How to avoid back pain while cycling

On Sunday I turn 50 and I can honestly say that it doesn't bother me one bit. This is in total contrast to when I turned 40. I was really not ready to enter what people call middle age. I had just torn my ACL skiing and I had ongoing problems with my back. I just felt OLD!!

However as my 50th approaches I feel great. I am pain free, I feel that I move with greater ease and I am probably fitter and more active than I was able to be when I turned 40. In fact only yesterday I cycled 13 miles in an hour and felt great afterwards. Last week I cycled 31 miles in one go my furthest ever.

The secret of this has been the discovery of the Alexander Technique and what it can do for your general health, well being and performance.

When cycling it is important to be aware that the contact that we feel with the saddle can be used to lengthen our spine and avoid the back pain associated with hunching over the handle bars. To achieve this lengthening we need to be using the hip joint correctly. The hip joint needs to be located by finding the folding point at the top of the leg (the crease in the trousers). This acts as the hinge which we fold over as we think of our spine lengthening. If we continue to think of our spine lengthening as we cycle it can help keep us free from back pain. It will also help if you think about the muscles at the back of the neck softening and lengthening and dropping the nose just a bit to avoid over tightening the neck muscles as muscles in the neck and around the spine are integrated and work together.