lower back pain and saddle seat cushions

[Chachie]

I have issues with my L4 and Degenerative Disc Disease and my L5 is missing due to a birth defect. I am still supposed to ride but I am also supposed to start PT, which I’m scheduling today. When my pain flares up, I can’t sit on wooden chairs, concrete, or anything hard. I ride in a wintec which is generally ok on my back but I was considering adding a seat cushion.
Do any of you with lower back problems use a cushion and if you do, which one do you prefer? I ride English if it makes a difference.

[walkers60]

I find the wintec to be the hard and a most uncomfortable saddle. I’ve ridden with back problems all my life and SO has had 4 back surgeries so can only ride 3 hours or so. I like Steele saddles but if you have to ride your wintec consider a “real” sheepskin pad or i have also use a gel pad but they get hot and take up a lot of room. I recently came acroos a Tolkat allegedly sheepskin saddle pad and took my old well used one off my saddle. As soon as i mounted my butt complained. Stay away from toolkat cushions, useless. Get authentic sheepskin.
Also as much as possible get off and walk a some during every ride, lets your back relax.
good luck

[Kyrabee]

Well, ![]( am not sure it would work the same but I really haven’t had any problems and like my cushy saddle.

I have tailbone pain. I had a hysterectomy in late 2012 hoping that would resolve the butt pain due to a badly placed fibroid.
It didn’t help. When I went back to riding, I was even more uncomfortable. I really don’t want to quit riding so I started brainstorming in ways to trick out my saddle.
I got one of those white closed cell foam Roma saddle pads and cut it to fit my saddle and then cut out a hunk out of the back to relieve my tailbone area. It is carefully and sylishly tied on with bailing twine (made holes with a hole punch) then covered with a sheepskin seat saver. I still have limits on time I can spend in the saddle but at least I can ride…very important. I had to have the hole in the back which no other riding seat saver or pad had. The saddle still fits…in fact better because I had lost weight and it was kind of sloshy until I filled up some of the space.

[IMG]http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x21/susamorg/P1000152.jpg)

[IMG]http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x21/susamorg/P1000150.jpg)

The closed cell foam gives me some nice shock absorption.

Susan

[Chachie]

Kyrabee, I was actually considering something like this since most saddle cushions are too small ( I ride in an 18") but was concerned about it being too bulky. Is it?

[walktrot]

The woman who bought my first Albion saddle cracked her tailbone, and added a Cashel seat saver which she said really helped. She still has it one there even though she may not need it, but she rides in jeans all the time, so it will at least protect the seams on the seat.

[Kyrabee]

Chachie…no, it hasn’t made the saddle too small. I had lost some weight and my saddle (also an 18") had gotten a bit too big. That said, this particular saddle is quite flat with a very open seat. With a scoopier/deeper seat the pad may make it tight. Those pads aren’t very expensive. I think mine was like $20
so I thought worth the experiment.

Susan

[artisticgold]

I have 2 Heather Moffet seat savers, I bought them used from eBay UK. They are memory foam covered with suede leather, very comfy.