Hip Issues from Riding

[RussT_SA]

Hi All,

To cut a long story short I used to ride MTB and did as many stage races as I could. I got so into cycling I was going almost every morning to join the local 5am groups doing 50-70km. 
I started getting pain in my lower back and hip. What we first thought was a back injury eventually we discovered I had a tear inside my hip joint. After physio and the usual I had surgery called a labrum repair. 
After months on crutches and painful physio/bio I went to ride and the pain was exactly the same. 
Eventually I just gave up as I could not do more than 15km without pain.

Does anyone know specific cycling physios in JHB which I could try out?

Has anyone had a hip replacement and continued with cycling with success?

Any advice would be appreciated 

Edited January 14 by RussT_SA

[Robbie Stewart]

I'll be following this thread. I'm waking up every morning with a dull pain in the hips and lower back as well. I've had multiple crashes over the years, some worse than others. I'm in my jubilee year and the taxes are coming due it seems. 

[Prince Albert Cycles]

1 hour ago, RussT_SA said:

Hi All,

To cut a long story short I used to ride MTB and did as many stage races as I could. I got so into cycling I was going almost every morning to join the local 5am groups doing 50-70km. 
I started getting pain in my lower back and hip. What we first thought was a back injury eventually we discovered I had a tear inside my hip joint. After physio and the usual I had surgery called a labrum repair. 
After months on crutches and painful physio/bio I went to ride and the pain was exactly the same. 
Eventually I just gave up as I could not do more than 15km without pain.

Does anyone know specific cycling physios in JHB which I could try out?

Has anyone had a hip replacement and continued with cycling with success?

Any advice would be appreciated 

I know a few guys who are riding without problems after hip replacements 

[RussT_SA]

Thanks for the reply, yip that may be the next step. 

[thebob]

Could be a bike fit issue? I had very tight hip flexors for a period a while back. When I had my position adjusted (mainly a lower saddle height) the pain went away almost overnight

[RussT_SA]

Thanks for the comment. I had a few bike fittings through reputable fitters. The surgeon explained that it’s an overuse injury. The ball at the top of the leg is not perfect circular so too much cycling/running etc can lead to tears inside the hip

[milky4130]

25 minutes ago, RussT_SA said:

Thanks for the comment. I had a few bike fittings through reputable fitters. The surgeon explained that it’s an overuse injury. The ball at the top of the leg is not perfect circular so too much cycling/running etc can lead to tears inside the hip

sounds like my issue right now just mine is on the inside i.e. groin. At first I thought is was running induced so I stopped for like 6 weeks with no improvement but carried on cycling occasionally and the pain would just return worse than before. So I did a run this past weekend and no issues with the groin while running. I guess I'll be laying off from the cycling for a while until I can get some imaging done.

[ChrisF]

1 hour ago, RussT_SA said:

Thanks for the comment. I had a few bike fittings through reputable fitters. The surgeon explained that it’s an overuse injury. The ball at the top of the leg is not perfect circular so too much cycling/running etc can lead to tears inside the hip

 

Ouch bud .... it sucks ..... these things can be a nightmare to diagnose ....

 

. Physical ... tears and damage to joint surfaces is one set of issues.  Some more treatable than others.  (Doc would not operate on my torn meniscus .... avoid impacts and improve supporting muscles)

 

. Muscular ... in theory easy to exercise and strengthen .... in practice it can be an easter egg hunt, as the pain often is often elsewhere as a result of the body compensating to protect a weak point.  (Lower leg issues related to trailrunning resulted in my QL pulling in a knot, pulling my hips 15mm out of allignment ... no issues while trail running, but shear hell trying to cycle!!  Irma diagnosed the hip miss-allignment, physio resolved the QL, then off to the bio to address the route cause)

 

 

But you already mention the pgysio and bio ....

 

Sorry, hope you manage to get to the root of this ....

[Sepia]

You are lucky you are still able to run.  I am unable to walk 2kms.  I have the EXACT symptoms and the pain is worse in the mornings.  Nothing can be done as I did break the ball off and now everything is cockeye and compensates for each other including the groin muscles.

Hip replacement will not help due to the back muscle also packing up due to overuse (compensation)

Anyway, I am a grumpy old man and will not wake from the anesthetic?????

If it helps.....Ride an Ebike

[RussT_SA]

Sorry to hear about your situation it f@$ken sucks. 
Maybe e-bike is the way. Do people still throw things at them?

[RobertWhitehead]

https://www.stretchingsa.co.za/

Edited January 15 by RobertWhitehead
provided a hyperlink

[ChrisF]

Uhmm .... uhmmmm .... e-bike is not a magic bullet .... sadly not.

 

Weak knees - YES, an e-bike helps.

 

But you are still cycling, you are still using the same group of muscles .. same group(s) that compensate .... 

 

HOW you use the e-bike becomes the decider ..... ride in zone 2 and zone 3 for a few hours, and it is just a lighter version of what ou normally did, and the same muscle groups are going to speaking to you.  Short rides, using maximum boost, sitting in zone 1 .... now your muscles are having less of a workout.

 

 

The nice part of an ebike .... on good days you can turn down the assist and get a decent workout.  On the not so good days, use more assist and keep the mobility going.

[Pandatron]

Had a hip impingement issue into back issue into shoulder, worked with Taygan from Pure Science & Prehab. Helped me massively 

[Ispeed_V]

You could maybe try DR Craig Uria. 

Call: +27 82 559 9998

Email: info@spineandsport.co.za

Shop 1A, Illovo Square Shopping Centre
3 Rivonia Road, Illovo
Johannesburg, 2196

 

['Kaze Pete]

I had a hip labrum repair last year. The surgeon also had to shave the bone a bit so it will not impinge anymore. I still have a click in the hip when I'm tired, but I'm still riding. 
I'm not allowed to run anymore.
My labrum repair op really was just to buy some time on a hip replacement 😕

My labrum repair was done by Dr de Wilde at Wilgeheuwel.

[Emile S]

The solution is quite simple really (maybe not for everyone, but for a lot of people. You might still need Physio though). I've been cycling seriously since I was 16, but as soon as I hit the big 40 last year, I started developing the same hip pains you're talking about. Shorter cranks were the answer. I reduced all my crank lengths (road and MTB to 170mm) and the change was very noticeable. Most riders over-extend the hip unnecessarily at the top of the pedal stroke, due to cranks which are too long. Do this, even just 1 degree too much, 80x per minute for 4 hours, and the cumulative effect is massive. With the wide range cassettes we have nowadays,  there's no need for the leverage offered by the longer cranks. Because I'm rather short (168cm) and so convinced about the results already experienced, I'm now going a step further and changing all my cranks to 165mm.

Edited January 15 by Emile S