Surgery recovery and bike commuting

[jessmarimba]

I would look at doing some regular core exercises, too. Unless you go straight-up cruiser, slacking off in your bike posture is going to make your back hate you. Even if your commute is fairly short.

[badgercat]

I know it's been said already, but: not carrying your things on your back will go a long way to preventing issues.

My back problems (scoliosis) are not nearly as dramatic as yours, but all through college I rode around campus/town with backpacks and messenger bags on an ill-fitting mountain bike and just thought back discomfort was "par for the course." I went to grad school, got myself a better-fitting hybrid, slapped a rack (Planet Bike Eco Rack) and baskets (Wald folding baskets) on the back, and voila, no back pain (or ridiculous back sweat) on my commute. (I've linked directly to the manufacturers--you may be able to find these things cheaper from other retailers, and of course, there are other brands to choose from too.)

People have mentioned panniers; this is a good option. However, baskets (though it probably does make your bike heavier overall than riding with special bike bags) appealed to me as a student because I could just stick my regular backpack in the basket, and once I got to school, I could carry it into my classes like normal. If I use my bike for grocery shopping, reusable or paper bags fit very nicely in the baskets, etc.

Are you actually shopping for a new bike--if so, can you give an idea of your budget? and/or do you have something that you ride now--if so, can you tell us a bit about it so we can see what you're used to, to figure out what might work better? Some very nice bikes have been suggested here, but being a student myself, I know that at the time I got it, buying my sub-$500 hybrid was a stretch on my budget--a $1000+ touring bike would have been completely out of the question.

ETA: this is the bike that I commute on, to give you some more ideas of the types of things people here ride. Trek 7.2 FX WSD

ETA2: Welcome to the forum! I just noticed this was your first post.