Despite having weathered a few fairly heavy ski crashes with no ill effects, in the last 12 m I've had a femoral neck stress reaction (right side); a femoral shaft stress reaction (left side); and most recently a trauma-induced fifth metatarsal fracture (rolled my ankle whilst running).
My Doc suggested a bone density scan earlier in the year. The 5th MT fracture convinced me it was worth it. I had a DXA scan today. My T score was -2.5, which means, apparently, that I am just into the osteoporosis category.
A quick google discloses that maybe, just maybe, having eschewed running and weights for most of the last 25 years in favour of cycling may not have been the smartest thing to have done. Lots of indicators that the absence of weight bearing activity doesn't do much to keep your bones dense.
To be honest, I'm pretty shaken up by this news. I'm a 47 yr old male; don't smoke, don't drink to excess (much); no chronic conditions, and until this, of what I thought was good health.
I'm being referred to another specialist - a skeletal and rheumatoid one - who I will probably not see until after Christmas.
I've got a head full of questions - no surprise there. How fragile am I? How fragile am I going to get? Is this condition reversible, or nothing more than manageable? Should I forego any further ambitions to compete in middle/long course tri to avoid further stress reactions/fractures? Should I forego Oly distance events?
I know that weight bearing is the best way to strength bones, but I don't know yet whether the risk from running (which is, I bet, short term) is >> the benefits (which are presumably quite long term).
So if there's anyone out there who has osteoporosis, and who has managed to keep doing triathlons at the same time, I'd love to hear from you.
TIA.
My Doc suggested a bone density scan earlier in the year. The 5th MT fracture convinced me it was worth it. I had a DXA scan today. My T score was -2.5, which means, apparently, that I am just into the osteoporosis category.
A quick google discloses that maybe, just maybe, having eschewed running and weights for most of the last 25 years in favour of cycling may not have been the smartest thing to have done. Lots of indicators that the absence of weight bearing activity doesn't do much to keep your bones dense.
To be honest, I'm pretty shaken up by this news. I'm a 47 yr old male; don't smoke, don't drink to excess (much); no chronic conditions, and until this, of what I thought was good health.
I'm being referred to another specialist - a skeletal and rheumatoid one - who I will probably not see until after Christmas.
I've got a head full of questions - no surprise there. How fragile am I? How fragile am I going to get? Is this condition reversible, or nothing more than manageable? Should I forego any further ambitions to compete in middle/long course tri to avoid further stress reactions/fractures? Should I forego Oly distance events?
I know that weight bearing is the best way to strength bones, but I don't know yet whether the risk from running (which is, I bet, short term) is >> the benefits (which are presumably quite long term).
So if there's anyone out there who has osteoporosis, and who has managed to keep doing triathlons at the same time, I'd love to hear from you.
TIA.