[Closed] Osteoporosis experiences?

Have you had a dexa scan? This will determine where the deterioration is.
I'm on vitamin D twice daily and alendronic acid.

Yes the fact that I have been diagnosed with osteoporosis has impacted my life. Maybe because of mtbiking. I was told not to mtbike anymore, but that thought was worse for my mental health than the fear of injury. Every ride is full of the fear of falling off and breaking some bone or other and the happy, good, adrenaline side, which helps with getting the exercise, fresh air, the enjoyment and outdoor activity that I crave.
I was advised to do squats and lunges with light weights. I've found Joe Wicks exercises on line (I do the easy ones :0) ) are ideal.

It's hard for women as most will have some problems after the menopause.

I urge all you parents out there with daughters to make sure they run, jump, play out and have a good diet while young, this will all help them in the future. Too many children now eating rubbish and staying indoors, sitting with screens is creating problems for them in future years.

GolfChick send me a message if you'd like a chat. bunnyhop x

I'm just waiting on a booking for a bone density scan in all different places and I have an appointment now in July to see a spine specialist. Yes my biggest worry is that they will say the same to me but to be honest I will do similar to you and continue because the damage to my mental health would quite frankly be catastrophic.

Thanks for sharing your experience, I'll definitely message you for a chat down the line.

Holds up hand, have it in spine and pelvis which frustratingly could have been avoided. Was diagnosed when still riding but even then didn't really give it any thought. Haven't had a Dexa scan for quite a few years as I no longer see the consultant who arranged it. Struggle to exercise due to poor health but this morning I've been up a ladder sawing branches off a tree.

Unlike Bunnyhop I chose not to take alendronic acid but do take high dose vit D along with vit K2. Also trying to stretch more frequently.

Coming to terms with any diagnosis can be tough and everyone has their own way of dealing with it. Banish any negative thoughts and focus on what you are able to do.

Indeed, It's fine line of juggling mental health issues with keeping your body safe.

I've had a couple of proper falls off the mtbike in the last few years and nothing but bruises to show (and dented pride :0) ). However I took the alendronic acid as it fills in the holes in our bones (very basic explanation there).

I'm padded and armoured up when riding and skiing now and ride trails I know well and just roll over things at a gentle pace. My bike is a full suss. If one over thinks these things, we would never go out. Although I do suffer from anxiety due to this problem and several others.

If you can afford it, book in for a private dexa scan, which will have less of a wait, with more time to have it all explained to you, also where you will have time to ask more questions.

IANAMD, but I did work on the antibody denosumab (Prolia) that helps treat OP and is approved by NICE. Seek a professional and discuss possible therapeutic options for preventing further bone loss would be my advice. A dexa scan will inform and provide a current baseline, and exercise may help with strength, but post-menopausal bone loss in OP is due to modified bone production/loss homeostasis.

You've achieved your daily quota of acronyms right there! It's always fun when you have to google to work out what someone is trying to say!

Interested to know @cinnamon_girl and @bunnyhop ages but understand not wanting to make this information public. I have spotted from googling that it's more common later in life so to have it over my head at only 39 is a bit of a shock to the system. I'm extremely active cycling wise doing approx 100 miles a week on both road and MTB and that is kind of my sole reason for existing not to be too melodramatic. The GP said so far to take painkillers and basically continue to stay fit and active so I guess we'll see down the line. I'm already having my current medication mucked about with after it knocked my white blood cell count out so don't really fancy the idea of taking even more medication although vit D and calcium isn't a big deal. Have to say it's got my mental health all whacked out now.

Apologies, work and non-work combination there! Basically osteoporosis in post-menopausal women is driven by hormonal changes that upset the balance between making and removing bone (called resorption), as you get older, removal starts to win. Some drugs can also exacerbate the effect (corticosteroids, which I take being one). Load-bearing exercise may have a beneficial effect on bone mineral density https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4214007/ , but cycling is not a load-bearing exercise - it is a FUN exercise though! I would ask or pay for a consultation beyond your GP.

If you haven't found them, the Mayo clinic materials are always excellent reading, although a long way to go for a visit 😉

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/osteoporosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20351968

Chronic illness is a bugger so you all have my sympathies there, not that I have Osteoporosis. It messes with your head and makes you constantly question yourself, or at least it does to me. Meds can take a while to get to grips with. I’ve been very lucky with mine but many aren’t and I totally get the fact that you don’t want to take medication for the rest of your life. That said treatment is important so don’t be afraid of them. I assume that there will be other forums where you can ask for other opinions so use them too regarding exercise. Fun exercise is important but do not neglect the stuff that isn’t fun but is good for your condition. I wish you well and hopefully things will work out soon.

but cycling is not a load-bearing exercise –

Cycling is well known to not be enough to trigger bone density growth, you need to either do an impact sport (such as running where the joints experience loads many multiple of body weight) or weight training pref with the big compound lifts eg Deadlift, squat, bench which load your frame.

The good news is that learning to squat / deadlift is pretty easy and most places have gyms with the right kit, so very easy to add that into your lifestyle.

NB Nothing wrong with cycling, just if that's the only exercise you do, you aren't doing anything for bone density.

Regarding out ages, I have this sneaky feeling that C_G and I were born on the same day.

Good luck GolfChick. All the information above is correct.

I don't have osteoporosis but I'm a 42 year old male with osteopenia (so not quite as bad but definitely not great). If you look far enough back in the search history you'll find some threads on it. Mine is a mixture of hereditary and lifestyle (too much cycling). I'm not on drugs as too young and not bad enough. I have a T12 compression fracture found during a routine x-ray for pneumonia which was one of those good news bad news conversations with the gp (no pneumonia but....)

I take lots of vitamin D and since the diagnosis have made a real effort to go to the gym twice a week and do big compound movements like squats and deadlifts. I've paid for a proper trainer and coach to make sure my form is good. My running is intermittent. I've not been back for a follow up DEXA scan as covid etc but I'm probably due.

The rheumatologist I saw said that cycling is basically the holy trinity of high metabolism, non-weight bearing and non-impact (crashing doesn't count). However she also said to continue doing what you enjoy as the overall physical and health benefits are sufficient to offset the risks and potential consequences. I ride with a back protector and hip protectors. I don't go nuts anymore but I do still fall off on occasion. Every time I do fall there's this panic that something has broken (and occasionally it has).

Chronic illnesses are terrible especially at the start but I've managed to adapt and keep riding.

I have coeliac disease which was mishandled when I was diagnosed, and as a result I have osteoperosis. It was discovered after I broke my hip in a pretty minor fall- definitely a "shouldn't have happened at your age" injury.

And it's literally the only reason I ride bikes- I was a couch potato when I was diagnosed, and still trying to recover from the hip surgery and 4 months of muscle wastage, so I started cycling purely for muscle then fell in love with it. These days my bone density isn't terrible, I've broken a few bones riding but never really felt that any of them was definitely because of the weakness- they were all routine mtb breaks, ribs and wrist and so on. I did have some complications from a broken coccyx that were almost certainly to do with the medication, but that's OK. So I ride pretty much without thought to it.

In the end it's a straight up choice between "if you keep doing that you might end up smashing yourself to bits and ending up crippled" vs "if you stop you might as well already be crippled because you're living like you are"

footflaps
Full Member

Cycling is well known to not be enough to trigger bone density growth,

Plus we sweat out calcium. Though, I think the impact studies are pretty much all on road biking?

TBH the health impact re osteoperosis and bone density with mountain biking is probably about 1% bone growth and 99% riding into trees

Though, I think the impact studies are pretty much all on road biking?

I can't see how mountain biking would be any different - you're not generating any significant forces through your joints compared with road biking. Eg with running your Achilles can see forces associated with 6-8 body weight with every heal strike, whereas mountain biking you might momentarily get > 1G on a big dip at speed for maybe 1-2 seconds - it's orders of magnitude less in terms of time under load (which is what matters).

IIRC with weight lifting you need to be lifting weights around your 10 rep max to trigger bone density increase response, so not pushing the max, just a 'hard' workout for your strength level.

and 99% riding into trees

NB you can get the same effect weight lifting, I managed to dump 55kg on the back of my head the other week - lost control of an overhead squat and failed to get my head out of the way quick enough. Hurt a lot less than I expected!

Thanks all, I reckon any future medical insurance is going to go through the roof, already have inflammatory bowel disease to disclose and now this. I'd already half planned to start running again with my pupster who is due with us in June so I think this fortifies that decision even more.

I've done T5 where my fifth rib joins which is apparently why it hurts when I breathe deeply with my chest rather than diaphragm.

One somewhat positive outcome was that prior to the diagnosis I was definitely a "fit cyclist" with ftp of 4w/kg and a BMI of 21 etc.. I was also someone who always had some sort of minor niggle and saw a physio quite a lot. I'm now not as fit and I weigh a bit more (BMI of 23) but I also don't seem to have as many niggles which I attribute to actually working on my core strength etc (and perhaps riding less...)

Golf Chick I was diagnosed in 2008 got a couple of crushed vertebrae told to never ride off road again . I thought may as well dig a hole and jump in it . Gambled I'd rather have 10 years doing what I loved than wrap myself up in cotton wool . Summer 2010 I spent in Whistler! Places I've ridden since I'd love to tell the specialist about . Take calcium twice a day came off Alendronic Acid after 10 years as they've found out it can increase the fracture risk taken long term 🙄Had my 10 years plus still want more , my bone density has increased so much I wonder if the initial diagnosis was right ?Send me a PM if you want to know any more.

As has been said weight bearing activities and resistance work is your best friend for osteoporosis. Do not neglect resistance exercises for your wrists as osteoporosis is often picked up when you fall/stumble and break a wrist.

Our bone stock is built up until our late 30's and 40s then gradually declines as we age with the balance switching gradually from bone deposition to bone resorption. If they suggest medication then my advice would be to take it.

I broke my wrist at the beginning of December actually but that was a bike accident so kind of an expected injury. Some googling yesterday and the medication I was blaming doesnt actually lead to osteopororsis and is actually one treatment available that avoids any risk so who knows what's going on!