subject: Take Care Of Your Feet While Biking This Summer Season [print this page] Biking is an excellent way to get your workout in while also taking some of the pressure off your feet. That is, if you do it right. If you bike the wrong way, it can also injure your feet as with other activities. Since the invention of the bicycle in the early 1900's, cycling has been a favorite form of recreation and sport in the U.S. Today, more than 100 million Americans enjoy bicycling, either for recreation or, increasingly, for commuting to work each day. While a great workout is important for most of the body, your feet play a vital role in cycling.
Your feet are responsible for the transfer of energy from the body to the pedals, which make the bicycle more. Keeping alignment between your hips, knees, and feet is the most efficient way to operate a bicycle. If you lack proper body alignment and over activity, you may experience common foot problems related to biking: Achilles tendonitis, Sesamoiditis, shin splints, and foot numbness or pain.
Understanding Shin Splints
Pain on the front lower part of the leg is a common complaint of people who have shin splints and some may even have swelling as well. When you first notice the pain, it may just be at the start of your workout and feel like a dull ache or soreness. If left untreated, the pain can become sharper and last until you stop exercising. In some severe cases, the pain can continue even after you finish your workout.
Shin splints usually involve small tears in the leg muscles where they are attached to the shinbone. There are two types of shin splints: anterior and posterior shin splints. The pain usually develops gradually without a history of trauma and might begin as a dull ache or pain along the front or inside of the shin after running or even walking.
What About Sesamoiditis?
Sesamoiditis is a painful inflammation of the sesamoids apparatus, located in the forefoot. This is a common condition and usually affects physically active young people. Causing constant foot pain and occurring with or aggravated by movement of the big toe, it may be accompanied by swelling throughout the bottom of the forefoot.
Typically, Sesamoiditis can be distinguished from other conditions that cause pain in the forefoot by its gradual onset. The pain usually begins as a mild ache and increases gradually if the aggravating activity is continued. Your mild ache may eventually lead to intense throbbing with the constant activity.
In most cases, Sesamoiditis causes little to no bruising or redness. With pain and swelling, your ability to use the first metatarsophalangeal joint to flex upward or downward will be limited due to a loss of range of motion in the big toe and difficulty walking.
How to Protect Your Feet While Biking
For the casual or recreational cyclist, a typical athletic shoe used for running, walking, or cross training is acceptable for biking. Be sure that the sole of the shoe is firm and not worn down that that it can properly grip the pedal to avoid slipping. If you are a more serious cyclist, proper shoes are the most important piece of cycling equipment (besides the bike itself). Cycling shoes should have a stiff sole and fit snugly around the bridge of your foot and heel. The more stable and less movement inside the shoe, the more power can be transferred through the entire foot to the pedal.
Additional cycling tips include:
*Carefully choose the shoes you will wear while cycling
*Make sure your bike fits properly
*Warm up properly
*Condition yourself safely in the off season
*To stop pain before it begins, stretch major muscle groups used in cycling
*Ensure the seat is at the proper height when knees are slightly flexed
Talk to your Middletown podiatrist today for more information on how to protect your feet while bicycling-whether recreationally, professionally or to simply get to and from work.
