How to Avoid Getting Saddle Sore
With the rise in popularity of the Tour de France, cycling has become one of our much loved past times. Go out any Sunday morning and you’ll see a whole host of men and women clad in lycra and riding expensive bikes up and down our country lanes. It’s a great way to keep fit and, especially nowadays with the rise in the number of clubs, a brilliant way to make new friends.
In fact, despite the initial cost of the bike and other equipment, it is still one of the cheapest forms of exercise out there, and something that all the family can enjoy.
But there’s one perennial problem with cycling, especially if you do it on a regular basis, and that’s the irritation it can cause in the bottom area. The condition is more politely known as saddle soreness and everyone from Bradley Wiggins to Marcel Kittel has suffered from it at some time or other.
Saddle soreness can be the result of chaffing, inflammation at the base of hair follicles, or skin lesions. It is mainly caused by pressure or rubbing due to your movement on the bike but there are some tips you can employ to help reduce its impact.
- First of all, if you are a beginner, build up slowly. You will need to toughen up your rear end. It might be fun to stay in the saddle for a long time but it could cause you severe discomfort if you aren’t used to it.
- When riding make sure you come up out of the saddle every so often just to let the blood flow a little more freely.
- Also make sure you have the right saddle and it’s positioned at the right height. A visit to a good cycle shop to ask the advice of the owner could save you a lot of pain and irritation. Hunt around and you’ll find that there is a saddle to suit you – and it makes life a lot more comfortable.
- Have decent protection in your clothing. If you watch the riders in the Tour de France, you’ll notice that the rear end of their clothing is padded for extra protection. Cycling shorts are made with this padding and if you don’t have the figure to pull that look off you can always wear normal shorts over them. In the end, it’s worth paying for a pair of top end padded shorts that are made to last and do the job.
- Keep it clean. A good level of hygiene ensures you don’t get any bacterial or fungal infections if your rear end does get sore with riding. It’s useful to keep a tube of soothing cream handy for any anal itching or irritation.
Undoubtedly, cycling is a great way to get and stay fit but it does come with challenges other than how you get up that hill without stopping. Problems such as soreness and itching of the anal area can be easily solved by a little thought, care and attention.