We live in a city where cycling has become an increasingly common mode of transport. As more people awaken to the concerns around automobiles, and still more join the fitness movement, it seems not a day goes by without bike lines appearing on new San Diego roads.
But cycling is not a zero-impact activity, and the rise in cycling has caused a concomitant rise in knee pain and its associated injuries. This article explains why: cycling position can be a notoriously tricky thing to perfect, and pain in the front of the knee or the back of the knee can be traced to different errors in fundamental positioning:
“A saddle that is too low will cause your knee angle to be too tight at the top of the stroke, which increases the shear forces pulling the patella against the femur, which in turn increases the likelihood of tendonitis and harmful stresses in the cartilage behind the kneecap,” says Veal. “Likewise when the cranks are too long for your leg length, the knee joint is also too tight at the top of the stroke.”
The reverse is true for pain in the back of the knee. Some people opt for help from cycling shops or pros to nail the right position, while others just tinker until they find some measure of comfort.
But if you can’t seem to shake that pain in your knee? Visit the best orthopedist in San Diego to get a full workup and learn more about how you can combat these stresses without getting off the saddle.
