Been riding a lot more than usual of late – both road and mountain – and I’m getting a lot of pain between my shoulders. Particularly on the road bike.

What’s the accepted wisdom for tackling this from a position point of view?

And also, does anyone else find they ride with their shoulders shrugged/hunched? I seem to do this a lot (doubtless causing the pain), and I’m keen to hear tips for stopping this.

Thank you 🙂

Increase core strength and stretch your hamstrings and hip abductors more

what he said – bend from the hips and keep the back straight

perhaps raise the bars initially so you’ve got the proper posture and as you strengthen your core and get more range then lower things again

And also, does anyone else find they ride with their shoulders shrugged/hunched?

Yes! (on the road, anyway)

For me a shorter stem helped on a medium frame. New bike was a small with same overal reach as old medium with the shorter stem. Haven’t had a problem since I sorted my geometry out. Maybe drop the saddle a bit might also help. It’s worth experimenting, trying a few different things were all different sizes.

And also, does anyone else find they ride with their shoulders shrugged/hunched?

It’s more aero 🙂

Shorter stem on the road bike.

Shorter stem on the road bike.

This. You aren’t flexible enough to lean forward, so you raise your arms to compensate – the hunching is the consequence. Had the same problem with a lot of pain the following day. then dropped from a 120 to a 100 stem and all was fine.

Longer stems put more weight over the front wheel and help with handling, but if the stem plus top tube is too long, you will hunch your shoulders. Classic hols the phone in the neck injury.

Agreed with the shorter stem, fitting one 20mm or so shorter sorted the neck and shoulder discomfort for me.

same here – shorter stem

Really try not to hunch up the shoulders as it compromises shoulder stability. Go for a good hip hinge and straight back, I’ve read (and can see validity in the argument) that the pro roadies who ride hunched over are willing to compromise their bodies (long term back health) to get better aerodynamics. Dont copy them.
Try this: http://enduromtbtraining.com/blog/one-big-move-that-can-dramatically-help-your-riding
I’ve seen it suggested that you should imagine pulling each shoulderblade towards the opposite back pocket.
This guy has good stuff on shoulder stability: http://www.bikejames.com/strength/dont-forget-your-upper-body-core/
Also google “Foundation Training youtube” some good worthroughs there. e.g. look at http://youtu.be/Bsbz8qxPGNs
IMO it’s best to get flexibility sorted rather than spending on bike fit. This may not be you, but no good getting a bike fit if you can’t touch your toes with a reasonably straight back. There’s something called functional movement screening that’s interesting in this arena.
Hope it helps.
Neil

3 years ago I virtually stopped riding due to upper back pain which then would propagate into neck agony so bad at the end of a ride I could not lift up my head. It crept up on me. First on my TT bike, then road bike and lastly on mtb bike. I saw several different physios and bike fitters. I am now near fully recovered. Here is what I learnt..

– when you wife mentions to you that you have a “hump” developing on your shoulders, don’t get hissy and ignore them. She is probably right and don’t delay
– bike fit can be used as a temporary measure to relieve symptoms such as using a shorter stem etc, but it is not the solution long term
– bad posture during work time creeps up on your muscles over the years leading to poor range of movement and complete incapability to trigger. I had not noticed that I could not touch my hand above my head even though I was race fit and work outside
– jumping into “the next super exercise” such as pull ups or the video above just does not sort the issue out and typically causes more problems as you do not understand the real issue
– fixing muscles when they get into this bad state takes a long time. It took 8 months of the tiniest/easiest exercises
– bad posture and muscle degradation can be fixed. My hump is gone, I can TT and road in aggressive positions again

Go see a physio and keep looking until you find someone who understands the problem.

Good luck 🙂

I’ve mentioned this a few times recently, but Pilates is excellent for core strength and mobility.

Go see a physio and keep looking until you find someone who understands the problem

if you’re near Leeds i can recommend one

Thanks everyone – really appreciate the pointers.

It’s the old chestnuts of core strength and flexibility, but in fairness that does make sense.

Same issue here but only on longer (50m plus road ridesAs a test, would sliding the saddle 20mm forward mimic running a shorter stem?