Do you experience pain or numbness in your neck, back, arms, hands or legs while riding? Would you like to ride your motorcycle without pain or fatigue? Are you passionate about riding your motorcycle but you have had neck/back surgery and aren’t sure if you should ride? Here are a few simple things to consider and changes you can make that will improve your riding comfort and bring the fun back into your riding experience.

1. Back Position

If your back begins to hurt during your ride, it could be because your back is out of sync with your arm and leg positions as you sit in your motorcycle seat. The human body was designed to operate best when all of your parts are in line with one another. Your motorcycle seat should promote this. Chiropractors perform adjustments on folks who have performed tasks without keeping their body in line with itself. Your spinal column can be out of line, causing pain, discomfort, and numbness in your legs. If you experience any of these symptoms apart from during motorcycle riding, your body is out of line. Consult a doctor and possibly see a chiropractor for help.

If you only experience these symptoms during motorcycle riding, it stands to reason that you are riding your bike in a seat position that is putting your body out of line with itself. The three positions (back, arm and leg) are going to be determined somewhat by which style of bike you ride and your motorcycle seat style. Of course, your sport bikes are going to be geared for more athletically fit riders, or at least for riders who are well accustomed to this position of riding. With either sport or touring style bikes, simple changes to your seat position can eliminate back pain and fatigue. These changes include raising or lowering your motorcycle seat (if this is possible on your bike), changing the type of motorcycle seat you are using, moving your handlebars closer or further from your body and motorcycle seat, or moving your foot rests to match your back position. Try to keep in mind that you want your body to be in line with itself as much as possible. Make your bike and motorcycle seat comfortable for you. Do you feel like you have to reach too far for your handlebars during normal riding? This will affect your lower back, for sure. Try adjusting your handlebars closer to your body and motorcycle seat. Of course, every bike is different, so you will have to look into your bike’s specific adjustment capabilities. Try adjusting your foot pegs/rests to a more comfortable position in relation to your motorcycle seat.

Consider this suggestion and implement as it as much as you can, and you are sure to improve the quality of your ride. After all, who wants to suffer when there is so much of life to be enjoyed from the back of a bike!