Holliswebb

I have a herniated disc at L5-S1 that I am working through with steriod shot and physical therapy. No surgery for now. I have been riding a hybrid bike but my PT guy says those days are over because riding will cause the disc to get worse. Am I done?

Seattle Forrest

No one can really say. It depends on a lot of things. But, if it comes to the worst, and you can't ride your hybrid, you can always sell it and get a recumbent.

lopek77

Same story here... taking it easy for now, no biking for few weeks, no mtb ever, my chiropractor is fixing my back on monthly basis, I'm taking aleve for pain and inflamation ...
Some months are great , and some I can't walk...

Michigan's BEST chiropractor here :
https://www.vaughnchiropractic.net/

Good luck to US!

Drew Eckhardt 

No.

I herniated L4-L5 six years ago when I sneezed too hard (the urgent care guys, doctors, and MRI tech all said it happens) and eventually it was nearly always asymptomatic (it was pretty good after a year but bad less often after two), even riding a road bike six hours a week. It started acting up a couple weeks ago although I couldn't say that riding makes it better or worse (I'm eating a lot of ibuprofen).

Pluto

I was a runner for years until I developed back problems and a herniated disc at L4-L5. I had a microdiscetomy 17 years ago and stopped running. I'm now 62 and riding both MTB and road bikes. Weekdays I ride 13 in the morning and usually 13-15 in the evenings. I try to get a longer 30-35 mile ride in on Sundays on the road bike. Everyone is different, but don't give up hope and it wouldn't hurt to get a second opinion from a sports medicine physician or two.

christ0ph

You folks might want to check out resveratrol extract from Japanese knotweed.. Its widely available, cheap and its apparently a cutting edge treatment for disc problems. I works really well - its much more effective - if you dont swallow it - instead you let the extract powder absorb into your mouth.

Be aware, though that although RSV has major promise in treating a great many diseases, it may also make people who have them test negative for them.

This is from the free PubMed Central fulltext article "The Action of Resveratrol, a Phytoestrogen Found in Grapes, on the Intervertebral Disc"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...5/?tool=pubmed

Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2008 November 15; 33(24): 2586–2595.
doi: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181883883

PMCID: PMC2905225
NIHMSID: NIHMS211550
Copyright notice and Disclaimer


"Summary of Background DataThe phytoestrogen RSV is a natural compound found in various plants including grapes and red wines. RSV has been reported to provide a protective effect on articular cartilage in rabbit models for arthritis, but its effect on spine cartilage is unknown.


Methods
We studied the effect of RSV on bovine IVD cartilage homeostasis by assessing MMP-13 (potent catabolic factor) production, proteoglycan (PG) accumulation and synthesis, and the interaction between RSV and known catabolic factors such as bFGF or IL-1. To understand the molecular mechanisms by which RSV modulates MMP-13 and PG production, we also investigated its downstream target regulatory molecules.



Results
Stimulation of bovine disc cells cultured in monolayer with bFGF or IL-1 augmented the production of MMP-13 and ADAMTS-4 at the transcriptional level and this augmentation was blocked by RSV. Incubation of nucleus pulposus cells with RSV for 21 days significantly increased PG accumulation per cell in a dose-dependent manner, increased PG synthesis, rescued PG losses induced by catabolic reagents bFGF and IL-1, and promoted cell survival to levels seen after incubation with the anabolic protein BMP7 100 ng/mL. Protein-DNA interaction array results suggest that RSV effectively suppresses downstream target molecules of bFGF and IL-1 responsible for oxidative stress, proliferation, and apoptosis.



Conclusion
Resveratrol is a potent anabolic mediator of bovine IVD cartilage homeostasis, revealing its potential as a unique biologic treatment to slow the progression of IVD degeneration. These data suggests RSV may have considerable promise in the treatment of disc degeneration.

Keywords: resveratrol, intervertebral disc degeneration, regeneration, MMP-13, anabolic

• Other Sections▼
  • Abstract
  • Materials and Methods
  • Results
  • Discussion
  • References

The lifetime prevalence of back pain in the United States is 70% to 85% with roughly 10% to 20% of the population experiencing chronic symptoms.1 Although the etiology of back pain is likely multifactorial, it has been associated with intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. 2,3 The pathogenesis of degenerative disc disease is thought to be induced mechanically and mediated biologically, often concurrent with aging changes.4 Current treatments for low back pain are mainly symptomatic or involve surgical procedures that are destructive to the IVD. Most of these treatment strategies target symptomatic relief but make no attempt to interfere with early biochemical and pathophysiologic processes involved in degeneration. As an alternative to the surgical repair or removal of a diseased disc, biologic treatments capable of promoting IVD repair and restoring physiologic function have been considered, and clinical trials for spine and joint cartilage repair are underway.5–7
The IVD consists of tough outer rings, termed collectively the anulus fibrosus (AF), and a gelatinous inner core, the nucleus pulposus (NP). This unique structure has both shock absorbing properties and the ability to resist deformation on mechanical loading. The AF is composed mainly of collagen, whereas the NP is largely composed of proteoglycans (PGs), principally aggrecan. It has been suggested that the degenerative process begins in the NP and is associated with progressive loss of PGs.8
Disc cells residing in the AF and NP regulate homeostasis through metabolic activities that are modulated by a variety of stimuli, including cytokines and growth factors acting in a paracrine and/or autocrine fashion. The cells in the normal disc of human adults maintain the matrix in which they reside at a steady state. Degeneration of the IVD may result from an imbalance between the anabolic and catabolic processes and loss of this steady state metabolism.9 IVD damage caused by mechanical injury, inflammation, or aging may change the structure of the IVD, and cause loss of matrix homeostasis by promoting catabolic pathways and/or suppressing anabolic responses. Pro-inflammatory cytokines and growth factors such as interleukin-1 (IL-1)10–12 and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF)13 have been implicated in degenerative disc disease.
The catabolic involvement of matrix metalloproteases (MMPs), specifically the pathogenic role of MMP-13 (collagenase-3), has already been demonstrated in the degeneration of the IVD.12 In addition, MMP-13 is highly expressed in several other pathologic contexts, including osteoarthritis,14 rheumatoid arthritis,15 and invasive cancer.16 It is clear that in both articular and IVD cartilage, the cells are responsible for the destruction of their own matrix via the release of destructive enzymes including MMP-13 and ADAMTS-4, a well-known aggrecanase.17 In the IVD, both MMP-13 and ADAMTS-4 act by breaking down aggrecan, the most abundant PG, leading to NP destruction and further disc degeneration.8,17,18
The phytoestrogen resveratrol (trans-3,4′,5-tri-hydroxystilbene; RSV) is a natural polyphenol compound found in various plants including grapes and red wines. The anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cardioprotective, and antitumor properties of RSV have already been well-documented.19–27 RSV is believed to be one of the compounds responsible for the health benefits of moderate red wine consumption.28,29 More recently, RSV has been reported to provide a protective effect on articular cartilage in rabbit models of OA and RA.30,31 Using these models, Elmali et al (2005) demonstrated that injections of RSV significantly decreased loss of PG and cartilage destruction in arthritic rabbit knees. However, it is not known if RSV exerts similar protective effects on degenerating IVDs.
The aim of the present study is to determine the potential benefits of using RSV to ****** the progression of IVD degeneration. Specifically, we studied the effect of RSV on IVD cartilage homeostasis by assessing MMP-13 production, PG accumulation, and PG synthesis in the bovine spine IVD, as well as evaluating whether RSV counteracts known catabolic factors such as bFGF or IL-1. To understand the molecular mechanisms by which RSV modulates MMP-13 and PG production, we also investigated the downstream target regulatory molecules of RSV...."

ezee2

I also herniated L4 and L5. After years of suffering from any normal daily activity I finally started a core strenghning program. Which is what I was always told to do but never did. Now after a year or so of 300-400 reps 4 days a week of various core exercises I am pretty much pain free and able to ride about 100 mile a week. My bike has about 7cm of drop from seat to bars which would not have worked prior to the core exercises. Remember I said pretty much pain free, you will always have some discomfort depending on your situation and how your bike is sat up.