Does anyone here road cycle with a herniated disc? Does it aggravate the condition?

The forward lean in road riding has been good for my two herniated disc's.

I have 6000 + miles so far this year.

+1

Hasn't gotten worse at all and maybe better. I do get numbness in my foot a bit but usually when I let my posture go and scrunch up. Staying relatively low and flat is best.

I have 2 in the neck and 2 in the back from car accidents.
Since I cycle they've gotten much better.
Especially the aerobar position with head raised up and shoulders locked seems to help for my neck.
I've gotten into triathlon since a year and the running and swimming seems te be beneficial for me as well.

+2
I injured my back playing hockey when I was 18. I've lived with lower back pain for 22 years. When it starts hurting now, (which has become rare) I just go for a ride. The position stretches me out in just the right place and within a few miles the pain is gone.

I also have a cervical fusion of c5-7, another old hockey injury. The heads up position still bothers me after a while but rides <50 miles are ok.

+1
I have four disks starting from L3-S1. I enjoy cycling so much I dont even remember I have back injury. It has been over 10+yrs now.

I have had two dicsonomies of the spinal surgery kind and helped with the pain but didn't cure it. My neurosurgeon said biking would be bad, I did it anyway and never looked back. I take oxycontin on a regular basis for it and stenosis.
I ride 300+ miles a month and yes, as has been posted the aero position helps.

L3-L5. Had microsurgical disectomy done on L4 and L5, since L3 was only partial. Most days, it's fine. But on the days I can't stand straight totally (when my back is not stretched out yet), i can still hammer hard on the bike without any pain. Weird.

I'm not sure if I have a herniated disc( waiting to see my doc in 3 days) but I have a bad back(& knees) from my previous job. It would keep me bed-ridden for days @ a time sometime.
I find cycling keeps my joints feeling good, if I keep them moving, the pain subsides. I notice when I get lazy/busy, & not ride as much my back will act/flare up.

Yes. L4-L5. Horrible sneezing accident (according to all the doctors and X-ray technicians that happens).

For much of a year I could only ride an upright hybrid (ugh) although eventually riding a proper road bike didn't produce any symptoms.

I ruptured 2 disc and had spinal surgery to repair the damage. Since then I've been fine.

I would ask your doctor about this and if riding could worsen the condition and lead to ruptures as I wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anyone.

I know exactly what kind of pain you are talking about.....that ripping insidious nerve pain which keeps you in a fetal position that goes down your leg into foot. NO PITY on this one, but I actually had a gun to my head until my girlfriend screamed, cops came, all OK, went to hospital.

Sorry jen but the correct answer is "it depends."

For some it may help, for some it may be neutral, for some it may harm.

Depends on the anatomy and the individual.

If all else fails, head over to the recumbent forum.

I believe you.

I was misdiagnosed for several months (true story) and was sleeping in a bathtub full of cold water for about an hour a night. At one point I was taken to the hospital, given 3 injections of Demerol and all it did was enable me to crawl (true story) into a cab to go home.

I had an MRI the next day and surgery the day after that.

Not stuff to screw around with.

Pars defect 9mm Grade 1 L5-S1 slip, exaggerated spinal curvature, degenerated bulging disc, sciatica left side causing total paralysis, advanced right and left facet syndrome. Can't say everything I've been through the last two years but cycling is the best exercise I do among many other forms of exercise. I can actually walk mostly normal in minimal pain for a few hour after riding.
I do realize cycling is no cure though.

L4-L5 rupture in 2002. Can't sit long, walk far, or run at all, but I can ride my road bike all day long, as I'm leaned forward taking the weight/pressure off my spine. But as datlas said, it depends on your unique rupture.

I ride with a friend who is in his 70's. He's come back from two back surgeries. The first was for sciatica, bad enough to give him all manner of shooting pains in his legs. Shortly after working to get back on the bike after that operation, he had a ruptured/herniated disc (dunno which vertebrae were involved) which also caused a lot of pain. He's back on the bike after surgery for that. I'm sure he would've preferred not to have surgery in either case, but taking vicodin was making it hard to ride, as well; apparently one side effect is shortness of breath.

After surgery I found the road bike position aggrivated the nerve no matter what adjustments I made. I did a couple centuries on a MTB, which was better but rough on the neck & shoulders. Switched to a recumbent and all is well.

I too was taking Vicodin and Percoset, the problem with them is, if you are to take it long term, it destroys your kidneys and liver due to the acetophemine in it. Oxycontin doesn't have it and really is a wonderful drug if not abused.