A very popular sport, it is also an increasingly popular and widespread alternative to urban traffic jams. But if practiced too much or incorrectly, cycling can cause back pain.
Cycling offers many pleasures, advantages and opportunities that make it a profession for some, a diversion for others. For others still an opportunity to meet.
It may therefore be difficult to take note of a reality that, however, does not diminish or compromise all the benefits: despite its positive sides, the intensive use of the bicycle can also cause back pain.
The cause would seem to be the set of stresses that affect the spine and remaining for long periods in an obligatory position.
The most exposed categories are of course professional and amateur cyclists, who in a year ride an average of 40 thousand and 20 thousand kilometers respectively. But even those who undergo long journeys (perhaps only on weekends) without adequate training can experience occasional back pain.
Pros and cons
Cycling is not a stressful activity for tendons and ligaments, on the contrary. It is even recommended by orthopedists and physiatrists in the rehabilitation of athletes from other disciplines affected by musculoskeletal disorders. Or after surgery on the knee (meniscus, cruciate ligaments) or Achilles tendon.
The only drawback can be back pain, due to a multiplicity of factors that sometimes amplify each other, and can be divided into three main categories.
- Causes related to the athlete and his physical structure,
- environmental conditions,
- postural factors dependent on the medium.
The first group includes all alterations, congenital or acquired, of the osteoarticular apparatus: alterations in the morphology of the spine, disc disease, herniated discs, a difference in length of the lower limbs even of only a few millimeters.
All conditions that can in themselves predispose an individual to back pain in general, which is therefore only favored or “unmasked” by cycling.
The environmental conditions are represented by exposure to low temperatures and high humidity values, which mainly concerns the winter and spring periods, when athletes are subjected to harsh weather conditions.
Clearly more important and complex is the third category, which groups the anomalies of posture due to the technical-constructive characteristics of the bicycle and justifies the inclusion of the cyclist’s back pain among the so-called “technopathies”, ie pathologies to which the type of athletic gesture, the postural set-up, the type of training and the conformation of the tool or means used contribute.
To give just a few examples, the height and shape of the saddle, its alignment on the central axis, the incorrect position of the foot on the pedals, the length of the cranks and the length of the handlebar pipe that affects the posture of the cervical spine.
Comfort first
The correct position on the bike is a fundamental prerequisite for the most experienced and for beginners. It must meet two subjective requirements: comfort, in relation to the need to maintain the same position for a long time, and the right biomechanics on which the efficiency of pedaling and aerodynamic profile depends.
As an example, it should be remembered that, although the weight of the cyclist is divided for 60% on the saddle and 40% on the handlebars, the use of narrow tires with high pressure means that the stresses of the road affect the cervical-dorsal spine.
The more the cyclist maintains a rigid position, therefore, with his hands lowered on the handlebars and with arms and shoulders in tension, the more repeated and neglected microtraumas can cause muscle-tendon contractures over time, suffering of muscle bands and ligaments and therefore pain.
How to run for cover
The cyclist’s approach to back pain must be personalized and evaluated by the doctor, who has the task of excluding the presence of other diseases, planning any in-depth investigations, identifying the most appropriate strategies and preventing the chronicization of the disorder.
In general, there are four criteria that guide the therapy
- abstention from activities involving overloading of the column and, if necessary, temporary rest;
- early administration of anti-inflammatories (the use of particular types of medicated patches can be an effective solution thanks to the high absorption of the active ingredient at the site of pain) and, where necessary, muscle relaxants;
- rehabilitation and specific gymnastics to strengthen the paravertebral muscles, abdominals and buttocks;
- modification, where necessary, of habits and lifestyle (postural rules, weight control, regularity of sports activity).
Prevention and athletic training
In light of the above, it can be said that the prerequisites for prevention are two: the use of an adequate means and physical preparation, essential to strengthen all the muscles subjected to stress.
The continuous search for lightness and strength has led to the introduction in cycling of materials derived from the world of aeronautics and motor competitions that have allowed to obtain vehicles with a very low weight and extremely efficient in transmitting muscle power to the wheel.
The result has resulted in a clear improvement in performance, but also in a greater susceptibility to trauma to the joint and muscle-tendon structures, which can and must be prevented through an appropriate “customization” of the frame and the set-up of the bicycle, made possible by special kinematic analysis and simulation instruments.
The other prevention strategy consists of a correct training program: the cyclist, especially with advancing years, should dedicate from a quarter of an hour to half an hour almost every day to perform specific mobilization and muscle strengthening exercises.
Joycelyn Elders is the author and creator of EmpowerEssence, a health and wellness blog. Elders is a respected public health advocate and pediatrician dedicated to promoting general health and well-being.
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