The back pain seems to be frequent trouble among cyclists. So much that it produced vast
collection of bike fitting theories, with enormous volume of written and
filmed material, far too big to be manageable. The latest hit in bike fitting is to conduct
a sophisticated test program, as for an astronaut, where they measure your
cycling performance from toe to nose, the final result of the test being a new
cycling position which is a couple of millimeters different from your current
one. Then you are advised to cycle a few thousand kilometers in the new
position until you get used to it. If you don't want to spend few hundreds of
euros for such a treatment, you have one cheaper option from TV sales: for just
39.99 EUR you can get an elastic hamstring band that will miraculously heal
your back pain and which has a fantastic additional benefit that nobody will
notice it under your clothes. If you are too stringent even for that, I have a
costless solution for you, a simple exercise: the plank.
The plank is a static
exercise for strenghtening your back. Position yourself stretched paralel to
the floor, resting only on your toes and forearms. Hold that position for about
1 minute. Repeat 3 times with 1 minute breaks. That's all. In accordance with
my prefered life philosophy it couldn't be more simple, minimalistic and
lightweight (no equipment needed).
I do it every second
morning. I takes me 5 minutes. It works for me, I have practically no more back
pain – when cycling or otherwise. Contrary to the perception of myself as a
VIP, the facts are regrettingly showing that I am just about an average person, so if it worked for me, it should work for at
least 50% of you.
This solution has one disadvantage:
you'll have to make an effort. I think it is effective only if you go beyond
the comfort level: do the plank up to the point when you start to shake. You
can make it more enjoyable by taking 1 minute breaks in some simple and
relaxing yoga posture.
