Whether it be a hard saddle (saddle sore), bad positioning, or simply the fact that you’re a beginner to exercise, bum soreness can be caused by a variety of reasons. Treating bum soreness, however, is pretty simple and involves ensuring that your bike is correctly adapted to your body shape, as well as making sure that you’re not overextending your body when you cycle. Keep on reading to find out how to eliminate that post-cycle booty pain!
Why does my bum hurt after cycling?
So, first of all, why does your bum hurt after cycling? Bum soreness can be caused by a number of reasons, depending on your level of experience, your type of bike saddle, as well as your body shape. Here are the most common reasons for bum and muscle soreness after cycling:
Because you’re not used to cycling long distances
This might seem the most obvious answer, but to some, it isn’t! While you may have cycled on and off as a child or rode your bike lots during your childhood summers, occasional bicycle use can’t compare with doing regular, (if not daily) long-distance cycles. Your body is simply not used to sitting on such a small space, putting pressure and weight on your glutes and lower back. Cyclists claim that this pain does get better over time as the body adapts, so if you’ve been cycling daily or regularly for less than 6 months, you might simply need to give your body time to adjust to this new sensation. I’m also going to give you some tips further on in the article about making the experience (and the saddle!) more comfortable, so keep reading to find out.
You’re sitting on hard, uncomfortable saddles
If you’re an experienced cyclist but you’re still experiencing post-cycle bum soreness, you might be using a bike saddle that isn’t adapted to your shape. It’s important to not forget that you’re placing your full body weight on a very small saddle, so if the saddle is extremely hard, curved, unstable, or too small, you might be putting far too much pressure on your bum. This will inevitably lead to bum soreness, no matter your level of cycling experience.
How to treat a sore bum from cycling
So, if you’re dealing with regular bum soreness after cycling, here are our most recommended tips for making the cycling experience as comfortable as possible going forward:
Adjust your bike
It’s important that your bike is suitable for your body type: this means adjusting the seat to match your standing height: stand beside your bike and try to manoeuvre the bike seat to match the same height. You might also want to adjust the handlebars, to ensure that you’re not constantly overextending your body – or putting too much pressure on your hips and bum – when cycling, especially when you cycle uphill or need to temporarily lift yourself off your seat. Second only to being safe, your bike should above all be comfortable.
Take up all the space on the saddle
If you’re cycling long distances or even short distances on a regular basis, you’re going to want to ensure that you have a go-to position that doesn’t put too much pressure on your bum or lower back. The smallest part of the back saddle is the front, so if you’re lifting yourself off the saddle and sitting back on the smallest part, this is going to put massive pressure on your glutes as they support your body. Try spreading your weight across the full
Use padding (either padded shorts or a padded seat)
As we already explained above, one of the major reasons that you might be suffering from bum pain after cycling is that your bike saddle is too hard. Our bums need a bit of cushioning when we’re sitting down for long periods of time, especially if we’re physically exerting ourselves at the same time. The best way to fix this problem is to either replace your current bike saddle with a padded version or to wear a pair of bum-protecting padded shorts. If you’re really struggling, you could even combine the two, so long as you can still cycle safely and grip your saddle correctly.
Padding will help to cushion your bum and reduce the direct impact that a hard saddle can have; not just on your bum, but on your thighs, hips, and lower back too.
Bring your core into the mix
When cycling, it’s easy to forget just how much pressure you’re putting on your bum and lower back. In order to ease the pressure a little, it’s a good idea to activate your core and use your core to balance your body while cycling. You can achieve this by working on your posture and channeling some of your energy into your upper body, as well as regularly lifting your lower body off the saddle itself while cycling. This will help ease the force being put on your bum, and hopefully, reduce bum pain after cycling.
Self Care
If you’ve taken all these tips on board (literally!) and you’re simply looking for a way to treat a sore bum from cycling, we’d advise a regime of self-care. In the same way you’d treat sore muscles from a heavy workout, you should treat your bum to a little TLC: take baths with relaxing bath salts, do gentle stretching, use ice packs on the affected area if need be. We’d also advise you to take regular breaks from cycling if bum soreness becomes a recurring problem – you don’t want to overuse and damage your muscles from pushing your body too hard.
Whether it be a hard saddle (saddle sore), bad positioning, or simply the fact that you’re a beginner to exercise, bum soreness can be caused by a variety of reasons. Treating bum soreness, however, is pretty simple and involves ensuring that your bike is correctly adapted to your body shape, as well as making sure that you’re not overextending your body when you cycle. Keep on reading to find out how to eliminate that post-cycle booty pain!
Why does my bum hurt after cycling?
So, first of all, why does your bum hurt after cycling? Bum soreness can be caused by a number of reasons, depending on your level of experience, your type of bike saddle, as well as your body shape. Here are the most common reasons for bum and muscle soreness after cycling:
Because you’re not used to cycling long distances
This might seem the most obvious answer, but to some, it isn’t! While you may have cycled on and off as a child or rode your bike lots during your childhood summers, occasional bicycle use can’t compare with doing regular, (if not daily) long-distance cycles. Your body is simply not used to sitting on such a small space, putting pressure and weight on your glutes and lower back. Cyclists claim that this pain does get better over time as the body adapts, so if you’ve been cycling daily or regularly for less than 6 months, you might simply need to give your body time to adjust to this new sensation. I’m also going to give you some tips further on in the article about making the experience (and the saddle!) more comfortable, so keep reading to find out.
You’re sitting on hard, uncomfortable saddles
If you’re an experienced cyclist but you’re still experiencing post-cycle bum soreness, you might be using a bike saddle that isn’t adapted to your shape. It’s important to not forget that you’re placing your full body weight on a very small saddle, so if the saddle is extremely hard, curved, unstable, or too small, you might be putting far too much pressure on your bum. This will inevitably lead to bum soreness, no matter your level of cycling experience.
How to treat a sore bum from cycling
So, if you’re dealing with regular bum soreness after cycling, here are our most recommended tips for making the cycling experience as comfortable as possible going forward:
Adjust your bike
It’s important that your bike is suitable for your body type: this means adjusting the seat to match your standing height: stand beside your bike and try to manoeuvre the bike seat to match the same height. You might also want to adjust the handlebars, to ensure that you’re not constantly overextending your body – or putting too much pressure on your hips and bum – when cycling, especially when you cycle uphill or need to temporarily lift yourself off your seat. Second only to being safe, your bike should above all be comfortable.
Take up all the space on the saddle
If you’re cycling long distances or even short distances on a regular basis, you’re going to want to ensure that you have a go-to position that doesn’t put too much pressure on your bum or lower back. The smallest part of the back saddle is the front, so if you’re lifting yourself off the saddle and sitting back on the smallest part, this is going to put massive pressure on your glutes as they support your body. Try spreading your weight across the full
Use padding (either padded shorts or a padded seat)
As we already explained above, one of the major reasons that you might be suffering from bum pain after cycling is that your bike saddle is too hard. Our bums need a bit of cushioning when we’re sitting down for long periods of time, especially if we’re physically exerting ourselves at the same time. The best way to fix this problem is to either replace your current bike saddle with a padded version or to wear a pair of bum-protecting padded shorts. If you’re really struggling, you could even combine the two, so long as you can still cycle safely and grip your saddle correctly.
Padding will help to cushion your bum and reduce the direct impact that a hard saddle can have; not just on your bum, but on your thighs, hips, and lower back too.
Bring your core into the mix
When cycling, it’s easy to forget just how much pressure you’re putting on your bum and lower back. In order to ease the pressure a little, it’s a good idea to activate your core and use your core to balance your body while cycling. You can achieve this by working on your posture and channeling some of your energy into your upper body, as well as regularly lifting your lower body off the saddle itself while cycling. This will help ease the force being put on your bum, and hopefully, reduce bum pain after cycling.
Self Care
If you’ve taken all these tips on board (literally!) and you’re simply looking for a way to treat a sore bum from cycling, we’d advise a regime of self-care. In the same way you’d treat sore muscles from a heavy workout, you should treat your bum to a little TLC: take baths with relaxing bath salts, do gentle stretching, use ice packs on the affected area if need be. We’d also advise you to take regular breaks from cycling if bum soreness becomes a recurring problem – you don’t want to overuse and damage your muscles from pushing your body too hard.