Lower backpain+dual suspension

[Mojoman]

I have been riding my old donkey GT HT for almost 3 years and near on 14,000km without any real lower back pain to speak of (except when I first bought it). I recently bought a dual suspension and have noticed over long uphills (like coming up Breedts from the Shebeen side) that I have some lower backache, is this because my body is getting used to the ride and feel of a dual suspension or do you think is there more to it? I have ridden Breedts on my GT hardtail numerous times and have not had backache like this. I have done around 150km on the dual so far. I ride around 4-5 times a week and do some weights and running in between 2-3 times a week so i cant see it being because I am unfit? Begining to think the dual was a mistake!

[Robodog]

Sometimes the 'sag' of a full sus changes the geo slightly (especially on an uphill) so that angles become more relaxed (the full sus may havemore relaxed geometry to begin with too) and causing you to use more of your hamstrings, butt and lower back rather than your quads. Have you tried locking out to combat this?

 

If not, it may be the set up of your new bike... Or because it is heavier you need to push harder from your lower back. It may even be all of the above.

[Mr SingleTrack]

A duel sus should be better for your back. All I can think of is check your setup. The geomitry on both bikes will be different so my guess is your back might just need some time to get used to it. I hope you get it sorted man

[Mojoman]

Thanks, will carry on a see how things go otherwise I think maybe I must go for a bike fit. I have tried to match saddle height/foreward&backwards and stem height etc to match my old bike.

[DaLoCo]

My lower back pain went away with a small change to setup, ie. shorter stem. I would think that your issue would also be setup related (not necessarily stem related), so have that checked.

[Dirtbreath]

You are just getting old and lazy.

 

For serious advice refer to above.

[Mojoman]

You are just getting old and lazy.

 

For serious advice refer to above.

Am with you on the old bit here!

[SwissVan]

Thanks, will carry on a see how things go otherwise I think maybe I must go for a bike fit. I have tried to match saddle height/foreward&backwards and stem height etc to match my old bike.

 

Have you measured the seat height vs bar height difference?

Maybe there is a larger drop from seat to bar height on your DS, even a slight increase of a few mm's can make a difference in older folk...

[jmaccelari]

Apparently dual sussers are bad for your back. I originally heard thid from Jacky van Eeden who was told by his orthopaedic surgeon to ditch his dual susser when he had back pains and it worked. I also suffer from lower back pain and my chiro (who is an avid MTBer) has also told me to stick to hardtails. Apparently you rely more on your legs for shock absorption on a hardtail, whereas on a dual susser you sit more and the shock goes right up your butt and into your back...

[P.A.K.]

This makes a lot of sense. In a recent race I noticed how how little I lift my butt compared to other riders who have hard tails

Edited September 26, 2012 by P.A.K.

[rudi-h]

I broke my back in 2005, so since then I am pretty sensitive to back-pain in general and won't consider to ride a bike that makes my back ache.

 

I'm riding a full sus with a relaxed geometry and absolutely no back pain. I might be wrong, but as far as I'm concerned its purely a matter of correct setup.

[Konaman]

Setup related - check handlebar to seat distance - stem length or seat rail position ? Try different setups; Do lots of back exercises a few times a day. Could even be the bed you sleep in, that's to soft.

[Robodog]

Also check rebound speed on the rear suspension. While the rear is compressing your set up is 'out' and if the rebound speed is too slow it can go lower and lower over bumps.

[V12man]

I think the hard tails force you to use your core muscles more, so you get better lower back support from your musculature - of course you could sort out the core strength in the gym, but that would be boring.

[Robodog]

I think the hard tails force you to use your core muscles more, so you get better lower back support from your musculature - of course you could sort out the core strength in the gym, but that would be boring.

 

You are correct. Once you are in shape you rarely have any of these problems. I had a disc removed from my spin when I was 16 and still went onto race road quite competitively. Muscles sometimes became a little stiff but not for long. That's one of the main reasons why I read up so much about biokinetics and physiology etc.

 

Nowdays its a different story and my back takes lots of strain but I know when I get back into proper shape it will be easier to manage again.

[CJVDM]

+1 on bike setup. rather fork out the little bit of cash and get it done professionally, it should make a difference. i changed from ht to dually approx 2 months ago and had by setup done before the bike rolled out the shop, no issues yet