Tricep fatigue but only one arm
 

Disclaimer....I am 48 years old and have been a blue collar laborer my entire life. I am also right handed. So maybe my right arm is just telling me that it's a little worn out from years of strenuous work? That said I notice on longer harder rides that my right tricep tends to get fatigued. The other day I did a 55 mile gravel grind with over 4800' of elevation. It was a tough one but my right tricep started feeling like I had done 1000 one arm push ups about 35 miles in (when I started feeling the fatigue). Nothing was injured and this is typical for me. But if it was simple core conditioning or upper body conditioning (I am not in the best core shape I admit) why wouldn't both arms get fatigued? It seems as if it was hit and miss so I am wondering if it was subconcious tenseness and my dominate arm (right) was doing the most tensing up? I didn't have any other abnormal issues such as back pain or knee pain etc.......Just my tricep.

This is on a bike with bars a little above saddle height and very comfortable to ride. I have a nice upright ride with both arms slightly bent at elbow and not locked. This is on a Salsa Fargo so anyone who knows this style bike knows how they are designed for upright comfort with long headtubes and high stack height.

As a young man in y early 20s, I did construction work for my uncle who was a general contractor. I found my left side, both arm and leg, was stronger than the right side. This is likely due to me being left handed. It could be the same for you. Then again, there could be a structural imbalance elsewhere such as in your back or hip. My main suggestion is to develop awareness as to how you sit on the bike. Maybe have someone take some video of you riding, both a side view and a rear view.

I was wondering this myself. I tend to use my right side harder as it is my dominate side. So maybe a little self awareness can do wonders. I do know on my ride I had the fatigue diminish at times and come back later. Maybe I forced myself to relax more and later on tensed up again.

When I started riding a road bike, I noticed I rested more weight on one hand than another. I bet a lot of people do.

I got news for you, that's true for everybody. Although in some cases, it is more pronounced than others.



Think back, did you have an injury earlier in life? In any event, it doesn't sound like a cycling related issue. Rather, something to do with your posture or circulation.

This is not a simple one because there's way more data needed than what you've provided here. You need to have it checked out by a medical professional. I've never heard of a triceps issue in cycling.

Yes I have had a few minor injuries to my right arm through my career but none that needed medical attention. I’ve banged it around a few times and caused knots on my tricep and once rattled my wrist so bad chopping at frozen ground that I couldn’t write my name for a day lol. As far as never hearing of tricep issues while cycling you can google it and it’s not uncommon. My question was posed just because one seems to fatigue much faster than the other.

In that case, I shall be interested to see what others have to say about it.

As to my other point, I injured my pinky finger when I was 7 and noticed it was throbbing the other day. It was after I was doing weight training exercises and noticed my grip on that hand was weaker than the other. So it is possible that a childhood injury may not effect you until your middle years.

Sight down along your bike frame, see if your stem obscures your front wheel and your top tube evenly obscures your downtube - IOW are you leaning to one side or the other?

If this were a Foo thread, I'd have a very amusing answer.

Anythings possible lol.