How are riding euc’s on the back

[Begodecrashtestdummy]

Just wondered how much of a strain euc riding is on the lower back.I used to ride an r6 but I’ve had two back surgeries and ended up selling it because being hunched over I couldn’t ride long distances anymore .The upright position seems like it wouldn’t be all that bad on the back but I’m sure it will use muscles I have used in a long time 

[meepmeepmayer]

Get a EUC with suspension!

Going over an unexpected bump on a suspensionless wheel can travel to (and a bit through) your spine if you just happen to have your legs fully extended then instead of your knees bent a little. It's not terribly bad, but can be unpleasant. I had one occasion where I felt that for a few days. I can't imagine this sudden compression being good if you had a back injury already. (My tire is small and hard though, bigger tires will be softer.)

With a suspension this bump problem should be fixed. And the ride will be more pleasant generally.

As far as muscles, if you don't have them, you will get them, which is good for the back, isn't it? So I wouldn't worry about that, to the contrary. And standing upright in a neutral position won't stress your back, unlike being hunched over or anything like that. Also a plus point. The only thing that gets tired are your soles, because you just stand there and never really move the feet.

Personally, a big part of what interested me in EUCs was the slowly undulating back movement you naturally do when you carve a little. I figured it must be rather relaxing. It is! Just the surprise bumps can be unpleasant. Fix that with a suspension, and the big tire, the suspension, and the upright position should make a EUC as good as a small ridable can be for the back. You can always ask a doctor, but standing upright and gently moving your spine should be a positive.

[Tawpie]

49 minutes ago, meepmeepmayer said:

standing upright in a neutral position won't stress your back, unlike being hunched over or anything like that

When I was learning, and until I was aware (saw video), I hunched over—bad form but for some reason it felt "more balanced". Now I concentrate on standing straight up and down, shoulders back, knees bent. I have been fortunate to not have back problems so only know second hand, but I have read that riding (with proper posture) has helped some people a lot. You just have to stay very conscious about not hunching over.

Edited January 9, 2022 by Tawpie

[.....]

In the beginning, my lower back got sore from being tired, not from impact. My knees work fine, so shock to the back is not my issue. My knees do get sore tho, as they absorb a LOT.  If you EVER have knees locked or straight at ANY time on an euc, you are completely doing it wrong. You endanger many joints and bones as well as increase liklihood of bouncing off the pedals altogether. Envision leaning forward with knees bent and the muscle it takes to simply stand like that for extended periods. Ignore the impact worries, as those can be mitigated. Simply do a tiny lean so that ALL your weight is on the balls of your feet (on the floor), force the heels down, bend at knees and ankle, very minor bend at the waist.. If this posture aggravates you beyond mere fatigue, you may need be uber careful. Doing the seated chair position exercise, kind of lets you know how its gna be on the ole legs. Good news is, its a small workout to ride an euc(specially for noobs), but its fun. Short sessions over longer periods build you up in small ways you dont even realize. Fwiw, the posture isnt all that similar to sport bikes. The way you approach turns is similar, but the actual physicality differs greatly. If in doubt, find a good used wheel and you are less likely to suffer as much losses, should you sell shortly thereafter.

Edited January 10, 2022 by ShanesPlanet

[alcatraz]

My feet hurt the most. Then my legs (if you're riding on poor quality roads). Let's say that if you're a featherweight you're going to love the wheel. 

Seeing someone ride it looks like they're relaxing. Well, they're not really. And have you tried standing up for 30min straight with knees a little bent with random muscles contracting. It can get tiresome.

However with the years you learn to relax. It's still the most effcient forms of transportation. Take the good with the pain. 😁

[xiiijojjo]

Personally from riding without suspension it's gotten to the point where walking is more strenuous for my back when it comes to compression/exhaustion. 

Jogging, to me, is many times more strenuous on the back... Maybe it's just been so long since i started that i just can't remember the pain. But i only remember pain in my calves.

Edited January 10, 2022 by xiiijojjo

[Begodecrashtestdummy]

2 hours ago, alcatraz said:

My feet hurt the most. Then my legs (if you're riding on poor quality roads). Let's say that if you're a featherweight you're going to love the wheel. 

Seeing someone ride it looks like they're relaxing. Well, they're not really. And have you tried standing up for 30min straight with knees a little bent with random muscles contracting. It can get tiresome.

However with the years you learn to relax. It's still the most effcient forms of transportation. Take the good with the pain. 😁

Sweet I have type 1 diabetes and have neuropathy in my feet so they will prolly be numb most the time 🤘🏻

[The Fat Unicyclist]

As others have said, with good posture (and suspension), your back should be okay... Even without suspension, provided you keep those knees bent, the stress to your back should be minimal. 

For me personally... pre-EUC and following my own back surgery I was living with opiates a part of my daily survival regime. And I had accepted this as the way I would live for the longer term... Within 6 months of starting to ride EUC though, I was completely off any pain medication! The extra core strength that I developed due to riding has literally changed the way I can live (though some would tell you that EUC is still a drug).   

[Tawpie]

On 1/9/2022 at 6:22 PM, Dosingpsychedelics said:

have neuropathy in my feet so they will prolly be numb most the time

Because of this, you should probably pay extra attention to shifting and moving your feet around. Standing in one place for a long time isn't the best for blood flow, and usually when your feet start to hurt or go numb it's a sign that you should be moving. I raise my toes, lift my heels (only 1 foot at a time!), adjust my stance a little bit, lift 1 foot off the pedal etc. to try to keep the blood moving. I also take a short walking break about once an hour to relieve the stress on my knees.

[supercurio]

No back issue here, despite an history of back problems when combining lack of exercise with non-optimal bed mattress.
I don't have any suspension EUC but always ride with bent knees and relaxed posture thanks to an easy connection with the wheel provided by to 60mm wide power pads (custom design)

Generally I noticed that riding an EUC promotes a good amount of fitness if you ride in an active way, with some physical engagement in accelerations, braking and turns. Heart Rate zones hovering around fast walking pace or slow cycling, good for a baseline endurance.

[xiiijojjo]

14 minutes ago, The Fat Unicyclist said:

The extra core strength that I developed due to riding has literally changed the way I can live 

Coming back to this thread a few times had me thinking back to my earliest days of riding and i remembered how sore my back could easily get pre EUC and how it could stay sore for a long time. When i started riding i was in the best shape of my life from working out regularly. I no longer work out and haven't for a few years now but my back has never been in better shape and is doesn't exactly look buff but it's definitely the most pronounced muscles i have with this sedentary lifestyle i've been living recently.

Thinking back i also remembered back to how terrible my equilibrium was before starting to ride. How i started gradually feeling more "grounded"... For the lack of a better way of describing it, it felt like my body started understanding gravity gradually until i mastered it and i started feeling like a human gyroscope when dismounting the EUC for a short while after dismounting. The sense of balance and footing gained from martial arts coupled with the balance/ gyroscopic sense developed from riding EUCs is also amazing for so many things other than martial arts and riding.

[yoos]

The EUC posture seems rather healthy compared to many other human occupations. Sadly, I found that my posture suffered when I switched from a bicycle (half-)helmet to a full face one (TSG Pass): I tend to tilt my head down for better vision directly in front of me. I suspect all fullface helmets obstruct the bottom of the field of view. I wonder what the experience/behavior of the community is - do you tilt your head or do you sacrifice some close-distance vision? In a high-speed street situation that area is not as important and you are also naturally tilted as a whole to compensate for wind drag so this should be less of a problem. But in a low-speed difficult terrain scenario this vision vs posture situation is uncomfortable.

[supercurio]

1 minute ago, yoos said:

The EUC posture seems rather healthy compared to many other human occupations. Sadly, I found that my posture suffered when I switched from a bicycle (half-)helmet to a full face one (TSG Pass): I tend to tilt my head down for better vision directly in front of me. I suspect all fullface helmets obstruct the bottom of the field of view. I wonder what the experience/behavior of the community is - do you tilt your head or do you sacrifice some close-distance vision? In a high-speed street situation that area is not as important and you are also naturally tilted as a whole to compensate for wind drag so this should be less of a problem. But in a low-speed difficult terrain scenario this vision vs posture situation is uncomfortable.

I also started with a full-face (downhill) helmet but switched to a regular bicycle one, which is not ideal due to the lack of jaw protection.
But the vision is so much better - especially off-road that it seemed to be a worthy trade-off in terms of safety (so far).

I agree unobstructed field of view helps with keeping a relaxed posture, but it might not be necessary.

[level9]

1 hour ago, yoos said:

The EUC posture seems rather healthy compared to many other human occupations. Sadly, I found that my posture suffered when I switched from a bicycle (half-)helmet to a full face one (TSG Pass): I tend to tilt my head down for better vision directly in front of me. I suspect all fullface helmets obstruct the bottom of the field of view. I wonder what the experience/behavior of the community is - do you tilt your head or do you sacrifice some close-distance vision? In a high-speed street situation that area is not as important and you are also naturally tilted as a whole to compensate for wind drag so this should be less of a problem. But in a low-speed difficult terrain scenario this vision vs posture situation is uncomfortable.

To be fair, the TSG Pass was per the web site Developed and engineered in conjunction with a downhill skateboard world champion and they have a much different posture than EUC riders. That being said I do have and like the helmet, I just rotate it slightly down and find the FOV great. I don't miss a half-helmet at all.

 

Edited January 11, 2022 by level9

[yoos]

14 minutes ago, level9 said:

much different posture than EUC riders

Indeed, there are no other sports/transportation modes where an upright posture combines with high enough speeds to warrant a full-face helmet.

 

17 minutes ago, level9 said:

find the FOV great

Apparently the TSG Pass does have one of the best FOV among full-face helmets. I wonder whether it's possible to make a helmet looking like the POC Artic but with serious (certified?) chin protection. However, this is getting a bit off-topic already  

[The Brahan Seer]

1 hour ago, yoos said:

Apparently the TSG Pass does have one of the best FOV among full-face helmets. I wonder whether it's possible to make a helmet looking like the POC Artic but with serious (certified?) chin protection. However, this is getting a bit off-topic already  

The closest I could find when looking for a helmet was:

https://www.qwartlab.com/?lang=en

But very expensive. Courtesy reply of potential off topic question. But if this helps with back posture we are back on track.

[supercurio]

13 minutes ago, The Brahan Seer said:

The closest I could find when looking for a helmet was:

But very expensive. Courtesy reply of potential off topic question. But if this helps with back posture we are back on track.

Very nice, looks great for purpose and.. expensive indeed.

Although the posture in this picture is not great, but I guess it's not on an EUC.
Back on track? I see what you did here 

[Unventor]

On 1/9/2022 at 10:52 PM, Dosingpsychedelics said:

Just wondered how much of a strain euc riding is on the lower back.I used to ride an r6 but I’ve had two back surgeries and ended up selling it because being hunched over I couldn’t ride long distances anymore .The upright position seems like it wouldn’t be all that bad on the back but I’m sure it will use muscles I have used in a long time 

I have a review thread for both V8, KS18L, KS16X and V11. 

When I started out riding on a V8 ages (seems so) go, I couldn't stand on one leg due lag of balance and muscle around my knees. This is due to rheumatic psoriasis in my knee. On top of that I have been struggling big time with my lower back too due to rheumatic diagnosis. 

I doubt you will be able to go off roading on Mount everest to the peak and down again next week, but..... 

Once you start riding you will evolve better posture for your back. This is due to maintain balance and our back is constructed to rest in a standing position. 

There are tools that can make it easier to get into EUC riding, but once you step up that is when the real journey starts. 

I don't have to ride long in fact the more frequent shorter rides is much better than a weekly longer ride for me. After 3 or 4 days my back pains reminds me it is time to ride again. If I ride every day my back has no pain. I even go shopping with backpack (with up to 10-15kg grocery). 

What my rheumatic rehab training though me is to start moving those joints the more the better but within reason. 

We have had questions like yours ever so frequently here on the forum, me too 😁. 

I don't recall anyone truly giving up, all seems to benefit one way or another from EUC riding. For me it is unexplainable how much it improved my quality of life. 

You can use Google to search my tag name on this forum and the models I mentioned. You will them get a sense of what this might do for you too. (loads of reading for dark winter hours). 

[HardyM]

Got in a horrible crash on my electric skateboard going over 20 mph. Slid several feet on my head. Never even felt the impact due to how well my helmet protected my head. Ended up with a broken arm, but would probably be dead if it wasn't for this helmet.

[The Fat Unicyclist]

20 hours ago, level9 said:

As "Champion of the Living Room" one should always be be prepared for any unexpected challenges from nearby soft-furnishings!   

[.....]

Riding an euc made me more aware of my toes. I wear skate shoes. @xiiijojjo post got me thinking about that. There's no telling what small muscles and joints are beign activated when we ride. Even as far as becoming very aware of how your pinky toe can change your ride...

[Finn Bjerke]

4 solutions if you have lower back pain: 

1. Seated riding 
2. Suspension wheel. 
3. Good shoes/boots. 
4. Strengthen abdominal muscles. 

Strong Abs:  Gymnastics is more efficient than laughing at E-scooters and monowheel, but its extremely boring. Alternatively use a TNS apparatus it has some effect on the abs if used correctly.  9V batteries in TNS works well weaker batteries than that is not strong enuff. 

Edited January 12, 2022 by Finn Bjerke

[.....]

Sitting seemed to beat my back up a little. I have only really bothered on the sherman tho, and for short periods. I guess it all boils down to exactly what back pain and what posture..

Edited January 12, 2022 by ShanesPlanet

[VikB]

On 1/9/2022 at 1:52 PM, Dosingpsychedelics said:

Just wondered how much of a strain euc riding is on the lower back.I used to ride an r6 but I’ve had two back surgeries and ended up selling it because being hunched over I couldn’t ride long distances anymore .The upright position seems like it wouldn’t be all that bad on the back but I’m sure it will use muscles I have used in a long time 

I've never had back pain riding an EUC. My only comfort issue has been foot pain. It's pretty unusual that my back bothers me doing sports or other activities. Just the typical minor injuries from lifting heavy items with poor form.

[Paul A]

Gel insoles are great for reducing foot fatigue/numbness.