Bike fit or frame problem?

[Tuckervill]

I'm guessing you're having back pain when you're not on the bike, too? I'd work on it from that angle first. Bulging disks were probably not caused by poor bike fit, although that could have exacerbated it.

I've had disks repaired twice in my back, so I feel ya. Core strength, stretching like SW said, strong hams and quads...that's the insurance that keeps your back in good health. I'd work on the back issues off the bike first.

Karen

[acutrainer]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I really do appreciate your comments! Great advice and I will start moving things SLOWLY on my bike.
I did have a professional bike fit - twice by a former Olympic racer. Apparently he's the best in our area.
I was a former gymnast in my "younger years" so I imagine that predisposed my back to a weakness, in addition to bodybuilding through college (& beyond). I do stretch and use the foam roller. I should do it daily, but right now it's an honest stretch every other day. I have tight psoas and hyperflexible hamstrings which does lead to a torque in my hips, which changes the pull of my muscles on my sacrum. Thus, muscle imbalance causes my back pain. Yes, it does hurt sometimes when I'm not riding, but totally not to the degree of riding. 60-minutes of climbing the stairs at Harvard Stadium with no pain. 12 miles on my bike and pain starts.
I'm sure the bulging disks are a result of years of combined hard training, not just the biking.
Thank you again SO much for your insight. I appreciate it so much!

[KnottedYet]

I'd suggest adding a sports med PT or a PT who also does bike fit into the mix.

In all likelihood, your posture on the bike is off more than your bike fit is off.

A bike fitter can make sure your bike is set up correctly, but sometimes it takes a PT or fitter with PT-type background to be sure your body is set up correctly!

(and climbing stairs has the lumbar spine sustained in a very different degree of flexion than sitting on a bike, so I'm not at all surprised you can climb stairs fine.)

[NbyNW]

What everyone else said, plus --

Back injuries are finicky creatures. I found with my own injury that it's been a three steps forward - two steps back process. Sometimes it can be hard to interpret your body's signals to back off vs. push through the pain.

My big advice is to be patient, because setbacks just mean more time not doing the things you want to be doing.

Is hot/cold therapy ok for bulging disks? I've found that just a few minutes of ice massage can bring down the inflammation in my back.

Good luck!

[Mr. Bloom]

acutrainer: I've also had to deal with serious pain in my minor rhomboid (which could could be confused with the trapezius). I also have a desk job.

The source of my pain was my actually the posture I used sitting at my desk. I did four things: raised my computer monitor 6 inches, focused on holding my head more upright (my bifocals drew my head forward), started doing push ups to stretch the muscle, and did stretches that mimic push up movements.

After six months of discomfort, the pain was clear in 2 weeks.

Just a thought...it may not be the bike and may be something else needing adjustment...

[aicabsolut]

I second the advice for a PT-trained fitter. It sounds like you saw a good fitter, but he is probably still not equipped to handle your specific muscle imbalances and needs. For example, he may see that you're flexible and can handle a more aggressive setup, but maybe that isn't the best thing. Maybe it is, but you just need to learn how to sit properly on the bike such that you don't aggravate the imbalance in your pelvis. Maybe a tilt in the nose of the saddle one way or the other could help you. There are some fitting services offered at more medical type facilities (where they may have physicians and/or PTs on hand, and where you can get fitness testing done). Now the fitters there may not be as good as the one you went to, but they may understand what's going on with your biomechanics more, giving you some valuable information of how you should be trying to sit.

[Flur]

I third the advice to see a sports med doc/PT with cycling training. Since the pain is side-specific (left in the low back and right in the upper back), it's possible that you have an imbalance somewhere.