Protecting the lumbar spine when starting out in a surfski
David Feb 17 #31038
I am getting more interested in entering the sport of surfskiing after having an opportunity to try it out locally. I've been concerned about the strain on the low back as I have had a few lumbar spine issues in the past. With proper technique and slowly conditioning, has anyone with a more sensitive lumbar spine avoided irritating the back? Does sitting close to the level of the feet make it more likely that the back becomes irritated? How difficult is it to maintain the back in a good position (assuming I am in an appropriately stable ski and receive coaching on ergonomic form)? My goal would be to work towards enjoying paddling and getting a cardiovascular workout, while not injuring my back in the process. Thanks in advance for any advice and experience you can share!
John Rybczyk Feb 17 #31039
Hi David, I'm speaking anecdotally and as a non-health expert. I too have lumbar spine issues from a life-time of digging heavy soil cores out of salt marshes. I have found that surf ski paddling has greatly helped my back and in the near twenty years I've been paddling a surf ski, I've never hurt my back paddling. The one caveat…I HAVE re-injured my back more than once lifting my surf ski on an off my car.
johnr
Kevin Olney Feb 17 #31040
David,
In 10+ years of surfski paddling, it’s never caused any pain in my lower back… until I strained my back late last year. The injury was work related and not a result of paddling but I realized how important lower back strength is to surfski technique.
I couldn’t connect any torso rotation to leg drive and the micro-adjustments necessary for balance in rough conditions were incredibly painful. I was able to continue paddling at a lower effort and in a stable boat and got back to full speed workouts in about 6 weeks. Big thanks to Kerry at Prime Sports for getting me straightened out initially.
I’d definitely recommend consulting your PT about your specific injuries, but I don’t think paddling itself is dangerous to the lower back. Shoulders are a different story…
KO
David Feb 17 #31041
For shoulders, is using the torso rotation to generate power from big back muscles (in a loosely the way one might rotate while swimming the crawl) a way to avoid blowing out the shoulders?
Tatum Nolan Feb 18 #31042
David,
I’m responding as someone new to paddling, but old to lower back pain.
My sense is that there may be many different origins for lumbar pain, some of which would carry over to paddling, and others not so much. It may be that pain from compression (e.g. too many squats at some point) is very different from pain due to lack of mobility or flexibility. Stuart McGill has a terrific video on this.
I’d echo earlier feedback to see a PT. Not sure if this is allowed on this forum but Kerry Gustafson at Prime is pretty amazing. She’s a paddler for one, so she knows the biomechanics of our sport. But even more, she is incredibly comprehensive in treating the body as a system. I’ve seen many PTs (none in Bham), most of whom prescribed a generic course of back strengthening exercises. Kerry has gone very deep with me and has identified a handful of things I need to work on that had not been on my radar.
One of the unexpected benefits of starting to paddle is that it forced me to look at some body funkiness that I had begun to think of as chronic and intractable, and then use paddling as the activity to actually fix them. That has brought me lots of joy.
More experienced paddlers than me could also weigh in on seat pads. There are cushioned inserts that you can Velcro to your seat to encourage you to avoid slumping while paddling. Here’s a video on the use and installation. The tradeoff here would be some amount of balance due to riding higher.
Regarding shoulders: Who am I to offer instruction? But… you are right that rotation helps migrate the forces to the larger muscle groups, and away from the shoulders. Beyond that, the other important factors for me have been:
The relative position of my hand, elbow and shoulder particularly on the non-pull arm. This is a repetitive motion that can cause strain. What specific muscles am I using to do this simple motion? What is the relative height of each? At exit, am I lifting water or a dry paddle? Am I loading the shoulder of the upper hand unnecessarily?
The back muscles I use to activate my pull stroke. If there is a history of shoulder pain, there may be a history of muscle imbalance, overreliance on the wrong muscles to cover for others, and asymmetrical tightness. I just ported over my shoulder imbalances to paddling. But now I’m using paddling to fix those things.
The above is just my own biomechanics, but these are the kinds of things a good PT can help identify at the beginning and work through.
Lastly: work on technique before speed. There’s an amazingly supportive community of paddlers pushing everyone to their best. I should know better, but I’m drawn to this. And I just have to remember that until I have the right biomechanics and technique that’s hammered in through repetition and muscle memory on a nice wide boat, I’ll likely hurt myself if I push harder than I should be in the middle of a summer interval session. There’s lots of folks that can pull hard right at the start, but given your initial question, it may apply to you.
Good luck!
Tatum
Paul Reavley Feb 18 #31043
David,
As you can see from the responses you've already received, we have a great community of thoughtful paddlers who would like to see you successfully discover and sustain the great fun that one can have paddling a surfski.
A couple of additional remarks about seating setups:
I have heard anecdotally that some surfski seat bucket shapes tend to encourage slumping (a problem for me) more than others - your mileage may vary, but something to possibly observe in your own tests with multiple surfskis. Also at least one surfskier with back problems has reported increased trouble with lower seats - specifically the advanced ski - Kai Wa'a Vega. But many paddlers use this ski with no apparent problem, so again your mileage may vary.
One other point - whatever you may wind up working with in terms of seat padding and clothing - you want to make sure that hip rotation is facilitated i.e. your butt and hips can rotate easily with no restriction when you apply force with your feet - pushing with your stroke side leg/heel (and for many pulling with your off side leg with your offside foot lifting up against your foot straps facilitates rotation even more). If you generate this force with your legs but your hips and butt meet resistance/interference to rotation, you will probably be creating torque in your spine that you do not want. Usually the solution amounts to slick shorts/pants and seating and if necessary some slick tape covering your seat padding (acrylic, teflon, etc.).
Paul
David Feb 18 #31044
I can definitely see how working a good plan for transport is vital. Thank you for making me aware of that hazard, and for sharing your experience.
David Feb 18 #31045
I can relate to pain and disruption to life’s activities associated with a back injury, but am encouraged by your recovery and appreciate your sharing that here. I plan to make contact with Prime Sports, as you and others have commended their expertise and commented on the quality treatment provided. Thank you for the recommendation.
David Feb 18 #31046
Thank you very much for the detailed and thoughtful reply. I am actually reading a text by McGill now and find the recommendations sensible and rooted in his and others’ research findings. The video you recommended is now next up on my YouTube queue. Also I have made contact with Prime Sports and look forward to benefiting from their expertise; thank you for the recommendation. Slow and steady progress sounds like a plan for me.
David Feb 18 #31047
I am fortunate and thankful for all the people here generously sharing their expertise and experience learning and gaining mastery of the sport. Thank you for differentiating between different designs of seat buckets. I will pay special attention to that. The tip about creating a good interface that allows for easy rotation is great and, from my few paddling demos so far, makes a lot of sense. Thank you.
Holly Rasmussen Feb 19 #31048
As a new surfski paddler and a health professional (PT) I will echo others and add a few things here.
Rotational forces to the spine, if done correctly do not add compressional forces to the spine, but, in fact create the opposite effect. This is why core work is crucial to lumbar rehabilitation no matter the injury. The core of paddling gives the support and system balance the spine is craving to balance, heal or stay healthy. I could go on forever about this, but go look up the concept of tensegrity; it is exactly what balanced forces paddling does for your spine, and whole body.
And, yeah, get a good manual practitioner PT or other professional on board to assist with the asymmetries that lead to lumbar issues.
Holly
David Feb 19 #31049
Fascinating concepts related to the mechanics of rotation in spine treatment and ongoing maintenance. I am following up on and looking up tensegrity. (The Kurilpa Bridge in Brisbane shown on the Wikipedia page on the subject does naively look spine-like to my untrained eye.) I am planning on following up your suggestion to have a PT/health professional familiar with the sport on board. Thank the interesting and encouraging expert information .
Holly Rasmussen Feb 19 #31055
Here you go!
https://www.fusion-bodywork.com/fasciatensegrity.html
Certainly hit me up for any information or local recommendations for a PT.
Holly