new bike - 100 mile charity rides/tow paths

[NorthernDave]

From what I've heard,at least round here, you'll wait three months to see an NHS physio, have one or two 30 minute appointments with someone who may or may not be interested in cycling and be sent home with a sheet of exercises. No ultrasound, no deep tissue massage, no acupuncture, no taping, no tests etc. but you may be lucky

I agree and here's why...

"NHS physio isn't great" not my words, but those of the consultant orthopedic surgeon who operated on Mrs NDs knee last year.

The NHS physio she was referred to started every appointment late, never saw her for the full appointment time, wasn't interested in any feedback or variation from her script and discharged her as her allotted number of appointments were up despite clearly not being fit, with follow up being a poorly photocopied exercise sheet.

We paid for private physio and the difference was immense. A very thorough initial exam and consultation from a highly qualified physio specialising in knees, then a series of appointments with tangible progress after each one and after a handful of appointments almost back to normal. It wasn't as expensive as you might think either - in fact it was worth every penny.

 

[1234567]

Hi ND, glad your experience was so positive...

I assume google is my best friend to find a sports/cycling specialist in my area... Unless anyone know a good one approximately in the Midlands? Very happy to travel if it's worth it.

 

[vickster]

Or ask the GP for a recommendation
If self paying, IME those in private hospitals cost more. Stick to a standalone clinic and call in advance to determine which physio would be best placed to treat you.

 

[MissyR]

5 years of pain?! I'd have been knocking the door down at the GP surgery years ago. You definitely need to get it looked into to find out why it's painful maybe even ask for an MRI to have a look.

My partner is a mechanical nightmare when it comes to her joints having had a hip replacement in January this year and needing a knee replacement (but they won't do that just now as its not completely shot yet) she loves cycling and is back on the bike clocking up some nice mileage. After her hip op she was left with a leg length difference of approx 1.2cm. She had a bike fit done when we bought the new bikes in June but was still suffering from shin splint and her knee was tweaking. We sourced a proper bike fitter locally whom spent 8 hours with her on Saturday finely tuning her bike and position and building up her cleats with shims so she was getting the correct rotations. We have been out 3 times this week and she is blown away with the difference. The guy certainly wasn't cheap (I nearly passed out when I heard how much) but for her its been worth every penny for the comfort on the bike, Obviously she is an extreme case for most bike fitters but this guy was amazing. I had a look at the before and after videos and you can see the difference mainly because the bike fit was specific to her needs rather than a bunch of numbers stuck in a computer for a generic set up. She also came back with a list of exercises he recommended to stretch
different muscles that have tightened up.

If your pain is only when your cycling then it suggests something isn't quite right on your setup and if your determined to carry on cycling then there is no harm in a proper bike fit.