Just thought I’d share my experience here…
I broke my right collarbone on June 10th this year at a local XCM race. My first doctor said it would be fine and would heal well on its own. This didn’t sit well with me, and I felt like things were much more off than they were seeing, so I looked for another doctor to take a second look. The second doctor took more X-rays and found that the bone was in three pieces (I later found out from my surgeon that it was actually in more than three), so we decided to put a plate in. After all of the back and forth, it ended up being more than two weeks before I had the surgery.
I was able to get on the trainer once with a sling on in that two-week span, but it was definitely a bad idea knowing what I know now about the injury.
Post-surgery, my shoulder was still really sore from the accident, and I had really limited mobility, although the bone was finally stable. I hopped into physical therapy and was actually able to get back on the bike in less than two weeks. Again, this was probably pushing things, but I live on a nice paved trail, so easy riding with lower risk was an option for me.
Looking back at the calendar, I’d say it was between 3 & 4 weeks after surgery when I felt really good on the bike and started pushing things again.
Shortly after the accident, I, like many others, did boatloads of research on fractures and recovery, only to find that the situation is usually unique to the individual. On one hand, you have people like Ted King, who got back to racing a couple of weeks after his accident, and on the other, there are some with more complicated fractures, secondary injuries, slower healing times, less access to high-end medical care, etc. I had no idea where I would land on the spectrum, which was certainly concerning (especially for a late spring injury), but I’d say I ended up somewhere in the middle of that spectrum.
Physical therapy worked wonders and did way, way more for me than I had expected. There were a lot of scary moments along the way when I thought there was likely a rotator cuff injury or something that would take much more time to heal, but I followed the doctors’ orders, and I’ve been happily surprised by the results. Currently, I’d say I’ve been around 90-95% back to normal for the past couple of weeks. 
My takeaways here are:
-
Listen to your doctor! If you have concerns, don’t be afraid to get a second opinion. Had I not seen my second doctor, things would be so much different for me right now, and I’m not convinced that things would have ever healed properly.
-
Get into PT as soon as you can, and be diligent with your home exercises.
-
Take things slowly. Don’t be too eager to get back on the bike. Long walks/hikes and easy jogs are great to keep base fitness up and even get some cross-training in. I feel like they’re also much less risky than cycling.
-
GIve your body time to heal. You can burn 15-20 calories per pound of body weight EXTRA while your body is generating new bone and healing. Get a really good healthy diet going, and EAT. Leafy greens, bone broth, and a high-quality calcium supplement help quite a bit, as well as some time in the sun or vitamin D if need be. Don’t try and bury yourself in exercise – again, take things slow (this is hard for active people, but so important).
I’m, of course, not a doctor, but again, this is just my unique experience that I thought I’d share. Keep your head up! There might be some dark moments throughout the process, but things can work out with some determination!
