Mar 28

Mar 28 Not-so-secrets to indoor cycling form

A tell-all for how to prevent an injury in a cycling class.

The backstory

Besides “What song was that,” the most common question I get from riders leaving class is, “How do you do it?” While these “How do you go so fast,” “How do you talk at the same time,” and “How do you make it look so easy” questions are cause for a quick chuckle between us and a few words of encouragement, riders should be applauded for asking them. Not only do the answers to these questions make us all stronger riders, they prevent injury and assure us we’ll ride for years and years to come.

These questions all lead back to form. I’ll dissect some of the most common injuries and discomforts on the bike as well as how to prevent them with proper form.

Common culprits

Lower-back pain

Shakira’s right, your “hips don’t lie” and consistently riding out of the saddle with your hips back, over the saddle, will help keep your back flat and core engaged. In addition to hip positioning, have an awareness of engaging your core, without curling your back. In contrast, when pulling your hips back, watch not to stick your butt out and hinge your hips outward, creating a convex curve. Back flat, hips back, core engaged.

Pushups, elbow drops and other choreography can also lead to lower-back discomfort if not performed in a safe way. Always lead the movement with your elbows, keeping your core engaged. The temptation is to get excited and start the movement from your chest or forehead.

Knee pain

If you’ve heard that cycling is a great alternative for those with knee injuries in comparison to running etc., you haven’t heard wrong, but there are still ways knee pain can weasel its way into a cycling studio if you’re not conscious of it.

Most commonly, once the core starts to give in during class or you get too wrapped up in Britney Spears’ “Toxic” that you lose all semblance of form, the body is tempted to move forward, away from the “hips back” mentality. As we move our bodies forward on the bike when we’re out of the saddle, we’re shifting our body weight out of our core and right over the top of our knees. The rest is history.

Be aware of those jumps in and out of the saddle (2, 4, 8 counts etc.), as the body wants to move forward. Don’t let it. Come straight up out of the saddle, upper body elongated from the top of the head straight to the ceiling, half an inch over the saddle. This will keep the body from moving forward over the knees.

Foot pain

A discomfort common to new riders, your feet may be clipped in for the first time with no where to go and that may lead to holding tension in your feet while you ride. Wiggle your toes to loosen them in your shoes and return to the area that needs attention, your core.

Foot pain can also be attributed to coming too far forward on the handlebars when out of the saddle, similar to the position that can cause knee pain. Since our bodyweight is moving over the top of our knees and feet, they take a beating if we don’t let our core do the work.

Shoulder pain

Similar to pain or discomfort in your feet, shoulder pain is oftentimes tied to carrying tension in a part of the body as a means of “getting through class” or having some semblance of control as the instructor asks you to push yourself outside of your comfort zone (#sorrynotsorry).

Consistently remind yourself throughout class to be aware of where you’re holding any tension and to release it. Shoulders should always be down and back while riding. Watch what your hands are doing. There’s a temptation to hold on for dear life on those handlebars and this type of tension can shoot up into our shoulders and upper back. When out of the saddle, grip the handlebars gently, wrapping the fingers around them, a soft bend in your elbows with your chest proud and head up.