Broken Hand

I would say it depends on how badly it is broken.  I dislocated and broke a finger last year and had my hand in a splint.  With my doctor's permission, I did a race about ten days later without the splint and with the broken finger buddy-taped to the next one.   The only real problem I had was using it to shift gears on my bike, but fortunately it was my left hand which shifted lesser-used front derailleur.

Prior to the race I was a bit concerned about falling and re-injuring the finger, but once in the heat of battle I pretty much forgot all about it. 

I broke my wrist this summer in a race (had to have surgery w/ a plate and a bunch of screws).  The doc said I could ride the stationary bike (or on a trainer) 2 weeks after surgery, but no riding a non-stationary bike for 6 weeks.  Swimming was allowed starting about 5 weeks post surgery--the doc wasn't too excited about the resistance against the wrist/hand with freestyle, or that most of my swims start around 2500 yards. 

Are you seeing a physical therapist?  My doc started me with PT 2 weeks after surgery to work on range of motion, and once the splint came off he started me on a strengthening program, with just a 2 pound weight at the beginning.  If you are seeing a PT, they could probably give you better advise as to when to get back on the bike or in the pool.

Hope you heal quickly!

Went to A&E last Friday and was told I'd left it too long to be able to repair easily. Had an op on Sunday to put bones back in place using metal pins which involved being put to sleep. Have now started healing process from scratch and will be unable to run , swim or cycle on the road for even longer. So if you ever hurt yourself and are wondering whether it's worth getting it seen too please do and do it quickly. I wasn't in unbearable pain and I didn't make a whole lot of fuss. If I had I may well have been back in action much sooner then I'm likely to be now...