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Bicycling experience and advice

I'm 68, recently diagnosed with PC and a very dedicated road bicyclist (6-8,000 miles a year). As I consider treatment (beyond watchful waiting) I would be quite interested in hearing from cyclists about the impact of the treatment you chose (lap, da Vinci, external radiation, HDR, hormonal, cryo) on your cycling.

Were you able to get back on the bike? How long after treatment (whatever it was) Were you able to ride again? What did you do while you couldn't ride to stay in shape? Did you get back to your pre-treatment levels of riding? Comments or advice?

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Tim, I don't know if you used the site search engine to look for anything on cycling. If you did then you may have seen what these men have to say:

DAVID HILL

DAVID CLAY

BRYAN JONES

If not you might like to read their stories/mail them while waiting for a response here.

All the best

Terry in Australia

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Hi Tim
I'm afraid I'm not as dedicated as you but I had a perineal prostactectomy on Nov 3 2009 and one of my goals was to ride in the Argus cycle tour in Cape town which is on March 12. i am 49.

About 8 weeks after the op I was able to get on the excercise bike, quite gingerly due to the wound site. I also bought a stepping machine which was fine to use as I felt I needed a bit more healing time.

I am now 12 weeks post op and have managed a 2 hr road ride (50km). I saw my uro the day after the ride and he is OK with me riding the Argus, if I feel up to it and dont push if there is pain.

I must stress that the current discomfort seems to be more around the surgical wound than 'inside'. Specifically the drain hole and a stitch on the one side, both of which press on the side of the saddle rather than the saddle point which would press on the (former) prostate area.

if you are considering surgery it is pretty unlikely that you will choose a perineal RP, and more likely you would have a retropubic approach (abdominal)and perhaps laproscopic or robotic laproscopic.

Those will give you a quicker healing but I personally believe a worse continence possibility. Of course everyone will agree that the surgeon chosen is the most important factor irrespective of op type. You will have a catheter in for 2 weeks to allow the urethra re-join to the bladder to heal - during this time I was able to walk up to 5km, with some discomfort but not too bad. After removal walking no problem.

So in summary with surgery you should be back on the bike after 8 weeks, and should be able to walk/step before that.

Regards Tim from Cape town

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Aloha Tim Cline,

I’m 68. I love to off road bicycle. Before PCa, I roughly did 600 miles per year, barely enough to wear out a few tires over the years. I had EBRT/IMRT, by the second week I could still drive but the bicycle was out. The third week I could not even drive. I still managed to walk a little for three months or so. Had hemorrhoid surgery four months after treatment, so no biking for more months. Was bleeding a bit by now, wearing pads for biking was not comfortable. Then, a year after treatment, I could not ride due to arthritis in my right hand, painful. Was off the bike for almost a year, then surgery on hand, then three months later, was back on bike, but not much energy. We have volcano emissions where I live, and my sinuses do not handle that very well, use low impact aerobics when I can’t get out.
So, whether you can ride or not depends on your conditioning & health. If you can, go for it.
As for treatment, I think that some form of EBRT is the least invasive and does the minimum damage to healthy cells. It just depends on where you are on the curve (of side affects) when treatment ends.
Wish you the best,
Joe

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I had robotic surgery 12 months ago and am now on the hormone treatment/radiation combo treatment for 2 weeks. I do short triathlons and 10/23 km runs. I am 56 now.

Although the robotic surgery may almost feel like a day surgery treatment it isn't. I found I had to be very careful not to over do it in the first few weeks and even the next 6 months. You want to get back up to you previous fitness level quickly but I would caution against it. Go slowly and steadily and never increase very much from week to week. Give yourself a year and be very cautious in the first 6 months and stay off the bike for the first 6 months too. Use a recumbent stationary bike to keep your legs in shape but I wouldn't even start on that for 3 months. I did manage a 10k run which I ran/walked 3 months after surgery without any problem.

I have only just started training for a short traithlon and that may have to stop due to the radiation and hormone treatment but so far the radiation treatments seem to boost my energy level, which apparently happens to some people.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Frank
Use a recumbent stationary bike to keep your legs in shape but I wouldn't even start on that for 3 months. I did manage a 10k run which I ran/walked 3 months after surgery without any problem.



Yikes......I can't imagine being off my bike that long. Why do you think running/walking is okay at 3 months, but not biking? Your post is a bit of a downer for me but I really appreciate your input.

I live in US near Charlotte, North Carolina where we can bike most of the year. So far in 2010 I have logged about 1200 km. Not riding for such an extended period would be a real challenge. I do have access to a stationary recumbent, so I can do that. thanks for all the info.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

A regular racing bike seat puts all the pressure right on the surgical site of your prostatectomy. You don't want to damage that area after surgery or you could end up having to use a catheter off and on for the rest of your life. The catheter was the worst part of the operation experience for me.

Try a short triathalon; its a lot of fun and spreads the stress out to to other body parts. I would think you will end up with some stress related injury eventually putting that amount of mileage on your bike every year.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I'm not as dedicated as you but I used to manage a fair number of miles each year (low quadruple digits, anyway). My doc allowed me back on the bike at 6 weeks post prostatectomy (standard RRP at age 40). All my bikes are set up with Flite Titanium saddles. For quite a while, even 15-20 minutes on my stationary (an old road bike on a Blackburn trainer) caused a fair bit of discomfort. And, for months afterwards, I found my anatomy didn't sit right and would rub painfully against the padding in the shorts. That went away once the ED issues went away though. And, last summer, a bit more than 2 years post surgery, everything felt fine. I get out of the saddle a bit more than I used to, but part of that might be that I'm packing about 20 lbs more than I did in my hardcore riding days.

Dan

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I know that saddles are really personal things, and I plan to investigate that area (no pun intended) very closely. I am talking to folks on a 50+ bike forum about that very issue and am getting some useful feedback and recommendations.

I also hear what Frank said about avoiding catheter problems. I truly want to avoid that sort of "collateral" damage.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I ride about 1000 miles a year. I had the robotic surgery last April 17. I began riding after my 8 week check-up, short distances at first. I completed a sixty miler in early August and 2-3 more rides of that distance and a lot of shorter rides before winter hit. I was careful to get off more often and stand frequently, but never experienced any particular pain or problems. I rode a stationary bike for an hour earlier today. So listen to your doctor and get back out there. You can read my whole pre and post surgery story on this site if you want.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Thanks for your post, Steve. I did read your story and found it very useful. Did you ever ride the KATY trail? While my Daughter and son-in-law were at Mizzou I got to spend some quality time on that piece of real estate.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I have ridden the entire KATY trail. My favorite part is around Rocheport with the towering cliffs on one side and the Missouri River on the other side. We watched eagles soaring out over the river there a couple of years ago on a crisp fall day. The trees were beauitiful.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

I've ridden that section many times and especially like going through the tunnel....also a glass of wine and lunch at Les Bourgeois winery is worth the climb to the top.

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

Hey Tim.

I peddle about 6 grand a year myself. I had a RP (robotic) almost four years ago and i withheld from any vigorous excercise for one month as advised. I built a stone wall at 30 days, and am sure that i resumed peddllng soon there after. I have had no longterm restrictions or limitations with bicycling(i begin racing masters 50+ this year!). In retrospect I would have lingered a bit longer in the down time -- not trying to get back too quick. This diagnosis is a wake-up call and deserves considerable "quiet" (i.e. slow) attention. I am afraid that I might have too quickly exited a very important stage of reflection and self-care by resuming too much too quick. That would be my advise to you. Maybe simple breast-stroking down the length of the pool.

My best. No fear.

Vince

Re: Bicycling experience and advice

vince corcoran
Maybe simple breast-stroking down the length of the pool.

My best. No fear.

Vince


To quote Charlie Brown, "AAAGGGWWWW."

Actually, that is probably very good advice. I must tell you that I REALLY miss time off the bike. After about 3 days, my wife starts avoiding me. I am only a recreational rider, but I like to think I am a very committed recreational rider......I will have a serious talk with my surgeon about this....and maybe even take his advice :-)

Thanks for taking the time to share.

Tim

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