A pain in the neck

[yoyo]

Literally a pain in the neck! I've had to commute 110 miles ( one way) a couple of times over the past week and its caused me some discomfort. I'm getting a pretty severe pain where my neck meets my shoulders, it's been cold and I'm wondering if this is causing me to tense up, anyone else suffer with anything similar? Wondering if bar risers might help?

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[Davesax36]

Risers and winglets...

I use Heli Bars and factory winglets.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Could be the handlebars, but also could be the cold like you say.


Once you've run a good electric jacket and gloves, it's impossible to go back.

 

[JRE]

Thinking outside the box - have you done long runs before and/or is this a new helmet? The weight of some helmets can cause this. As many people age, they lose the curvature in their neck so the skull sits forward and adds exponential forces to the muscles in the back of the neck and upper back. The weight of a helmet only makes it worse.

 

[RonH]

To me the neck is the first thing to cause pain and always has been. Wear a good helmet, some are unbalanced and cause stress on the neck. Some jackets cause neck strain as well. Otherwise I found the neck will eventually get used to riding. Working your neck through excercise may help too. I find walking a few miles a day gets my neck stronger. I carry a GPS while walking and have walked nearly 8,000 miles in 3 1/2 years. My neck is way better because of this.

 

[OldRider]

To me the neck is the first thing to cause pain and always has been. Wear a good helmet, some are unbalanced and cause stress on the neck. Some jackets cause neck strain as well. Otherwise I found the neck will eventually get used to riding. Working your neck through excercise may help too. I find walking a few miles a day gets my neck stronger. I carry a GPS while walking and have walked nearly 8,000 miles in 3 1/2 years. My neck is way better because of this.

That works out to 6 1/4 miles a day, seven days a week, fifty two weeks a year.
Very impressive.

 

[Don in Lodi]

As already asked, is this the first time doing a hundred miles in one sitting? If you've ridden that far before, what's changed? I think you may have answered your own question, it's cold. Silk or wool scarf, or one of the man made weaves. There are many spins on the Balaklava out there.

 

[yoyo]

Thanks for the replies, I've done longer rides before but never 1 each end of work day then the same thing the next day. There is sense in all the replies, I might have to look to heated kit, I wear a long neck tube (over the head) and a thermal one but the pain is lower than it reaches. My AGV lid isn't particularly heavy but could be an issue. I've fitted winglets and a screen extension, will try risers next. I've joined gym to loose some weight, will look for some exercises that can strengthen that area, I have a rotator cuff injury that stops some movement but has no impact when riding the bike only pushing it back into the garage!

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[trainman]

try a small change to the tilt of the handlebars, i did the risers but found a small tilt towards me over stock position meant my arms bent more and long runs were less stressful, use a bit of tape to keep a note of the original position

may work, may not, but doesn't cost a bean

mark

 

[yoyo]

Cheers Mark, will try that

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[Defekticon]

I work from home, but occasionally I have to do 185-200 mile days for work and I always try to do it on my S10. I have bar risers, RDL seat, tall windscreen and winglets. Those all help. I have ulnar nerve entrapment in my right elbow and arthritis in my right shoulder that compounds the problem. Currently going through PT for those issues. It causes problems with my shoulder/neck when I ride all day. Four things help: Drop shoulders (don't shrug when you ride), Aleve, cruise control (drop your arm off the grip) and a heated vest on cold days. I can only imagine how much worse it would be if I was riding something like a concours or a sport bike.

 

[rem]

Once you've run a good electric jacket and gloves, it's impossible to go back.

::008:: Just ain't nothin' like it. Better than a bowl of stewed okra and tomatoes. R ::012:: ::015::

 

[silvergoose]

Literally a pain in the neck! I've had to commute 110 miles ( one way) a couple of times over the past week and its caused me some discomfort. I'm getting a pretty severe pain where my neck meets my shoulders, it's been cold and I'm wondering if this is causing me to tense up, anyone else suffer with anything similar? Wondering if bar risers might help?

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

YOYO a twentysomething with warm hands could remove the pain and cold, just saying.

Good Luck and rise the bars.

 

[Dogdaze]

If you have joined a gym, get a weight plate, I like the 10kg, you may want to start lighter, lie on your back on a bench. head hanging off the edge, then place a towel on your forehead (or you'll end up with a ring mark) and then the weight plate flat on the towel, then let gravity force your head down and raise it, this will strengthen the front neck muscles, do the reverse while lying on your stomach. I have used 20kgs, just to weird out the cross-fit posse ...... and it does ::025::

 

[Donk]

The 2 things that I've noticed that effect my neck are wind draft and helmet weight. In colder temps I always wear a shirt with a collar, usually flannel. This seems to help whether I use a tube or baclava or nothing. I found this to work better than most of the micro fibre stuff at keeping my traps warm. When my traps stay warm my neck stays loose and pain free. I also noticed on long rides my modular helmet tired my neck more than my conventional full face. I don't know if this is a function of weight or shape or both but my modular is now only used for running about town. Hope this helps

 

[RED CAT]

Handlebar adjustment as someone stated can be a problem. I have a problem using Bar Risers and sitting for long periods. Also toss the Beak ,if you have one on your helmet. Could also try standing on the pegs for a few miles once in awhile. If you have the ES Model, use the CC and stretch your arms and move them around. The S10 is well balanced and easy to ride No Hands on the highway. I find all of the above helps.