Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/03/12/maintaining-my-target-weight-a.html
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Can’t you play Fortnite (or Apex Legends) whilst on your exercise bike?
I wish. The kind of riding Spin classes encourage is a lot of up and down – I need my hands on the bars.
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Have you ever gone to see a physical therapist or even a trainer that knows what they are doing about your back pain?
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I’ve been through tons and tons. I refused to let them operate on my spine.
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Well I hope things continue trending in a good direction for you. Back pain is awful.
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Good luck old chap! Remember your core exercises, the body core has been the road to recovery in my bad back of a life. I learnt many a good home core regiment on youtube’y.
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I only skimmed your article, but I can’t see that you mentioned your position on the bike. Poor fit is the most likely cause of your lower back pain. It is worth paying a cycling instructor to help you dial in the seat, handlebars etc.
Next sort out your hamstrings with some yoga/stretching exercises.
Ignoring the pain could in the worst case lead to long term injury.
Spinal Stenosis and deteriorating disc disorder, along with bad posture, lots of air travel, sleeping in bad positions, smoking, drinking and all the various things I did up until I could no longer do them without pain (physical or emotional) are responsible.
I’ve been spinning for years, both in classes and at home. My first job was repairing bicycles and I used to road ride competitively. I am pretty sure my form and set up pass muster. Riding while actively in spasm or with a recent injury is generally not good/must be done very carefully.
I would not have wound up in pain again had I not had to sleep on the floor next to my recovering from Tibial Plateau Leveling for three weeks dog. He started licking the sore knee area 2 weeks before surgery, during our Xmas holiday, and I had to keep him from getting the skin infected and the surgery cancelled. Post-op he was a big baby and wouldn’t let me sleep in a bed for 3 weeks. He is finally letting me sleep without one arm out of the bed on him. 99% of the the time he is SO SNUGGLES but 1% of the time he goes into EXTERMINATE mode.
Also – two spine specialists have told me not to do yoga unless I can find a yoga instructor who is also certified/licensed at physical therapy and has reviewed my MRIs. Pilates with an instructor and a reformer is great – but I prefer the exercises given to me by my last set of Physical Therapists (as referenced in the post and above.) I get PT prescribed and insurance helps pay for it, which makes pilates with an instructor accessible if I am willing to go see my doctor for the write-up. I prefer to do what I am doing at home and feel better than I did when I had regular PT.
Another favorite: traction. Traction does not work for me, but gravity based traction does… Hanging upside down like a bat is fun. GO FIGURE???
I try to write in a manner that explains what works for me, but does not insist it will work for everyone.
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Why am I so annoyed with paleton marketing of sticking exercise equipment in picture windows?
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Omg, thank you so much! Im not alone in amusing myself with anger over a stationary bike.
They guy who created that thread to me he ALMOST used my image, not realizing that isn’t a Peloton and I had made a convenient joke.
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Spinal stenosis diagnosed at age 40 with major spinal decompression surgery and fusion over 6 vertebrae (thoracic - extremely rare). I am still working to overcome limitations almost 8 years later. I sometimes regret the surgery but it was either that or paralysis.
Add in early onset arthritis and hip impingement and it’s a miracle I can even walk (one hip replaced already and putting off the other).
I so wish I could ride a bike again. It was one of my supreme joys as a younger man logging thousands of miles on my titanium steed. I keep my old bike hanging on the wall as a motivator to reclaim the saddle someday.
With that said, I hit the gym 4-5 days a week focusing almost exclusively on stretching and strengthening my core. I do a bastardized version of yoga for about an hour a day and after 6 months or so am finally starting to feel some progress. I often feel that I have to work twice as hard to get half as far though.
I have no illusions about being 100% pain free. I have good days and bad days. Keeping the weight off and eating healthy has made a huge difference in my quality of life.
On top of all the other shit I also have a herniated disc in my neck.
Found this on Amazon and it’s really helped. Doesn’t take much. A few mins a day does wonders.
https://www.amazon.com/NeckPro-II-Cervical-Traction-Device/dp/B003DLV9IU
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