Lady Bikers, please advise...

renae5
renae5 Posts: 393 Member
edited September 21 in Fitness and Exercise
Alright, so a few weeks ago I became addicted to my bicycle. Miles and miles, hours and hours a day... until last weekend. Personal and graphic info follows, so please excuse. We are only a couple hours into our family vacation when we stop at a convenient store and I use the restroom, OMG I thought I was going to DIE!! Like an ice pic to the clitorus when I tried to urinate, followed by extreme pelvic floor pain (like when you are late into a pregnancy). I was assuming a UTI, but as I have never had one before and was refusing to end my vacation I bought an over-the-counter med from the local WalMart and continued on (in pain but not getting worse and loving seeing my family having a good time). Anyway, I have been excercising regularly... walking, biking, eliptical, etc.. I do it all and have not had a sore muscle in months until now!!! After one afternoon at the zoo I have been unable to walk since. Granted it was 103 degrees, we were really sweating and I usually drink about 2 gallons of water a day and only got about 1/2 that amount each day the 5 days I was gone, I have been unable to get an appointment at my physicians office and have not taken the Cystex in 2 days and the painful urination is almost gone, the the severe calf pain is still present. Researched via internet and it seems female cyclists can often be prone to Urethral Syndrome (which is Not an infection). So, my questions are 1) how to prevent these pains without giving up my bicycle 2) anyone expereinced these pains and what did you do about it and 3) can anything else give you horrible sore muscles (hard to believe a couple miles of walking could make me this sore for this long (5 days) after this long exercising....
Any thoughts and/or advice would be greatly appreciated!!
Thanks, Cindy

Replies

  • cymills
    cymills Posts: 133 Member
    Ahhh - it may appear what is needed is...MEDICAL attention.:huh:
    FWIW...you are "assuming " thiis could have been a UTI. You had( still have? ) "severe" calf pain.. AND....IMHO...research and internet are not two words i woudl put in the same phrase. Seek....medical ....attention.
    if you physican cannot see you - is there a walk in clinic nearby? perhaps you may need to consider going to a emergency room. Seriously - asking what to eat is one thing (on this site) ....unless seen - in person - all recommendations are kkind of a moot point: - don't you think ?wink:
  • JennCh
    JennCh Posts: 63
    I have never experienced what you are going through, so I'm of no help. I do have some questions though. When you ride, do you use bike shorts and body glide? How many miles are you biking each time? Even though you're feeling better, you probably should see a doc to make sure there's no bacterial infection.
  • Lailabug
    Lailabug Posts: 7
    I haven't had the "female bike" problem, I am addressing the sore muscle issue. I have had the same problem with sore and stiff muscles and "YES", it seems that no amount of stretching in the world will solve it! I did some research, and found out that dehydration can definitely cause it, but also if you are not getting enough vitamins it can cause it. You KNOW potassium is so important, (in banana's and tomato's) for charlie horse's, but what you don't know is magnesium is equally as important! Magnesium has become my new best friend. I take at least 360mg a day and sometimes more. All the research you do will tell you you get enough in the foods you eat, but you really don't! Try it, the worst that can happen if you have to much is you get "the runs", so it is really worth it just to see if it helps. Also D vit. is fantastic and has been doubled, (tripled for adults) by the school system for children, because there isn't enough in our food!

    Oh yeah, your magnesium needs to be taken four hours before or after a calcium supplement, because calcium leeches it from your body. Hopefully this will work, it REALLY has helped me!
  • TnTHawkins
    TnTHawkins Posts: 285 Member
    I'm a male cyclist, make sure that you have good biking shorts with a good pad they make them for women. Buy the best that you can afford, it will make a difference and last a long time.

    As far as soreness. Make you strech your calfs before and after the ride. If you keep it up the cycling it will get easier and not hurt as much. I tried my first Muscle milk last night after the ride and I feel very little soreness today. I have a couple of more samples to test with after another ride and run this weekend.

    Good Luck to you,

    Todd
  • renae5
    renae5 Posts: 393 Member
    Alright, questions to answer.... I have worn compression shorts but haven't ordered a pair of padded bike shorts yet 'cause I have been busy researching them and every pair has mixed reviews (and I wason vacation for a week). I was riding 2-2 1/2 hours at 4 am in the morning that's approximately 20-25 miles. and no body glide (not sure what that is). I wasn't experiencing leg or "female" soreness while I was riding, or immediately afterwards. Just assumed the female problem might be related to bike riding since I was new to riding long distances and had never had these problems before. The soreness was after a short half day at the Zoo, I always walk farther than this at home but not usually this hot or potentially sick when I do, not sure if extreme heat, infection, ????? what could cause it. AND.. what could keep my calves this sore for over 5 days, just making sure it isn't something serious (like if I had an infection, embalance of some kind) Alright, thikmn that's all the answers... REALLY Thank you all for trying to help me!!!
  • aphroditespalace
    aphroditespalace Posts: 24
    I hope it gets better whatever is going on
  • JennCh
    JennCh Posts: 63
    I, too, hope you get better. Do get some bike shorts. They are made specifically to deal with being seated in the saddle for extended periods of time. A friend of mine went through painful infections when she started riding because she didn't have proper shorts which help wick away the moisture and keep this sensitive area dry. The combo of infection and chafing really did a number on her.

    Like someone pointed out, the calf pain might be due to dehydration. I had a similar problem, not to the degree you are experiencing, and once I made sure to hydrate before, during and after my rides, I've not the cramping or soreness. Dehydration can cause all kinds of maladies, so water, water, water.

    Good luck.
  • 4lafz
    4lafz Posts: 1,078 Member
    Do you have a padded seat - like a gel seat. Think you may need this too!
  • hummingbird314
    hummingbird314 Posts: 78 Member
    I have a special bike seat made for female long distance cycling. I'm not sure of the brand but I think I bought it at REI. I'm not sure about the pain but I know I'm really effected by dehydration.
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