Ailments and Solutions

Hip pain, foot trouble, leg cramps, sleepy hands, ailing knees, the dreaded sciatica… The list is long of joint and muscle ailments that can creep up on you during any given ride. But focusing on a few key preventative measures can help you avoid a nightmare experience when you’re on the road.

Hydration

There are plenty of good reasons to stay hydrated. The average person taking in water throughout the day to the equivalent of 2 liters per day is less likely to experience muscle cramps, headaches and otherwise. I have two ways to do this that work well for me.

Anytime I feel the need to pee, the first thing I do is drink 8 ounces of water, then I pee.

The second is to ice my beverages. All my beverages, including any wine, beer, or other adult beverages I may consume at the end of the day. I haven’t had a hangover in years.

Sugar, caffeine, salt, and alcohol cause your body to expel water at a faster rate, so when choosing your beverages, the less of these you drink, the better.

Diet

The better you eat, the better you’ll feel throughout the day. Of course, we can’t expect to get much good food when traveling on the road if we’re dining at fast food places along the way. But that’s okay. What we can do is eat well at home so the balance of good to bad is more in your favor once you hit the road. Eating well at home will also amp up your immune system.

If you came into my kitchen, you would find nearly all items are USDA certified organic, red meats are grass-fed, etc… Am I a health nut? Hardly. I like a Big Mac now and then, too. But when you understand the human body is designed to eat clean food and ditch processed and GMO tainted foods from your kitchen, all of a sudden you start feeling better.

Create a PT Circuit that’s right for you

If you’re not a regular stretcher or free-weight user, creating a PT circuit built around your lifestyle will help minimize joint and muscle ailments when you’re on the road. There’s a gaggle of information online you can pull from, but it’s in anyone’s best interest to hook up with a qualified physical therapist for one or two sessions and develop a plan together. This can often be done through an existing health care plan. When describing your lifestyle, remember to tell them you ride a motorcycle!

Riding motorcycles requires a lot of use of the piriformis muscle, so be sure one or two circuit items hone in on that.

A stretch known as ‘the bear walk’ has been known to do wonders for strengthening the shoulders, core, feet, and hips. Give it a try, but just know it’s not the only thing you should be doing.

Vitamins and supplements

As we get older, our bodies tend to absorb less of a few of the good things we need to stay at our best. Vitamins and supplements can assist with ensuring you’re getting what you need. Start by connecting with your doctor and getting a blood panel run that measures things like sodium, vitamin B levels, potassium, and other levels your doctor deems important to you. Then have them create a supplement regiment for you to work with.

Pay close attention to your potassium levels. Lack of potassium combined with dehydration spells muscle cramps. Often that can result in a charley horse! The human body needs more potassium than salt, yet in a typical diet, that’s hardly the case. Eating a banana once a day won’t provide what you need. One way to slip it into your diet is to switch from regular table salt to a potassium salt-substitute like Nu-Salt. Another way to make sure you get enough is to eat foods high in potassium. Beyond bananas that includes potatoes, salmon, avocados, white beans, and fresh fruit juices.

Epsom salts bath

Our bodies need healthy levels of magnesium but ingesting a supplement of it can play havoc on the digestive system. Taking in a bath in Epsom salts is a great way to amp in some magnesium without messing with your gut. It also makes the perfect ending to a day of being in the saddle.

Consider a Step-through

If you can move beyond the ego crash some riders experience when they think of themselves on a scooter, you might be able to add a few more years to your riding career. Step-through scooters are a great way to roll around when lifting that right leg over a typical motorcycle seat is about to end your riding days. BMW, Suzuki, Honda, Yamaha, Kymco, and others make medium-powered scooters that can go anywhere a big street bike can. Got room for a few bikes in the garage? Ease into it by owning both a regular bike and a step-through.

SR!/May 2022