasts more than a couple of days, it is time to employ the help of a health professional. This is especially True if the pain you’re experiencing is accompanied by inflammation as it could indicate a serious injury like a stretched out ligament, a torn tendon or even a bone fracture.

Patience is a Virtue


Please don’t be in a hurry to get in shape. Your decision to get in shape is a noble one but you just can’t expect to undo years of inactivity in a few days. It takes time to condition your muscles. It takes even MORE TIME to strengthen your tendons and ligaments. Pushing too hard too soon is likely going to result in a sore knee joint at best OR a serious injury at worse. In fact, a number of studies support the theory that muscles get stronger FASTER than your tendons and ligaments. Other studies show that folks who take the time to condition their knees through a slow but progressive strengthening routine, enjoy significantly less injuries. A two to three month period of easy pedaling can go a long way towards preventing a knee injury in your cycling future. A rule of thumb is to avoid increasing the speed or distance by more than 10% per week.


Be a spinner not a masher


Pushing a big gear, especially if you’ve been off the bike for a while, puts a lot of stress on your knees and can result in pain or a more serious injury. So, stay away from the big chainring. Choose a relatively low gear (say 50-60 gear inches) and learn to spin a little faster. Experienced cyclists feel that the ideal RPM is somewhere between 80 and 100. Whatever the ideal is, spinning in this range is quite likely a good thing. When you spin your pedals it should almost feel like you’re going downhill. Forget pushing the big chainring till you have at least 1000 miles of fast spinning under your belt. Inexperienced cyclists often feel that they get a better workout by spinning a “hard” gear. Remember that a higher gear does work your lower leg muscles a bit “better” (actually differently) but spinning can enhance your aerobic capacity, keep your legs feeling fresher and prevent unnecessary wear and tear on your knees. Maintaining a high cadence will feel strange or unnatural at first but in a short time, spinning becomes a habit and you’ll do it without thinking about it.

Check your leg extension


The leg extension or bent angle of your knees may NOT be optimal for you. The seat is either too far back or too close resulting in your legs being over extended or under extended. The 95% extension rule is fine for conventional bikes but may not be OK for recumbent cycling. A lesser leg extension (75% - 90%) is often better. Over extending your legs may result in pain in front of your knees. Under extending your legs may result in pain behind the knee. As a bonus, the optimal leg extension will help you spin by giving you more control. To find your optimal leg extension you’re going to have to experiment. Here’s a place to start. Remember, this is just a start. You’ll likely need to make minor adjustments. Sit with your back against the seat. Apply the brakes and place the heel of your foot on one of the pedals. Rotate the pedal to its most extended position. Then move the seat as needed until the leg is straight. Secure the seat in this position and go for a short ride to see how it feels. This technique should result in a pretty good knee angle (85%) and assumes you place the ball of your feet on the pedals as you spin.


Alignment, Alignment, Alignment


A door hinge can’t do its job if the door frame is misaligned. Your knees are “slightly” more complex than that but the same principle applies. A misaligned knee joint is just trouble waiting to happen. Start by consciously keeping your knees “aligned” with your feet as you pedal.
If you use a foot retention system like clipless pedals, make sure that they don’t force your feet in an angle that is not quite “normal” for you. Shoe cleat alignment may well be a factor especially if your pedals have little or no float. A Rotational Adjustment Device (R.A.D.), which is part of the Fit Kit System that is available in many bike shops, may be of use to help determine the optimal cleat angle. Not every bike shop is qualified to use this device and not every shop is willing to spend the time necessary to find the ideal positioning of your cleats but it may be of help to look into this.
If the front of your feet have a slight tilt, your pedals may force your feet into an abnormally flat position. This can result in too much side-to-side motion of your knees as you pedal and, over time, increase wear and tear or the chance for injury. There is a product called “LeWedge” which promises to correct this problem. It consists of plastic shims, which are placed under your cleat to tilt your foot to its natural position. Your local bike shop may know this product as “Big Meat”. This very simple device can also be used to correct leg length discrepancies. For more info on this, check out http://www.lemondfitness.com/bf/bigmeat.htm.


Lose Weight


Oh yeah. That too!!! Your knees will THANK YOU!

And the Jury is still out on knee braces and nutritional supplements:


Whether you think a knee brace is helpful or not, you are probably right. The makers of knee braces don’t hesitate to claim how well their products work and some people actually think they work. The trouble is that there are also a whole bunch of folks out there who really think they don’t work! I haven’t seen any convincing studies one-way or the other and so it seems that the evidence is still in the “anecdotal” stage.
Similarly, some studies suggest that glucosamine sulfate products may actually help in the rebuilding of cartilage while other studies negate the claimed benefits.
So there you have it for now. I do hope you find some of these knee saving tips helpful but I beg you not to accept ANY of this on blind faith. Please do your own research and come up with your own conclusions. If any of this made you read a bit more on the subject, this article then met its goal.




August 18th, 2003 in Articles | tags: Jose Hernandez

 

cadence and knee pain

Anybody want to hep me with some good sober advice?
I tried to do what i thought would be a simple quick easy 33 mile ride a couple days ago.
I made the mistake of trying out my cadence feature on the new bike computer, and found that at 80 to 85 rpms i was all but shot at 4.4 miles. Had to take a 2 hour rest and when i got back on the bike i made it to about the 5 mile mark and was completely wasted. The outsides of my knees where on fire and my legs were like rubber.Really soft rubber.
Also anything over 81 rpms and i wobble like a drunken Webble.
I had to drop down to the 74 75 rpm range to finish the trip.
The next day; (just for grins); i thought i would stay at the 74 75 range and see how long i could last. Made 89.4 miles with zero rest stops, and no pain or rubber legs. In fact when i got home i laid 9 sheets of 3/4 plywood flooring before supper.
So since i am preparing for a 38 mile ride for a breast charity ride on the 9th, should i stick to the short rides and keep trying the jigh cadence or continue the 23 mile loop at the lower cadence.
What is the supposed benifit ti the higher cadence? I do not usually care about the speed. But since i do not want to come in so late that i miss the free all you can eat pancake breakfast i do need a little for this one ride.
And all the rides with y'all.

 

Oh by the way, for all you speed junkies that keep track of that stuff, my average was 12.2 miles for the 89 miles. About 2 hours per mile for the 33 miles.

 

cadence

Thanks for letting out all that info. You're off my buddy list. I can do
10 miles (sometimes) in 40 minutes. That's all, and I try to ride
every day. My comfort zone is about 9 miles an hour average, but
have to get out of my comfort zone to ride with the group. I don't
do cadence. It uses too much energy. I do gear feel. If a gear is
productive I go to the next higher gear if it is more productive
with the same comfort...etc. But then what do I know, I've just
been riding a short time.

 

So, Gene, it sounds like if you want to stay on Buddy's buddy list, you need to ride at 80+ rpm, wobble like a drunken Weeble, and never go more than 5 miles without a 2 hour rest stop. That's my advice. I hope it helps. I am sober as I write this.

Seriously, what I've heard and read and been told is that a higher cadence (with relaxed legs) will let you ride longer (and therefore go further) with less fatigue. Doesn't sound like that was your experience. My inclination would be to stick with what works.