Which joints are used when cycling?

A joint can be described as the place where two or more bones meet. Some joints move freely, such as your shoulder, while other joints cannot move at all, such as the plates in you skull.

Movable joints are held place by ligaments. Ligaments have a bad blood supply, which makes them heal slowly when you get injured. All of the major joints in the lower body are used when you cycle.

The Spine

The spine comprises of thirty three individual vertebrae that are separated by intervertebral discs. When cycling, the spine is almost always in a forwardly flexed position. Cycling for long periods of time can have a bad effect on your posture, and many cyclists end up with a rounded upper back as a result of too many hours on the bike. If you are unlucky enough to suffer from back pain, a mountain bike will be more comfortable than a road bike, because you are seated in a more upright position.

The Knee

The femur, the tibia, and the patella are all connected to the knee and the knee joint is the most common area that cyclists injure. On average a cyclist pedals at seventy to ninety revolutions per minute. This means that one hour of riding results in 4,200 to 5,400 knee joint movements.

The Hip

The head of the femur is connected to the socket of the ileum, which is part of your pelvis, and this forms the hip joint. The hip joint is very strong and is controlled by the gluteus maximus. The hip moves thousands of times per hour when cycling and this is why you get wear-and-tear related injuries.

The Ankle

The union between your fibula, tibia, and tarsal bones is known as your ankle joint. The use of the ankle joint in cycling is called active pedaling and involves pushing down and forward as well as pulling back and upward as you pedal. This action improves your ability to cycle by making sure that pressure is applied evenly to the pedals.