Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - is it ok to bike on a hybrid if i suffer from lower right back pains ?

is it ok to bike on a hybrid if i suffer from lower right back pains ?

the back pain is due to being hit from behind in December 2007. i have been seeing a chiro. pain is still there just not at the same intensity. i have also had pain in my upper right back though thats pretty much gone.

i'm just hoping i'll be ok to bike

I don't see why not, but ask your doctor first. I suffered from many instances of back pain BEFORE I began riding. In the past two years I have had no back pain! ***Knocks on wood three times***

Depends on the cause of the back pain. You might want to look at a recumbent bike as well.

The place I work out is next to ironically my LBS. This past Monday night we actually did some of my working out outside with my trainer. I shared the back parking lot with the bike shop, which had about 2-3 folks out there doing extended test rides on bikes. See if you can find a place where you can do some longer-term test riding on a bike and see how it feels for you.

After reading here I got jealous and wanted a drop-bar road bike or cyclocross bike. After doing the testing as I talked about above I realized that it's still a dream, but my body "ain't" ready for that yet, so I got a hybrid (my bike's frame geometry is the same as their "comfort" road bikes - like a Trek Pilot or Giant OCR, but with flat bar and a more upright position). My "100 lb" weightloss present will be to go try a true roadie again, and if I'm more comfortable, I have the green light from the Mrs. to buy one.

Ride and Test and ride and test. Obviously check with your MD as well.

A lot depends on the specifics of the pain you're experiencing. Generally, a lot of people find leaning forward a lot to be rough on their back; I find a more upright riding position to be murder on my back and posterior. Maybe a hybrid would be a nice cross between the two; maybe something with an adjustable stem so you can experiment?

The only thing I do not like about a hybrid was the shock absorber seat post. I would dump the seat post and replace with a regular seat post if that is what the hybrid has that you are looking at. I found the seat would squirm around quite a bit which I did not care for. You can also get a pretty upright riding position on a MTB. Add slicks to a MTB and you are ready for the road. Add trekking handlebars and that will give you more hand positions.