Arm in plaster - Turbo advice?

gaffmaster

I broke my wrist ten days ago, and I'm in plaster up to the elbow for the next five weeks. I can already feel my fitness slipping. Doctor reckons I can get back into stationary bike training next week. It's an incredibly frustrating experience. Especially now the clocks have gone forward and the temperature is rising a bit.

So! Who's done this before? How did you cope?

I'm worried about the cast getting sweat damaged, as well as accelerating the inevitable stink it's going to accrue regardless.

Any tips? I've considered setting the turbo up in the fridge but I doubt it would fit.

Dcully

gaffmaster wrote: »

I broke my wrist ten days ago, and I'm in plaster up to the elbow for the next five weeks. I can already feel my fitness slipping. Doctor reckons I can get back into stationary bike training next week. It's an incredibly frustrating experience. Especially now the clocks have gone forward and the temperature is rising a bit.

So! Who's done this before? How did you cope?

I'm worried about the cast getting sweat damaged, as well as accelerating the inevitable stink it's going to accrue regardless.

Any tips? I've considered setting the turbo up in the fridge but I doubt it would fit.

I had a series of operations on my leg [which I came really close to losing] over a 12 week period in hospital 11 years ago.
With regular surgery the plaster had to be changed regularly so its not a big issue to get it changed if it gets too smelly etc.

I'm no doctor but might be wise to stay seated while you are training on the turbo to ease strain on the wrist.

on_the_nickel

I had the same over Christmas, with my collarbone in a sling as well.

I could only do low temp stuff to avoid sweating too much. Best thing might be to take the turbo outside.

fat bloke

aero tt bars would be handy so your elbows would take your body weight. I wonder about the sweating. I don't know that my arms sweat that much, and it might be more of a case of sweat from your head dripping /running down into the cast.

I'm not sure of the science of it, but maybe the greater surface area of yourself that you have exposed, along with the plenty of ventilation, will minimise the sweat production locally in your wrist/arm. So - a fan indoors or set the turbo up outside maybe? Worth a shot.

Beasty

Is it a Plaster of Paris one? They are a bleedin' nightmare, but I found it was more to do with itching than any damage to the cast

Fibreglass ones are much more comfortable and certainly don't get damaged by a bit (or indeed lot) of sweat. Had one of those after falling on ice back in February 2010 - started my racing career less than 2 months later after 5 weeks on the turbo with the cast and a couple of weeks on the road bike (without it!)

Beasty

fat bloke wrote: »

aero tt bars would be handy so your elbows would take your body weight.

On the turbo you don't need to put any weight on. I preferred sitting up and certainly would not have wanted to use TT bars (although with my second broken wrist I had also fractured the other elbow)

Bambaata

Had a broken thumb myself last year and turboed away. Does smell but feck it. That said i thought I'd be good to go within a few weeks coming out of it but soon realised my wrist had little to no power in it so get yourself a good physio when it comes off to check that there aren't any displacements etc . I lost all last season!

gaffmaster

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like some of you have been through the mill. I hope you're all fully recovered.

My cast is one of the newer fiberglass ones, alright. And so far it's less itchy than the plaster 'back slab' that was on last week.

Good point about physio too. I'll be sure to check that out when the cast comes off.

When I do get around to riding on the turbo, I'll probably keep it in a sling and rest on one arm, or sit upright as suggested. I might put ice in my water bottle for whatever little difference that might make. Maybe I should freeze a jersey and wear that!!!

ED E

If you can stick up a fan that'll be the huge difference, no airflow when you're stationary is the biggest sweat generator.

Put a sweatband on your arm and that'll be most of it sorted.

Miklos

Get an old ladder and before you know it you'll be on the podium in Roubaix!