Did a oly last Sept and had a flare up in my hip the day after. Went to the doctor and PT and was starting to get better after 5 weeks then everything went when I was weightlifting and it got real sore with pain radiating down the leg. MRI confirmed a herniation at L5/S1. Not much better after 5 weeks then got an epidural Dec 3rd and felt a lot better since but I still get tinges and faint aches in the butt and hamstrings every now and then and my back gets tired and sore. Haven’t been able to do much except walk a little on the treadmill and it’s driving me crazy. I am pretty functional overall and never was to the point of being down for the count.
I didn’t have the most aggressive fit on my tri bike so my question to those with a herniation is did you have to give up the tri bike, go less aggressive, more aggressive, go to a road bike or worse yet give up biking. I plan on getting a new fit this spring but this is a concern in the back of my mind right now. Second winter injured on top of it.
my position slightly less aero, added a spacer or two, but really worked on tight hip flexors and forward pelvic tilt (desk job all my working life). i’m over 65 and disk bulge & facet issues greatly reduced over time. i would check mobilitywod for hip flexor issues. of course good bike fitter could help but in my opinion it is more than just bike fit.
my position slightly less aero, added a spacer or two, but really worked on tight hip flexors and forward pelvic tilt (desk job all my working life). i’m over 65 and disk bulge & facet issues greatly reduced over time. i would check mobilitywod for hip flexor issues. of course good bike fitter could help but in my opinion it is more than just bike fit.
From what I read hip flexors, hamstring, glute and core work are very important. I’ll check that site out, thanks!
I did two things
1). Spent the better part of 9 months making my core strength as good as it could be.
2) Bought a Tri bike (p2c) and got a professional fit.
I still have to work hard on my flexibility and a repeat MRI last month after 10 years shows my back is still pretty diabolical, but I’ve done a bunch of LC races and raced the TDR last year with minimal discomfort. Pilates is seriously your best friend!
Did a oly last Sept and had a flare up in my hip the day after. Went to the doctor and PT and was starting to get better after 5 weeks then everything went when I was weightlifting and it got real sore with pain radiating down the leg. MRI confirmed a herniation at L5/S1. Not much better after 5 weeks then got an epidural Dec 3rd and felt a lot better since but I still get tinges and faint aches in the butt and hamstrings every now and then and my back gets tired and sore. Haven’t been able to do much except walk a little on the treadmill and it’s driving me crazy. I am pretty functional overall and never was to the point of being down for the count.
I didn’t have the most aggressive fit on my tri bike so my question to those with a herniation is did you have to give up the tri bike, go less aggressive, more aggressive, go to a road bike or worse yet give up biking. I plan on getting a new fit this spring but this is a concern in the back of my mind right now. Second winter injured on top of it.
I ruptured L5S1 and L3/4 a few years ago. Re-injured them trying to ride too soon and long story short spent a year off the bike doing massive PT. I am back riding close to the way I used to including what I think is a fairly aggressive TT position on a new bike! I sold my old one thinking I’d never be able to ride again. The key was strengthening muscles used to stabilize my spine. From what the medical experts said, some muscles were not even engaged. Anyways, here is what I wrote on another site:
originally posted by Woodys737: As a sufferer of low back disc ruptures I just wanted to say that you can hurt discs on any kind of bike. Yes, even on a nice hybrid bike which sits you up nice and tall. Learning how to sit, fit and pedal a bike sounds innate (it is to a degree) but, to combine sit, fit and pedaling with injury prevention in mind is not so innate. Proper pelvic tilt and being more stretched out has helped me along with a ton of physical therapy learning how to strengthen muscles used to stabilize the spine.
I currently ride a Felt F series frame and just purchased a TT bike. I would consider both aggressive. I really believe many riders are too bunched up (cockpit length) which causes a lot of low back curvature and therefore pressure on the discs. Think slouching. It’s possible, once recovered, you may need to raise the seat and stretch out. JMO/E Good luck
I have 3 bad lower disks, strengthen your core, work hamstring back flexibility, ride as low as you can, less force goes into the discs the lower (not necessarily slow twitch low, but around 19-21 deg worked for me) and more stretched out you are.
I just read your post better, my back flares up the worst when descending on a road bike and hard braking, all the load seems to compress the discs, granted I only ride the road bike 1500 miles a year, most my volume is on TT bike so it’s pretty small volume on the road bike, but ituses more of the rear of the core and the TT bike more the front of the core and skeleton. At least to me. Whoever posted about gluteus and or hip flexors is also correct. That helped me a lot.
Thanks everyone. I have a photo from riding last summer that is similar to what I did for this last race. As you can see, I’m not very aggressive. Looks like I have a tendency to round my back and I imagine the more miles I ride, the more I get lazy.
one important aspect is hamstring/hip flexibility. if you can’t rotate the pelvis forward then you curve the lumbar spine more, if you can rotate the pelvis then the lumbar spine is not under strain. you need to check not only position but saddle (type and level) and pelvis contact points. also, you need a comfortable arm position. the more weight you can put on the arms and butt then the more relaxed your back will be.
good luck
