By Wayne Hansen, D.C.
Recently, I had the amazing opportunity to be surrounded by some the best sport medicine experts in the world at the annual Medicine of Cycling conference held at USA Cycling in Colorado Springs. There were a lot of great things that I learned while at this conference, and I wanted to share with you one of them in this article. Dr. Mark Greve, MD who is the doctor for team Novonordisk gave a presentation on Chronic Cycling Illness & Injury, and he talked a little about osteoporosis in cyclists. There is a law, called Wolfe’s Law, and it states that bone, in a healthy subject, will respond over time to the stress it is placed under. Essentially saying that bone will grow if something is making it. What studies have found is that those individuals who do more endurance type of activities have a higher likelihood of developing osteoporosis then those who do shorter, sprint like activities. So cross country runners and cyclists are more likely to develop osteoporosis than a sprinter. The take away from this is that cyclists must integrate some resistance training into their routines. So go to the gym occasionally and lift some weights, your bones will thank you.
Refereence: Bone Health in Endurance Athletes Runners, Cyclists, and Swimmers
Kirk L. Scofield, MD and Suzanne Hecht, MD, Current Sports Medicine Reports Dec 2012
Wayne Hansen, D.C. is a Chiropractic Physician practicing at Solutions Clinic in Cottonwood Heights. He specializes in treatment of athletes, particularly cyclists. [email protected]
