Anyone riding with lumbar issues?

[moon]

Like many I have some good pain relieve drugs, however, I believe pain is natures way of telling you to stop, therefore when my body says it has had enough I listen and act accordingly.

WORD

[Dee Duble Yuh]

And here's another who's had a discectomy! Fortunately my surgeon was a biker and knew a thing or two.

The following works for me, but the cause of your back problems might differ so this might not work. The key for me is to "suspend" my spine between my shoulders and hips. Sitting bolt upright is bad, but having a curved-forward spine is also bad.

• The reason an upright seating position is wrong for me is that I need to spread my weight with a slight lean-forward onto the bars to relieve the weight on the base of the spine.
• The problem with a sport bike is that my knees are so bent it causes the hips to roll backwards thus curving the spine.
• The Varadero is perfect because it has a long saddle so I can slide my backside back, distribute my body-weight between butt, feet and hands, hips rolled forwards, and "tail" (coccyx) pointing towards the rear light not the footrests.

Try it! It might feel a little unnatural at first, but if you persevere, you'll find that the air flows more cleanly, you can reach the bars more easily, you won't ache so much, and you'll avoid damaging your spine.

I also move my body from time to time. Holding one motionless position causes a build-up of lactic acid that makes muscles ache. This can be dispersed simply by moving my head when I look in the mirror, occasionally moving my shoulders and arms, wiggling my toes and so on.

I agree with cookingfat about pain relief. If I don't feel the pain I won't realise when I'm causing (long-term?) damage.

Although the Varadero is criticised for being over-weight (by me mostly!), the advantage is that you get a smoother ride. On a small bike I might be 40% or more of the total vehicle-and-rider weight; on the Varadero I'm about 21% of the total weight. Add luggage and it's beautifully smooth.

Oh, and welcome to the forum.

[phil w]

Guess the upright position of bikes like TAs and the like are far better for the back. Mine suffers from years of front row rugby and the extra Derby also
I still find a TA seat to be not so comfy, and for me it because the change in seat levels is right where I want my arse to be so its going for a re trim. The XRs style seat is far better for me although it lacks long range cushioning. So everybody's different. You need to try

[Dee Duble Yuh]

... Although the Varadero is criticised for being over-weight (by me mostly!), the advantage is that you get a smoother ride...

... trip details. One is down to Gambia ... The other is a first leg to the Rodolpi mountains in southern Bulgaria ...

BTW my mention of the Vara wasn't meant as a recommendation for those trips. It would be fine for Bulgaria, maybe even Libya, but less than ideal for the Gambia. Also I believe the Vara isn't sold in the USA so obtaining spares might be difficult.

I agree about the TA's saddle. For me it's too restrictive and doesn't allow me slide back far enough to lean onto the bars. A test ride is the only way to find out how it suits you.

[Orson]

Sorry for the late reply guys and thank you very much for taking the time.

The riding position mentioned I can completely understand. My body and mind are already conditioned to what's gone on with my spine after receiving comments on my posture when lifting heavy items or general movement when undertaking activities where the spine is key, so adopting posture is second nature hopefully!.
Saying that I never thought about a seat contour being restrictive to the perfect position and is something I need to look at. After market seats, suspension and bars are all things to consider.

What I'm going to do is try both the At and Ta then take it from there. I have to say that even though not fashion victim I can't help but admire the red white and blue 2001(?) At. When I find one of those and a Ta late January I may well be posting with what I have in the garage

Thanks guys. Great info!

[angelo]

Hi

Any of you guys tried an Inversion Table - basically you hook in your feet and pivot over to end up hanging upside down. This stretchers your spine. My wife had a severe back problem and they were talking operation - thinning discs.

I got here one of these - 10 mins a day hanging upside down and in he space of 4 weeks the difference was unbelievable.

Here back is now much better and as long as she does this every day gets very little trouble.

I got mine on ebay new - reduced from £279 to £59 !!!

Angelo

[Warthog]

Any of you guys tried an Inversion Table -

When I had my back problems one of those was my idea od heaven: never got one, but dreamed of how nice it would feel.....
mmm, stretchy, mmmmm.....

[Orson]

I've heard good things about them Angelo. I imagine inverted tables to be a mild form of traction which would stretch the thinning discs. One thought on this and I don't mean to be negative, but inverted tables are a very short term remedy, ie: daily use for daily relief. One of my concerns in my late 30's was getting in the operation room for the correct procedure before I'm past the age of benefit to society. I make it sound as though us humans have a knackers yard but I'm afraid its true in some surgeons minds. To some surgeons the older you are the more final an operation you'll be offered such as a fusion, which is irreversible.
I'd always recommend getting a consultation with a good neuro surgeon whilst at an age where you'd receive years benefit and maybe less invasive surgery.

To be honest Angelo it sounds as though she's benefit from a discectomy. Its non invasive and no metal parts go in, just bad bits and possibly some bone removed from channelling out the discs to give the nerve somewhere protective to lay, rather than being pinched between thinning discs. I don't regret it one bit.

Good luck though and great to hear she's got daily relief.