| Cycling experts agree: a proper bike fit can prevent | | | | cause of the short leg. |
| pain and injury. But what if a short leg stops your body | | | | Physical therapists and chiropractors recognize that |
| from fitting your bike, leading to injuries, aches, and | | | | the short leg is often caused by a muscular imbalance |
| pains? The answer is a little known solution called | | | | in the pelvis. Manipulation to the SI joints and release of |
| upper cervical care. | | | | certain low back and pelvic muscles help relieve the |
| The two kinds of cycling injuries | | | | imbalance. Many cyclists are helped this way. |
| There are two kinds of cycling injuries: those caused | | | | The help is only temporary, however, in the presence |
| by a sudden trauma, like head injuries, and those | | | | of an upper cervical misalignment, the true primary |
| caused by overuse: putting your body through mile | | | | cause of pelvic imbalance and the short functional leg. |
| after mile of use, without proper body alignment. | | | | (It is the primary cause absent any childhood trauma to |
| Safe cycling practices, like wearing a helmet, lower | | | | growth plates, or imbalance caused by surgery in the |
| your chances of serious trauma. But overuse injuries | | | | knee or hip.) |
| are harder to diagnose and resolve. They come on | | | | Upper cervical care addresses the cause of the short |
| slowly, often mysteriously, and can cause damage that | | | | leg |
| forces days, weeks, or even months of rest. | | | | For several complex reasons, the balance of the |
| What kind of aches and pains come with overuse? | | | | body's muscles is affected by the balance between |
| Here are just a few: foot pain from plantar fasciitis and | | | | the head and the neck. This is especially true in the |
| Achilles tendinitis; knee pain from chondromalacia, | | | | extensor muscle system, the muscles that hold you up |
| osteoarthritis, and IT band syndrome; and leg and low | | | | against gravity. When there is a misalignment between |
| back pain from inflammation of the sacroiliac joint and | | | | the head and the neck, the body locks down into a |
| piriformis syndrome. | | | | distressed position. This causes a pelvic imbalance and |
| Cycling with good body biomechanics prevents | | | | the appearance of a short leg. |
| overuse | | | | The upper cervical misalignment causes more than a |
| Many of these problems can be prevented by making | | | | short leg, however. Muscle imbalance is present |
| sure your body and your bicycle are properly in sync. | | | | across the neck, the shoulders, the mid-back, and |
| A good place to start is talking with your local cycling | | | | lower back as well. This leads to painful and fixated |
| pro shop to make sure your seat, handlebars, and | | | | areas of the spine that many address through |
| cleat position are set optimally for your body. | | | | massage and manipulation. |
| But no bike/body alignment is going to be 100% | | | | Upper cervical doctors help cyclists avoid the pain of a |
| effective when you are dealing with a short leg, also | | | | short leg |
| known as a short functional leg. You need to carefully | | | | Upper cervical doctors are licensed chiropractors who |
| consider your options in addressing this important part | | | | train for the precision that is required to correct the |
| of body alignment. | | | | upper cervical imbalance. By correcting and improving |
| Traditional cycling solutions for the short leg | | | | this balance, these doctors can remove the cause of |
| Most solutions for the short leg in cyclists are based on | | | | the short leg. For many patients the upper cervical |
| the same idea: lengthen the short leg. | | | | correction is a long-lasting procedure that allows the |
| One solution is set the crank length for the longer leg, | | | | body to maintain its new alignment for longer periods |
| and then shim under the shorter leg. Some cyclists | | | | of time. |
| report that this can change the ease of clipping in | | | | The short leg is not just eliminated with shims while on |
| cleats and do not like it. Insoles can be added inside | | | | the cycle. Running, spinning, swimming, or other aerobic |
| shoes to make up for minor leg length differences, but | | | | activity can be done with balanced leg length and a |
| no properly worn shoe will leave enough room to | | | | level pelvis. According to cycling expert Lennard Zinn: |
| adjust for more than a few eighths of an inch. Other | | | | "This upper cervical adjustment has resulted in an |
| cyclists have machinists add height to the pedal on the | | | | immediate and dramatic improvement of my |
| side of the short leg. | | | | symptoms, and the adjustment holds for a long |
| Traditional solutions do not address hidden cause of | | | | duration," he writes in Zinn's Cycling Primer (p.78). |
| pain | | | | Upper cervical care for cyclists |
| These strategies reduce strain while cycling, but they | | | | You should adapt your bike to your body to help avoid |
| only work when the cyclist is on the bike. The strain | | | | the aches, pains, and lost time in training due to |
| caused by the short leg continues to be present while | | | | overuse injuries. Yet, if your body is out of balance due |
| running, walking, or any other life activity. If that strain is | | | | to an upper cervical problem, there will be limits getting |
| weakening body mechanics in the back, SI joints, legs, | | | | your body and bike in sync. Upper cervical care, with |
| or knees, then cycling can still be affected. Particularly | | | | its ability to balance the short leg and level the pelvis, |
| in athletes that engage in both running and cycling | | | | may hold the answer for improving alignment that you |
| competitions. | | | | might not find by using other disciplines and therapists |
| The real cause of the short leg | | | | alone. |
| Cyclists who want to address the strain of the short | | | | If you are a cyclist suffering from a short leg, then |
| leg should do more than just adapt their bike; they | | | | upper cervical care is the little known solution you may |
| should adapt their body. That means getting to the real | | | | want to consider. |