...probably been posted before ..question on help with slight back tightness

[Gobear]

Notice I didn't say pain..

Just turned 1000k , did my first service and went for a longer ride, stared noticing that I was experiencing a slight tightness between my shoulder blades after about 20 minutes??

A little stretching and twisting while riding seem to help, but it never really went away 100%?

My seat is set to the high position as I'm 6'2" with long legs..

Anybody figure out what causes this or how to remedy it.

Thanks

Gary

 

[magic]

I went with 30mm handlebar risers and it works for me. I'm 6'4" with long legs too. Sometimes at a gas stop I change the seat to the low position and that helps temporarily. I think the back discomfort comes from leaning slightly forward. If that doesn't help there's always Advil.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Sounds like you are pulling yourself forward, implying that bars further back and/or up may be in order.
Sit on the seat and close your eyes. Put your hands where the bars should be. Then refer to this:
http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=6749.msg281958#msg281958

 

[BadNews]

I'm 61 yo, 6'2" with long legs. My experience has been that when I get back to riding in the spring, I always have some muscle soreness somewhere. Riding is a physical activity and uses muscles in a different way than ordinary daily activities. After a few days of riding the muscles get conditioned for it again and the soreness/stiffness goes away.
So I would say give it a few more days of regular riding. However, if it doesn't go away there may be an ergonomic issue you would have to address.

 

[azb]

This is not meant to be a snarky answer, even if it sounds like one.

Try doing some upper body workouts, lat pull downs, triceps, etc.

Anytime I find my hobbies causing problems in my shoulders, this works for me.

Az

 

[snakebitten]

I'm 61 yo, 6'2" with long legs. My experience has been that when I get back to riding in the spring, I always have some muscle soreness somewhere. Riding is a physical activity and uses muscles in a different way than ordinary daily activities. After a few days of riding the muscles get conditioned for it again and the soreness/stiffness goes away.
So I would say give it a few more days of regular riding. However, if it doesn't go away there may be an ergonomic issue you would have to address.

Excellent post.

Regardless of getting your bikes ergos suitable for oneself, your point is often overlooked.

 

[EricV]

Pretty common at the beginning of riding season or when changing bikes to experience some mild discomfort as you adjust to the riding position, especially if it's a new to you bike. Let your body adjust, do some stretching before rides to loosen up and remember on longer rides to move your body position around every now and then to keep circulation moving. If you truly just 'sit there, twist that' you will get stiff and sore on a long ride. Especially if you don't have twisty sections that help make us move about a bit.

If you follow ChecksWrecks advise, and you should, it will give you an idea if the ergonomics need a little tweaking and some ideas on what you could do. Or if you want to do anything. There are various solutions to meet most needs, from free, (rotate the bars in the triple trees), to seriously expensive. Ride more before you toss money at the issue and see how your body responds. If that nagging pinch between the shoulder blades doesn't go away, risers or different bars are likely in your future. For many of us mature riders, a little more up and back helps. Especially the short torso riders.

 

[Paqard]

Had the same problem here and I'm 6'4". Only pain in the upper back between the shoulder blades which I have never had before. I had read that this was a problem for a lot of people with the sweep of the Super Tenere's handlebars and I sure had it after only 50 miles. I tried 2" Rox Risers first and that helped a lot. I then added ProTaper ATV high bars and that cured it. No pain or discomfort at all now. I do have the bars rotated all the way back with the Rox Risers.

 

[markbxr400]

I used to get this soreness when I first bought my ST pretty regularly. I did the seat leveling mod and risers, and that helped a lot. I'll still get it from time to time, but not nearly as frequently as before. I find if I twist and stretch occasionally while riding, it usually gets rid of it. I may try the new bars as well.

For lower back, coming off a cruiser with a backrest, someone recommended the "Back-a-lign" belt. This thing was a miracle for me. I can ride all day with no lower back pain whatsoever.

Scarlet Pig, I looked at the Protaper ATV high bars you mentioned. There seems to be several styles. Can you provide a link to the specific bars. Also, did they impact your cable lengths? I was able to put my risers on without longer cables, just wanting to make sure new bars wouldn't put me over the edge.

 

[mrpete64]

Besides the Rox risers my friend made me a pair of lowering backets for the foot pegs. Adjusted the brake/shifting levers and I was all set. You might also want to try a seat mod by Seth Meyers. His seat "redo" made a big difference for my butt. I agree with the above posts...when starting out the season my back and shoulders hurt a bit. Winter will do that to all of us.

 

[Paqard]

I used to get this soreness when I first bought my ST pretty regularly. I did the seat leveling mod and risers, and that helped a lot. I'll still get it from time to time, but not nearly as frequently as before. I find if I twist and stretch occasionally while riding, it usually gets rid of it. I may try the new bars as well.

For lower back, coming off a cruiser with a backrest, someone recommended the "Back-a-lign" belt. This thing was a miracle for me. I can ride all day with no lower back pain whatsoever.

Scarlet Pig, I looked at the Protaper ATV high bars you mentioned. There seems to be several styles. Can you provide a link to the specific bars. Also, did they impact your cable lengths? I was able to put my risers on without longer cables, just wanting to make sure new bars wouldn't put me over the edge.

It's listed under "Contour Handlebars" on their website. I got part # 027979. There is a large list of handlebars with all their respective measurements on one of the posts here. It is a PDF as I remember. That was very helpful in choosing. The throttle cables will be fine but the clutch and brake should "probably" be changed. Mine are only just tight at full lock and I mean full lock against the stops. This means that I don't leave the bars in that position either on the side or centerstand. Otherwise fine for the rare full lock turn I do.

 

[imsteveiv]

I get some tightness in the back when riding long distances also. Something I do to relieve the tension and stretch my back is rest one of my feet up on top of my crash bar, this stretches out the lower back. I'm 6' with about 32" inseam and the Givi crash bars are just the right height for this. Obviously riding like this looks kinda strange and I'm not in the best position to make an emergency maneuver so I only do it when the road is clear and fairly straight.

 

[Gobear]

So I've taken your collective advise ...started weights again after only shovelling snow all winter, doing more stretching, and left the seat in the high position with the seat mod installed so now it's level..

Went for a two hour ride today and my back is much better .... I guess at 64 after abusing it for a long time it's as good as it gets

Thanks...awesome forum

Cheers

Gobear

 

[Sierra1]

I've been weight/strength training for years. As we get....uh....older, strength training is not as important as endurance training. Light weight done many times. And then stretching. The belt that was used above tells us that it wasn't so much the ergonomics of the bike, as much as it was our body's "maturity". Something as simple as toe touches, once a day, for 30 seconds. Doctor suggested, it worked like a charm. Couldn't touch my feet when I started, now I can place my hands flat on the floor. Now I NEVER have back pains. ;D

 

[snakebitten]

Yaw are killing me.
I know yaw are right too.

 

[Sierra1]

Snakebitten, did you ride or trailer that KTM 500 to Romney? ???

 

[snakebitten]

I'm a big poser. 8)

 

[IslandTractor]

Aging isn't for sissies. That said, 3 or 4 advil before starting to ride should help until your back/shoulders etc are reconditioned.

 

[Gobear]

The jury is out on this one, still not convinced it's going away 100 %...

 

[markbxr400]

It's listed under "Contour Handlebars" on their website. I got part # 027979. There is a large list of handlebars with all their respective measurements on one of the posts here. It is a PDF as I remember. That was very helpful in choosing. The throttle cables will be fine but the clutch and brake should "probably" be changed. Mine are only just tight at full lock and I mean full lock against the stops. This means that I don't leave the bars in that position either on the side or centerstand. Otherwise fine for the rare full lock turn I do.

Fantastic. Thanks!