justonwo

First time in recent memory where I’ve had an injury that keeps me off the bike. Bone bruise on my elbow. I fell down a flight of stairs. Fortunately, nothing broken.

Pretty much any position on a road or MTB aggravates (and prolongs) the injury.

And right in the middle of training for a race in September.

Anyone had something similar happen? What did you do to maintain fitness?

soyabean

Get into home landscaping full time.

And you get paid for it too.

zandoval 

Elbows are tough. Exactly where is the bruise. Did you get an X-Ray. You could have a fat pad injury or a tendon separation. Either one is treated as a fracture. Of course the old rule is if you must use it then splint, and immobilize during operation.

I did once see a kid doing BMX with a Fat Pad injury to the elbow. He had a cast from armpit to wrist...

justonwo

It was x-rayed. Doc thought it was a bone bruise. No break. Going again on Tuesday to look for a hairline fracture but most likely just a bruised bone. Very tip or my elbow.

tomato coupe

Rode a trainer ...

squirtdad

walk, lift weights, bone bruises are pain....literally and in just having to let them have the time they need to heal

rosefarts

I once rode about a hundred miles in the mountains next to a guy with one arm.

big john

Last time I was off the bike I did some hiking in steep hills.

3alarmer 

...it's not hard to make an injury like this into a chronic injury. Given similar circumstances, I would thank the fates that I was not racing a bike for a living, and find some other form of exercise for a few months. People maintain a reasonable level of fitness jogging or swimming. Your physician will probably express a similar sentiment. I guess you could ride a trainer, but bike trainer sessions make me depressed, so the therapeutic value, for me, just isn't there.

Yes, I have had injuries that prevented cycling for a period of some months...even years once. It happens sometimes.

zandoval 

You may be in the early stages of developing and olecranon bursitis. You really need to protect that elbow during your rides. Around my AO its a common injury fro Bull and Bronc competitors and takes months to heal. Quite possibly because those Cowboys continue to re-injure themselves. Get yourself a good heavy duty elbow immobilizer and treat that elbow as if its fractured wither you have a fracture or not. Steroid injections and Physical Therapy are also on the menu. Dont blow this off...

justonwo

It’s an acute injury from a fall. Not a chronic condition.

tkamd73 

Read a book.
Tim

MinnMan

Though he might be exaggerating, acute injuries can into chronic conditions if they do not heal right. Follow doc's orders.

As to activities, can you run? Join a gym and ride a recumbent stationary bike?

WaveyGravey

Recently I dealt with plantar fasciitis several weeks back. The treatment was/is certain exercises and ice packs. Improved considerably.

KerryIrons

If it truly is a bone bruise, it is easy to imagine that it hurts a lot but hard to imagine that riding a bike would prolong healing. September is 5 months away. Exactly what kind of race is this that doing something other than cycling would hurt your training? Consider going to a gym and riding an exercise bike no-handed. When I have been off the bike due to injury, I have walked.

Iride01 

If you are going to be off the bike long, consider a trainer or stationary bike. You can put a comfy saddle on it and sit very upright keeping without needing your arms on the bars. All the while spinning the cranks to maintain your cadence and keep your heart pumping the higher HR that it needs to keep your aerobic training. If you use your road bike in the trainer, you might need to slide the saddle all the way back to be able to sit comfortably upright and pedal with no hands.

For the few times I'll get on a trainer or stationary bike, I find that watching cyclocross races or other cycling races on youTube seem to keep my mind off the monotony of going nowhere.

justonwo

What I may do is get some aero bars for my road bike/stationary bike, which I want for my gravel bike anyway. I'll use a very tall spacer stack so that the position is comfortable. I think that'll take all the pressure off my elbow. Sitting upright on my road bike may be too much of a challenge.

apdogtown

trainer or at least some jogging?

Leisesturm

I'm not seeing how that helps, but, you do you. Not sure why you brought this to us if you are so determined to do it your way.

wheelreason

Put it in a sling and do trainer workouts to maintain fitness, just make sure you aren't aggravating the injury or prolonging recovery. The aim is to keep the fitness you got, hard to improve with an injury, I like to say patience or patient, you decide.

justonwo

Thanks for comments so far. Leisesturm , not sure I understand what you are getting at. I don't think I've expressed a strong opinion about what to do. Just looking for input from others who've been in a similar situation.

There are certain types of pressure that hurt my elbow. Resting my upper body weight on my forearms doesn't hurt the affected area. So yes, looking for advice, but also throwing out my own ideas.

I can't do regular trainer workouts on my road bike setup because the pressure on my elbow irritates the area. Not as much as being on an actual road, but enough to hurt. In terms of equipment available to me, my only other option may be a recumbent bike at the gym. Running is fine, but I can't run that far. Maybe a good time to cross-train though!

wheelreason

I would not recommend aero bars for someone with an elbow injury, but the Holiday Inn Express had no vacancies last night...

79pmooney

Race walk. It's not riding but you can go impressively hard. Include hills. Just do the walk keeping your arms and upper body quiet, sorta like you can on a bike. (I spent a winter with my hand in a cast after breaking my thumb)

I didn't do any research on how to do it properly. (1978. Al Gore hadn't invented that internet thing yet.) Just concentrated on walking fast, under control and at a level of deep breathing. Worked. (I was taught to keep my upper body quiet when I started bike racing. Used the same philosophy walking. Thumb had no complaints at all.)

jaxgtr

I've had both my hands operated on, and broke my shoulder and needed 5 ops to get it all sorted out, but while I could not ride on the road, I did setup aerobars and put my bike on the trainer. It was much easier to put the pressure on my forearms and I was able to ride, and also riding upright a little, I was able to keep riding pretty quickly, although, the shoulder issue, took more time to heal and allow me to get back on the bike. You might need to adjust your saddle position to account for the different position as I assume you are not riding a time trial bike.

easyupbug 

I was lucky I bought a recumbent when the back osteoarthritis came big time and used it again with a wrist issue followed. It is still weird but still enjoyable good exercise.