Owie! My poor back!

[Fredwina]

No, it's not. Not sure how to advise you.

[chort]

That's never happened to me.. Do you usually have back problems? I do and I really don't get any problems from riding, though. Make sure you stretch out your back while you're riding. I like to stop every 10-15 miles and do some back stretches.

[Starfish]

I don't think it is common or normal once you get used to the bike, but I know that at the beginning of the season, especially when I start climbing on my bike rides, if I haven't been doing my ab work and lower back extensions, I get a sore back. Then, as I get stronger with more climbing, ab work, and back extensions in the gym, my back pain disappears for the season.

I don't have any history of back injury or chronic soreness, and I can do a lot of lifting, moving and so forth and consider my back pretty strong. But...

Abs and lower back muscles are among those muscles that we need for bike riding, but that bike riding does not develop. I don't know you or your history, but for me, doing abs and back extensions in the gym takes care of back pain on the bike. If I don't do them, my back can start hurting. It is predictable for me.

[KnottedYet]

Try visiting your library and check out "Treat Your Own Back" by Robin McKenzie. It's got some nice simple back stretches and explains a lot of back mechanics.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Some people experience lower back pain when they ride a bike with the handlebars a lot lower than the seat....a typical "racing" position which is often not comfortable over longer distances.

[yellow]

I had some pretty excruciating back pain last year. The culprit for me was Q factor. Once I moved the cleats on my shoes all the way out, viola, the back pain disappeared. It was an instant relief.

It could be any number of things. If you've had your bike professionally fit, then it could be something as simple as core strength or body position. But if you haven't had a professional fit, then you may want to invest in one.

Pain sucks, and it can really, really ruin your ride. I was reduced to tears several times last year not only because of the pain but because we couldn't fix it after multiple fittings, shims, and tons of core exercises (and I already had a strong core to begin with).

This, on Q factor, from Sheldon Brown:

Tread ("Q Factor")

The tread, or "Q factor" of a crank set is the horizontal width of the cranks, measured from where the pedals screw in. The wider the tread, the farther apart your feet will be. It is generally considered a good idea to keep the tread fairly narrow. There are three main reasons for this:

* The hip joint is optimized for walking, and in normal walking the footsteps are pretty much in line, with little or no "tread."

* For standing pedaling, the farther out the pedals are from the centerline, the harder you have to pull on the handlbar to counterbalance the tendency of the pedaling force to tip the bike sideways.

* The wider the tread, the higher the bottom bracket needs to be to prevent clipping a pedal while pedaling through a turn.

Older bikes were generally designed to keep tread to a minimum, but starting in the late 1970s there has been a trend to wider tread, for a variety of reasons:

* The popularity of triple-chainwheel cranksets has moved the right side outward.

* Front derailers designed for triple-chainwheels have a more 3-dimensional shape to the derailer cage, which requires more clearance between the large chainring and the right crank.

* Mountain bikes have wider-spaced chainstays for tire clearance, which requires moving the chainwheels outward so they won't hit the chainstays.

* Newer bikes with more sprockets in back move the chainline outboard.

[sundial]

Thanks guys for the tips. I rode just under 20 miles the last time and didn't have any back pain. This time is was almost tortuous. Ow! I was thinking about my cleats and I have some Speedplay Frogs on order that hopefully will help. I hope.

I don't have a history of back pain so this is new to me.

I am very flexible and practice yoga specifically for cycling. I also try to keep my tummy tucked in while I ride.

I am happy to report I don't have any knee pain but I felt a little twinge of discomfort on the left hip as well as the pain in the lower back this time. Also, is it possible I had back pain because I didn't rest enough? I did a long ride Sunday and then another Tuesday. Did I push it too hard?