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Back pain


StevieG's picture

By StevieG - Posted on 01 September 2013

Hi all

I've been having a bit of lower back pain when riding recently - particularly on longer rides with a bit of climbing. Just thought I'd see if anyone has any tips on things I should be checking for or if anyone has had a similar problem. Wondered if I need to my riding position/geometry or if I just need to build up some more strength in my back!

Cheers
Steve

staffe's picture

by tilting the seat a little bit forward. I think that forced the pelvis up a bit and less bend in the lower back. That worked for me but may not work for you. Fine tune your settings and see what works for you. If that fails - a bike fitter mighr be the go.

I had the same thing, when climbing it got worse which I think is because more force has to be handled by the back being bent in an uncomfortable way.

Antsonline's picture

It could be a myriad of things, but I would suggest that given its when seated, on longer rides with climbing the thing to look at would be pelvic rotation.
If you watch other riders, notice how they bob their shoulders a little bit as the climb, then look further down their body, at their pelvis - you will see that it is rocking / rotating backwards and forwards (ultimately causing the bobbing). You can imagine that this is a tension, relax, tension, relax, tension etc on the muscles of the lower back.
So - a couple of fixes that might help....
Raise your cadence when you climb - less likelihood to bob. Less 'load'.
Strengthen your core - imagine a rod running up your spine as you climb - keep your back straight and upright - and therefore isolate it from your hips / legs. Keep focused on tension in your core.
Try not to 'bob'. Consciously control it. Get your riding buddies to monitor you and have a penalty 'tax' for it. Everytime they catch you bobbing - it costs 50 cents or something. They will keep a close eye on you if they are incentivised Eye-wink
Changing your saddle tilt, and also the position relative to the BB (fore and aft) will also obviously affect how you rotate or not.
Finally - hamstring flexibility. Your hammys cross over at the base of your spine, creating an 'X' (and the reason for the name coccyX). Left hammy tension will manifest itself in right lower back tension. If they are tight, so will your lower back be.

So - a few tips there. The biggest thing is to do a tiny weeny bit of back strength / core work a week. Maybe even 3 10min sessions. Literally nothing out of your time. Planks, press-ups, side planks, and maybe some 'dorsal raises'.
They will make a huge difference!

BTW - everyone gets some backpain.

GAZZA's picture

Tight hip flexors.
It also causes rotation of the pelvis and can only be sorted with a certain few stretches.
Also a foam roller to loosen the ITB which is straight down the front of your upper leg.
It's hard to stretch but a foam roller used every day relieves a lot of the tension.

spudatm's picture

Where is the pain exactly?

Matt P's picture

As has been mentioned, it could be caused by anything. LBP can manifest itself in the same area in 100 people and have 100 different causes. My biggest breakthrough came from mobilising my hip flexors but yours could be down to any other number of reasons.

My comment about strengthening anything is due to the fact that you may compound a problem that isn't properly diagnosed. Without proper diagnosis and exercise execution, you can potentially exaggerate the problem. Someone will aways throw in strengthen the core so if they do, ask them to clearly identify EXACTLY what the "core" is. I've heard many, many different answers.

I would suggest considering the "upstream / downstream" aspect. That is, if your lower back is painful, look at the areas immediately above and below. Learn to mobilise (not just stretch) the following muscles and you will do no wrong:

Thoracic spinal extensors.
Pectoralis
Anterior deltoid
Trapezius group
Rotator cuff.

Think about your standard riding posture and you will probably see that the joints that these muscles act upon tend to be fairly unchanging. Your upper back will probably be slightly hunched and your shoulders will be "turned in" - or internally rotated. This will, over time and without regular attention, cause tightness and lead to the upper back and shoulder joint becoming immobile. This lack of mobility can see your body seek movement or compensation elsewhere and in this case it COULD be your lower back.

Similarly, the repetitive nature of seated riding means thousands of motor movement patterns that, again, over time can tighten up the muscles of the hips and legs. Immobility in these muscles could again mean that the lower back (now upstream of the problem area) has to compensate.

Therefore also look to mobilise ALL muscles from the belly button down - front and back!

If you think about it, we essentially ride in the foetal position. The opposite position to this would be the bridge exercise position:

http://jennfit.ca/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/0...

If you're nowhere near to being able to do this, you might be able to at least be able to identify where the tightest muscles are. It should also give you an idea as to how the standard riding position puts you in an unnatural position (which no amount of expensive bike fitting will undo).

A good source for mobilisation is Kelly Starrett. If you look him up on youtube.com and search Kelly Starrett hip mobility (or t spine, hamstring etc) you can get some great info.

Of course you should also consider seeing an expert such as a physio or osteo. I wouldn't recommend a chiro (won't go into the dramatics as to why) but a good physio or osteo should be able to help you quickly identify the issue and provide you with an action plan.

Finally, next time you think about going for a ride, perhaps, just this once, leave the bike alone and dedicate the time to a full mobility session.

Best of luck with it.

spindog's picture

I recall listening to a talk presented by one of the sports physios who had worked extensively with the AIS cycling teams. If I recall correctly she mentioned the most frequent caused of back pain for cyclists was having their seat too high. First step try dropping your seat at least 1.5cm or 2cm and stick with this for a few rides. btw her name is Chris Wisby-Roth and you can find more information at http://www.takecontrol.com.au/physios/trish

Rob's picture

1.5-2cm sounds like a large amount to adjust your seat by. Especially without knowing more.

IMHO it's dangerous advising people to change anything on their bike without actually knowing what cause of the problem is. As has been said above, many different people could show the same symptoms but with many different causes.

Think the OP should study bike fit, or, if the cash isn't a problem, invest in a professional bike fit and/or physio to diagnose & correct their issue.

hawkeye's picture

Agree with Rob. In my case the saddle on my dually was _lifted_ by a net 20mm, and the bars changed to suit, but that was the final piece of the puzzle provided by an expert that also involved
¤ core strength, specifically a program of exercises designed to address my specific postural weaknesses and.muscle recruitment imbalances
¤ certain stretches,
¤ advice on what stretches and exercises to avoid,
¤ better shoes rhat my heels don't slip out of,
¤ Body Geometry insoles...

... which took time, sweat, and a few pair of expert eyes to get to piece by piece, all of which is directly attributable to sitting on my arse 8 hours a day for a couple of decades. All of the pieces needed to come together.

Martin Krause my physio through much of that process euphemistically called me "complex" Laughing out loud

You might not experience the same basket of issues (I hope!).

What I'm getting at here is that if you are already having issues you can't see yourself ride and getting expert help can help shortcut the process.

Without their help id still be limited to rides of less than 40 minutes because of the discomfort, nor be able to stand still for longer than 10 minutes because I'd still be treating the symptoms and.not the causes.

StevieG's picture

A wealth of advice as always thanks. I think a more thorough pre-ride stretch regime would be beneficial but it sounds like going to see a specialist might be the go. Hawkeye, thanks for posting your bike fit videos - it certainly seems helpful being able to view your own posture and I'd be interested to analyse mine without trying to watch myself in shop windows!

PeterPan's picture

This may only work for me but as long as i surf a couple of times a week i dont get any back pain, no matter how long a ride is. As mentioned by someone previously if you look at someone on a bike they are hunched over, chest and hips closed. Surfing is the total opposite, quite literally from head to toe. One seems to cancel out the other. Just a thought.

hawkeye's picture

Balancing a board between your legs while waiting in the lineup for the next wave is also good for your core stability and pelvic floor muscles.

Matt P's picture

..to show that stretching prior to exercise has any benefit. The effects tend to last 20 minutes assuming you then do little exercise following the stretch (as opposed to jumping on a bike for 2+ hours). There is also evidence to suggest that STATIC stretching prior to exercise (even when warmed up) can negatively affect performance.

Per above, understand the difference between stretching and mobility. Its like getting a XC hardtail and a DH bike and saying "they're practically the same".

By all means have a bike fit but also understand that if, mechanically speaking, your body is weak / unbalanaced / immobile there is a risk of them fitting you in that condition and therefore missing the point.

I'd suggest your order of priority would be to see a spinal specialist who can actually diagnose the issue, create a rehab plan, then get the bike fit done.

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