I have read in a few places that cycling is bad if you want to have a family - any truth in this?
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
cycling vs reproduction
(28 posts)-
Posted 14 years ago #
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Not for female cyclists!
Posted 14 years ago # -
I presume you are talking about males/saddles?
Obviously it can be a factor - too much cycling on an uncomfortable saddle.
In general good health (e.g. by cycling) is beneficial.
I think Chris Boardman has three children.
Posted 14 years ago # -
I've heard cycling is good for that sort of thing. Unless, as mentioned above you do long hours in an uncomfy saddle.
Posted 14 years ago # -
Didn't do me any harm!
Posted 14 years ago # -
"I have read in a few places that cycling is bad if you want to have a family"
Some people think that having a family is bad for cycling.
"This is a fairly reluctant sale, but I can't really justify having more than one bike any more due to space constraints and the arrival of my son."
(ebay)
Posted 14 years ago # -
Four kids.
Posted 14 years ago # -
Two kids since I resumed cycling. I reckon padded shorts must help prevent damage to a gentleman's bits n bobs and the circulation in that area.
Posted 14 years ago # -
As mentioned on another thread I found a "conventional" saddle cut off circulation to the sensitive bits after a while, especially with the leant forward riding position of most UK mtb's etc, now cured completely by using a saddle with a cut-out in the appropriate area.
Dunno if it would have affected anything but it couldn't have been doing good and it wasn't comfortable so it got sorted :-)
(edited for mong spelling!)Posted 14 years ago # -
Message from a cyclist with 3 children.
"As I've had my manhood wired for science I'm an expert on this delicate subject..."
CARLTON REID
Editor
http://www.bikebiz.com
http://www.bikeforall.net
http://www.iPayRoadTax.com
http://www.quickrelease.tv
http://www.biketoworkbook.comPosted 14 years ago # -
Not done the Chinese any harm.
He said in a boorish Sun reader manner! Not intended to be racist,
5 million bicycles in Bejiing etcThe again there are only 14 million Dutch people. So maybe bicycle use has held them back!
Posted 14 years ago # -
Given the popularity of cycling between 1890 and 1960, when everybody road a bicycle, none of us would be here if cycling were bad for you if you want to have a family. It is true that 10% of male cyclist do suffer from EDF, but then again males in the general population the risk is 35% at sometime in their lives.
Posted 14 years ago # -
could just be a rumour put about by Body Geometry saddles paying scientific experts to mention scary things like perineums and impotence
Posted 14 years ago # -
Perhaps it's important to distinguish between journeys on sit-up style utility bikes (Dutch, Chinese, back in the old days for everyone) and the kind of angle that you get on road bikes which puts a lot of pressure on the soft tissue down below?
On the other hand, as gembo says you can't sell a safety product without a bit of fear mongering. We hear all the time that if you cycle without a helmet your head will explode like a raw egg after a few minutes. So perhaps the idea that riding on a saddle leads to impotency is equally realistic.
Posted 14 years ago # -
It seems to be a reasonably commonly raised point that saddle pressure on the pereneum (have I spelt that right?) can affect a gentleman's ability to... stand to attention, as it were.
I read a report once, can't remember where now, that said that this did in fact occur, however only in professional cyclists that spent many hours a day, most days, on turbo trainers or out in the saddle - we're talking upwards of 4 hour stints here.
For your average cyclist, commuter, run to the shops, etc, the risk of such a set back are unlikely, unless you have a poorly adjusted saddle, i.e. too high and tilted too far back.
As a general rule, it is not a problem, and as the comments above show, cycling and families go like ducks to water.Posted 14 years ago # -
Given that professional cyclists that spent many hours a day, most days, on turbo trainers or out in the saddle - we're talking upwards of 4 hour stints here. We could simply look at the number of children that a randomly selected group of professional cyclists have, control for other factors, and see if there is any difference to a control group of men selected from the general population. I am sure this has been done and suspect that there was no significant difference between the two groups, so no story to get excited about.
Or we could take the Thompson, Rivara, & Thompson approach. Take a small highly selected treatment group, compare with an equally unrepresentative control group, ignore any confounding factors, come up with a result which proves the point we want to make and get everyone to replete it without questioning it.
SO just remind me, how many children does Chris Boardman have? ;-)
Posted 14 years ago # -
In our research (here on our rational if occasionally radical forum) are we using number of children as a proxy for the problem of erectile dysfunction (not quite the same thing). Did I ever mention when I used to work on the Helplines (drugs, AIDS) my decision not to take the training for the National Erectile Dysfunction Helpline? One of the best decisions of my life. 100% kids taking the piss for the full 8 hour shift.
Posted 14 years ago # -
"proxy for the problem of erectile dysfunction (not quite the same thing)"
True, but -
I think there has (also) been concern/evidence about cycling/reduced fertility.
Posted 14 years ago # -
I was trying to address two myths at once, not suggest that the number of children is a proxy for the problem of erectile dysfunction.
Posted 14 years ago # -
We hear all the time that if you cycle without a helmet your head will explode like a raw egg after a few minutes.
Tch. What if I'm having a shower and I slip on a bar of soap? Oh my god, I'd be killed!
My parents used to cycle all the time and I turned out normal. Apart from the deviant bike thing, that is.
Posted 14 years ago # -
there is nothing normal about anyone on this site, we are all more than two standard deviations from the norm (ford focus single driver) and are therefore outwith the normal range. It isn't a problem, we are just all individuals...(waiting for Life of Brian response here).
Posted 14 years ago # -
*obliges*
I'm not..
Posted 14 years ago # -
Had never really thought about this until I changed my saddle which put all the pressure on my sit bones(where I'm guessing it should be) and took it off everywhere else. Nice, but by god did my butt hurt for a while.
Guess it's all about getting the settings right with the saddle/anatomy you've got, angle of dangle etc.
Posted 14 years ago # -
http://quickrelease.tv/?p=562
Thanks for the good article link chdot - I want one of those mesh saddles nowPosted 14 years ago # -
Posted 14 years ago #
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chdot: something new
or just a snub nosed jobPosted 14 years ago # -
chdot: I find most mother and baby websites pretty hard to take, but that one you linked to is really unbelievable. The only thing worse is the idea that lance armstrong's foetus has a twitter account. YUCKY.
Posted 14 years ago # -
"that one you linked to is really unbelievable"
Sorry.
First one that came up on Google with the story.
Posted 14 years ago #
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