How Bad Does Trials Wreck Your Body

[Shez.sheridan]

Time's now rolling on a bit....I'm soon to be 25, and sometimes it becomes all too evident that trials modifies/damages your body...

I constantly have problems with my forearms...they've always been big for my build, but trials has made them frickin' ridiculous - I use photoshop/illustrator all day in work which doesn't help, the tendons burn like sh*t. My back is built up far more than my front, especially around the base of my spine, this plus the lack of seat gives me back ache...

In work here we have a massuse, once a week...everytime I have the same problems. I've spoke to her a few times about how my body works/what effects she thinks trials may have on me in the future, and it's true, it probably will cause me problems - but that's the only way I keep in shape, and possibly the one of the only true joys I've found in life..despite all the bike problems, despite the possible future consequences - there's nothing more satisfying than being in that zone, just you, the obstacle & your bike...everything else just fades away..

[Brian Bleech]

My knees are shot and i need to go to docs about them i think - after a day ride it really hurts to walk to steps! my wrists hurt a bit, bit thats mainly because i have landed badly on them a few times recently and my shoulder to hurts a bit too. shins are fairly buggered too

[anzo]

I really wouldn't let it concern you. I mean, fair enough it shocks the body a lot, and with the prime age of say 13-20 for riders we are still developing a lot, which is a good and bad thing. Bad because we are not fully developed and what we do now may effect us later. And good because any damage we may be doing will heal itself better as we are young.

I personally don't think we're doing much damage, people hurting now from bad backs, muscular pains...but thats just bad luck, whats diffenent from a bad back in biketrials to mototrials, MX, downhill, skiing, snowboarding, golf, football, rugby ect.

It looks like were really harsh on our bodies, but to be fair we can't be doing that much damage.

Its not like everytime we drop off we get shotting pains down our foot and spine...if you do, see a freckin doctor!

[mr ailsbury]

My back and neck hurt quite a bit after a hard ride and my ankles, wrists, fingers, back, knees elbows etc etc etc all crack and click 24/7 lol My back only started hurting after I pulled a muscle in it, it went fine but has never been perfect since and I did it around christmas 2004.

ah well I have fun lol

[anzo]

Trials Forum 40th Year Anniversary

Physiotherapy ward, we can trade arthiritus pills and get battered. Deal?

Don't forget your Craig Lee Scott signature wheelchairs.

EDIT

Don't forget your Craig Lee Scott signature wheelchairs.

Apologies for the joke. T'was awful, lol.

Edited February 27, 2006 by anzo

[ian]

im 15 and on everystep of going upstairs in the morning and late at night, both of my ankles are like bloody firescrackers on every step , and my shoulders are as smooth as an angle grinder, rave one!

toodles

that is the same as me except im 16 now, but cod liver oil tablets are starting to sort it now,

Edited February 27, 2006 by ian

[spunkey_monkey_boy]

i go to physio once a fortnight for work on my back and knees, am going in for an mri scan next month on my back, have to go to the gym 4 times a week and swim 3 times a week just to keep my body in good enough shape to ride. have also been told by the time i'm 25 i'm going to osteo arthritis (thats 2 years away!!!).

however i still ride, first time back on the bike this weekend and i've pulled every muscle in my body (spent an hour this morning trying to find one thats not pulled, there aren't any) and have opened up my shin and knee

all fun and games, whose up for a ride?

[robonatomz]

yer i think it is realy bad for you.

i have back/neck ache. but then i did break them a few years ago so i cant put that all down to trials.

the knuckles on my fingers dont work properley any more,

my wrist's hurt from time to time and make big cracking noises.

i get really bad pains in my fore arms, and have problems with my shoulder, locking and acheing.

my knee's used to hurt but havent been for a while .

but my worst injerie is my left ankle, it apsolutley game over! i ruptered the ligament in it and dent know so i carried on ridin for a year then eventually went to see a physio, this resulted in the ligament having to be re rupterd and reset in the correct place and my leg puttin in a cast for 2 weeks. now 3 months on i just did my first proper comp since. and iv fallen off and recked the same ankle.

im off to see the physio later today to see what the bad news is. if he cant put it right then trials may be a thing of the past for me.

he allready say's that the damage iv done will have reprocutions in the future. and now i may have knackered my ankle for good.

but hey, it is all good fun and there is no better feeling than when your out on the old bike.

looks like i better start looking for a new hobbie. lol

rob.

[Tomy P]

I personally have found that my body has adapted to the rigour of trials. You can avoid most injuries by wearing shinpads, gloves and a helmet. Warming up, cooling down and stretching also plays a key role. I used to have really sore shoulders before doing this. For me, trials has developed my lats and triceps. Although, I did go for a quick ride in my garden without gloves and caught my little finger on a tree branch and my nail is now black lol.

cheers, tom

Edited February 27, 2006 by tompeibiketrial

[ogre]

Christ! is seems like every single person on this forum has an injury of some sort due to trials riding! and the worst part is, because trials has only been around for a rough decade, we don't have anybody who has retired from trials after a long youth of doing it. so we don't know how it may effect us by the time we're 50

"because trials has only been around for a rough decade, we don't have anybody who has retired from trials after a long youth of doing it. so we don't know how it may effect us by the time we're 50"

Thats what worry's me. In fact extreme sports in general haven't really been around long enough for the long term effects to examined.

We'r guna be that "trials generation type thing" which is scary realy! We'r guna be the oldschool type generation of trials. Which will be kind od kool in a way 'caus we'll have seen all the big changes in trials and all the moves we thought were like oh my god that was amazing will be like the norm and they'll be doing even stupider things (or at least thats how most extreme sports have gone...)

[SQuiT-man]

I usually get back and wrist problems.

Ditto.

I used to have to see a chyropractor for intensive treatment 4 times a week at £25 a session for months due to "permanent" back injuries caused by trials. I have pretty much got over that now, the chyro treatment worked a miracle (altho it did empty my parents bank account).

Since two months ago however I have a very serious wrist condition brought on from aggressive sidehops, and have some hefty scar tissue in my tendons meaning I would have had about 4 months out by the time its healed .

I always got wrist and finger pains through, but those are only flesh wounds! Wear shinpads, and let some calluses build up!

[Trials Dave]

yeah i used to pull my back out quite often. could barely walk for weeks after it. once youve pulled it a few times its usually fine after that. i found that when i got a longer frame i stopped getting back problems aswell. i think that with me being 6ft 3" i am too crouched up on short frames.

[Onza Kieron]

Trials rapes your body, I write this with a dodgey wrist, it's been hurting for a week now whenever I brace it or twist it round. If your worried abotu your health I suggest you live in a very soft bed all your life and live off pure oxygen.

[tank_rider]

I'm now 23 and have been riding for about five years, so far i've managed to break both my wrists, and dislocated my shoulder upwards of 20 times (have had an operation to correct that now), along with the miriade of usual bumps bruises and shin dents.

To be honest, it's a pretty dangerous sport in comparison to some, however if i had played football or rugby for 5 seasons i would think i would have had a similar number of serious injuries as i've had through trials.

[ramps]

Right I will work from the feet up, so feet: decrepid but have always been like that, ankles: cracks makes funny squeeking noises ocasionally, knees: absoluly fecked all sorts of noises and very painful going up and down stairs, torso: Fine no panes or aches as yet, Tities: ache after a comp or long ride, shoulders: crack and make noises but not too bad, elbows: agin crack and noise but not too bad no pain, wrist: craked as i was writing this and do quite often, fingers: Properly nakerd, they dont work properly and are bent inwards. Finaly neck, not bad rare if it hurts from trials.

All that and yet i still love it! There must be something special eh?

By the way I am only 16 so i will probably be a cripple ion wheelchair at 40

[Mark W]

We'r guna be that "trials generation type thing" which is scary realy! We'r guna be the oldschool type generation of trials. Which will be kind od kool in a way 'caus we'll have seen all the big changes in trials and all the moves we thought were like oh my god that was amazing will be like the norm and they'll be doing even stupider things (or at least thats how most extreme sports have gone...)

Haha, you still seem new school to me Just talk to the riders on here who've been going nearly 10 years +...

But yeah, like I said before about this sorta thing - there ARE people who've been doing it longer. If you look at the top comp riders, they've generally all been going for 10 years+ in the highest categories, and they're not broken people (yet). I guess they're some kind of yardstick for us all, but you know the risks you take really with trials?

[flipkickbs]

Were like trials guinea pigs for professor Deng.

Ian

[Ali C]

I have been riding for 7 years and my body is in great condition never had anything serious happen, just cuts and bruises.

[011001000110010101110010]

Same as me, riding 7 years and no proper serious injuries. Aches and pains now and then but all good.