FROM ROAD TO TURBO
Making adjustments when riding indoors
Burt spent 12 years as head of physio at British Cycling and five years as consultant physio at Team Ineos. philburtinnovation.co.uk
“It’s confusing to be suffering with saddle sores and knee pain after never having had these issues before”
In these challenging times of lockdown and restrictions on movement and exercise, many people have naturally turned to static/indoor cycle training.
I have noted and commented before on the change in the injury profile presented by static cycling as the prevalence of Zwift and other online training apps took off. Now my inbox is full of enquires relating to new pains and issues that static cycling has thrown up.
The two major issues seem to be saddle sores/pain and knee pain. Many find it confusing to be suffering after never having had these issues during their many years of outdoor cycling, but indoor cycling is different. Firstly, the loading of the muscles and joints – while similar to outdoor cycling – is much more focused and constant. The natural movement of the bike underneath you is gone, as are the many different cues and prompts to get out of the saddle or change position.
It’s a bit like free weights versus machines in gyms – free of the need to control the range and motion of a free weight the body can develop more strength more easily in isolated muscle groups and these get bigger (and tighter) quicker. For static cycling these muscles are the quads. Unchecked by appropriate stretching and maintenance, the new bigger, stronger, tighter quad can lead to more compression of the knee cap or sub-optimal tracking, which can result in pain.
Secondly, the environment is different. Normally, you would have the whoosh of fresh air across your face and body to help manage your temperature and sweating. Place skin in a wet, hot and pressurised environment and it’s only a matter of time before it will break down. Indoor training can easily recreate this hostile environment as your chamois becomes sodden due to the lack of airflow and, of course, the more constant pressure that seated indoor/static cycling brings. So how can you avoid these issues to keep training and therefore, hopefully, sane?
Firstly, you need to manage your environment. If you can safely train in the open air, do so. Using a fan can really help with controlling your temperature and therefore sweat rate, which will help prevent saddle sores related to sitting in a pool of your own sweat.
Also, try to change your loading regularly by getting out of the saddle. This provides welcome pressure relief to your undercarriage, it allows your skin and chamois to breathe and it shifts the loading of your joints and muscles momentarily, preventing that all-too-focused build-up in certain areas. However, it can be hard to remember to do this, particularly if you’re virtually training and focused on the race/screen in front of you.
It sounds very simple but it works well to set an alarm on your watch or phone to go off every 10 minutes and simply raise yourself out of the saddle for five to 10 seconds every time it rings. That’s all it takes sometimes to remove a saddle issue or a sore knee building up.
Given that the loading is so much more concentrated with static training I also recommend re-doubling your off-bike efforts to stay in optimal condition. Committing to addressing the potential of quad tightness by doing daily stretches and using the foam roller sitting at the back of your bedroom or garage will help keep you cycling pain-free.
Of course, some issues are more complicated and involved and will require a specific assessment in order to be resolved. While face-to-face fitting is currently unavailable, we do offer a remote service, which involves a 30-minute consultation preceded by some information gathering followed by the delivery of a plan to alleviate any issues. The cost also acts as a deposit on a full face-to-face fit, when possible, should you wish to redeem it.