So after two runs up Skyline the last few weeks me and my wife rode Blackstar last Sunday, first time for her. Everything was going great but it was warm. We rode halfway up and turned around for the ride down. She took a spill after a little tech section and landed funky on the right wrist. She was really hurting on the wrist and I could see some swelling where the pain was so we walked the last 2.5 miles out, done for the day. She had it checked out, sure enough small fracture needing a cast for the usual 4-6 weeks depending on healing. She is really bummed about not riding for that time. Question is for those of you that have fractured your wrist, when can she expect to be back on the bike riding? Thanks in advance. Maybe you'll give her the report she is hoping for, which would be quickly and no residual problems.
as long as the bars are high enough 2 or 3 days (hybrid)MT or RD bike 6 weeks,my biggest problem was constipation from the pain meds.Slight fracture nothing major.Hope she heals fully and as quick as possible.
It really depends on the fracture and her pain tolerance. The estimated 4-6 weeks is generally about right, but it may still be tender to bumps at 6 weeks. Also, from being in a cast for an extended period of time will cause significant muscle loss in her arm/wrist. The muscle loss can increase the recovery time. Get the cast off as soon as possible. If she can tolerate it, a wrist brace can be better than a cast in maintaining mobility for a quicker recovery. Again, depending on the fracture, in basically at 4-5 weeks, she's probably safe to ride. Pain will guide her what she can and can not due. There is no real concern at this point of harming the fracture, but there may still be some discomfort. By 3 weeks she can start hitting the beach trails and practice her one-handed riding. In more extreme cases of fractures, although she may be ok to ride at 4 weeks, the pain may keep her from riding trails for up to 8 weeks or more. A couple years ago, I had a major wrist injury where my wrist was in a cast for 5 months. Because of the nerve damage, I couldn't even touch the bars for 6-7 months. Let me just say that I got really good at riding one handed - climbing, DH, and riding wheelies. That was the fourth time I broke that one.
I broke my wrist 2 years ago on the fully loop. Spent the next 6 weeks in a cast and walking the dog a lot. I didn't have much pain when i broke it and nothing while it was casted. After the cast came off the pain started - mostly because of the muscle loss on that arm and the loss of range of motion of the wrist. There are some simple wrist exercises you can do to improve the strength and ROM using anything from simple weights (i started with 3 lbs) or even a soup can works well. I worked on my wrist several times a day. I could decribe the exercises but it may get lengthy here - let me know and I'll explain further. After 2 weeks I had to try it out. Went back to the loop and even did an OTB, luckily i kept the wrist tucked. No problems with the wrist. For a couple months afterwards, I might have some stiffness and soreness but nothing bad. As for pain meds, unless the pain is unbearable, I use as little as possible because the pain will keep you from hurting yourself more. Take care.