Returning to riding after back surgery - spine protection / softie boot recs?

[FTA2R]

Hi,

I decided to sit out all last season (worst winter ever in the Mid-Atlantic to NOT ride!) after undergoing a microdiscectomy (July '13) to relieve sciatica due to a herniated disc (L5-S1). Even though my surgeon cleared me after 3 months, I decided to be cautious and just sit it out (and I think that was the right decision). I'm doing pretty well now, playing ice hockey once a week, though my flexibility (particularly in my legs) leaves much to be desired.

I would like to return to riding but admittedly, am quite nervous about falling on my back, particularly my lumbar area. I am definitely more nervous about riding plates simply because of the movements and required flexibility. In fact, I might even go so far as to say that the constant bending over to put my bindings on (I've always put my soft bindings on standing as well) may have been a contributor to the herniated disc. Regardless, I would like to consider riding with some kind of low-profile back protector (I'm primarily concerned with lower back) that is also reasonably priced. Can any of you make any specific recommendations based on personal experience?

Also, what are the recommended medium / stiff flex soft boots with a BOA system (perhaps a dual BOA) this year? I need to buy something soon!

I would love to get back into plates, but am just a bit nervous about it b/c I'm always a bit (sometimes a lot) hunched over when on teh carving board.

I know that some of you have debated how to deal with your back issues. In a nutshell - I am very glad that I had my procedure. The recovery was tough (mentally, for sure) but I am no longer in pain and PT wouldn't have fixed this. I have told myself from day 1 that my success indicator is for me to be back on the slopes.

thanks,

Barry

[rikytheripster]

Good to hear you're recovering well and keeping active; your nervousness is understandable!

Back issues are very individual specific but generally speaking you want to focus on core exercises to make it bullet proof.

Keeping a neutral spine position is key to maintaining health.

Stuart Mcgill's work is worth looking at, he list various exercises from beginner to advanced.

There are some good exercises in the link below, but check with your physio before doing them!

http://www.t-nation.com/training/building-a-superhuman-core

In terms of flexibility, the legs, hips, glutes are all very important as weakness / inflexibility can increase the loads on the spine.

So work on mobility but again, check with the physio first.

Hope this helps!

[John E]

I had a discectomy (?) in Nov 2012. The doctor told me to stay off the board for 2 months. I rounded down to 8 weeks and was back riding for SES2013. I've had zero problems since.

Just as a precaution, I got a spine protector. The first one I got was a vest type (I forgot the brand). I then got a deal on a POC protector. I am less aware of it. The only time I'm aware of it is on the lift.

I view it similar to a helmet: I've never needed it and hope to never need it. However I don't want to ever say "I wish I had worn my helmet (spine protector)". Brains don't heal well. Neither do spinal cords.

[Allee]

If I was buying another spine protector, it would be the POC VPD 2.0. it's made of a soft material that hardens instantly on impact, which all sounds a bit science fiction but having "tested" some mountain bike gear made with it, I can say it seems to work well. I'm sure it would be a bunch more comfortable than the armadillo I wear now.

The other thing I can recommend, if you can find it, is a tailbone protector. I had a great set of Burton soft armor that had an add-on tailbone protector on it, and it was amazing the difference it made when I "sat down hard" a few times. Alternatively, some impact shorts would probably do the same thing in padding the shock up your spine if you crash on your butt.

Good luck with the rehab, and enjoy being back on the snow!

[Neil Gendzwill]

Save your back, get yourself some step-ins!

[SunSurfer]

Background: Small prolapse at Lumbar 4-5 disc became symptomatic in August 2012. Symptoms gradually worsening over next 4 months persuaded me to get a steroid epidural in January 2013, about 3 weeks before I flew out to SES 2013. Rode 15 days straight in Aspen without issues. Symptoms returned at a lower level in April 2013, but essentially disappeared without further treatment around July 2013. I'm a anaesthetist (NZ equiv. of anesthesiologist). I work regularly with a spine surgeon doing discectomies and spine fusions. Despite that, or maybe because of it, I NEVER want to find myself lying face down on an operating table with my spine surgeon friend's face looking down at me!

______________________

Discs are pads between each bone in your spine, and the give they provide is a major part of what allows your spine to move through a range of movement. Remove one and join together the two bones on either side (spine fusion) and the amount of movement required by each individual joint around the fusion, to produce the same overall bend, is now increased.

When we bend forward both our spine bends as well as the pelvis tilting forward. If the muscles on the back of the thighs are tight then the amount of pelvic tilt is much more limited and more movement has to come from the spine. The more movement from the spine, the more squeeze load on the discs and the more likely they are to prolapse. As we get older our discs get less flexible and springy.

The general advice for spine health is to make sure that the "core" muscles are strong, i.e. the muscles alongside the spine itself, and the muscles in the front wall of the abdomen. There is plenty of information out there about building strength in these muscles. For me, working on these muscles has significantly reduced the frequency with which I get lower back muscle spasm, and when it does happen it settles down much faster than it used to.

I have very tight muscles along the back of my thighs and have since I was a teenager running/training for middle distance races & x-country events. I also have long legs for my overall height. Watching me trying to touch my toes with straight legs is an LOL experience! Many stretches that are used for these muscles seem to put strain on the lower back at the same time.

I isolate the stretch to just these muscles by lying on my back on the floor in an open doorway at home. Then I rest one foot as high as I can manage against edge of the doorway frame, the other leg resting out straight on the floor. The leg on the ground helps to hold down my pelvis and isolates the stretch to predominantly the thigh muscles rather than my back. I need to be better at maintaining a long term stretch programme, because there is no short term fix to these sorts of issues.

I second Neil's comment. The other simple way of reducing the stress on your back getting in and out of hardboot bindings is to get Intec/Fintec step-ins. I've been using step-ins since just after I started, having struggled with standard bindings and getting recurrent back muscle spasm from the movements required to bend down to get them done up.