The term 'Lumbar Support'
appears frequently in discussions about kayak
fishing and paddling related back pain. The underlying assumption in
those discussions is that the lumbar area of your back (lumbar spine)
requires adequate support, and if such support is provided your back
pain will disappear, or at least become tolerable.
What is the Lumbar Spine?
Here is a short definition we found in a dictionary:
(lumbar)
▸ adjective: of or relating to or near the part of the back between the
ribs and the hipbones ("Lumbar vertebrae")
Read more about the Lumbar Spine
 As
you can see, the lumbar spine consists of rigid vertebrae and more
flexible cartilage between them. This part of the spine supports the
combined weight of the upper part of the body, including the torso,
head and arms, and it is normally supported by the massive structure of
the hip bones below.
In other words, in its natural state, there is nothing that pushes,
holds, or supports the lumbar spine from any direction except from its
top and bottom, and what holds it in this normal position are the
muscles around it.
How Did the Lumbar Spine
Become
a Problem for Kayak Fishermen and Paddlers?
The native people of the arctic, who originally created the first
kayaks were used to sit down on the floor with their legs stretched
forward, and therefore didn't have any use for additional support for
their lumbar spine. This is why native kayaks did not feature a
backrest, or any other 'lumbar support'.
When Westerners began paddling those aboriginal kayaks they noticed
they had problems staying upright with their legs stretched forward, in
the posture known as the L position. This is because they were not used
to sitting in this position in everyday life, and the muscles in their
body weren't adjusted to it. Rather than adjusting the paddler to the
kayak, designers and manufacturers decided it would be easier to try
and adapt the kayak to the paddler, and introduced a combination of
backrest and footrests designed to lock the kayakers in the L position,
and prevent their upper body from 'falling' backward or sliding forward
('slouching').
The kayak paddler, or fisherman is effectively 'supported' by three
rigid points anchored in the kayak: two footrests and one back rest. By
continuously pushing against those three points, the kayak fisherman's
legs provide the power necessary to maintain his body in its place, and
in the required posture.
How Does the L Posture
Affect
the Lumbar Spine?
Your legs have the most powerful set of muscles in your body, capable
of making you run, jump and kick. When you're locked in the L position,
your legs are constantly pushing against the kayak's footrests, as well
as against your lumbar spine, which is 'supported' by the backrest
behind it.
 This
strong, continuous pressure on your lumbar spine comes from an
unnatural angle, that is from the backrest behind it. There is no way
for you to stop it or relieve it as long as you're in this position,
which is the only one that sit-in and sit-on-top (SOT) kayaks are
designed to offer.
Effectively, when you're paddling such kayak or fishing from it, the
only way for you to relieve the pressure is to get out of the kayak,
stand up and stretch, walk, etc.
How Does it Lead to Pain,
and to
the 'Yak Back' Syndrome?
Getting out of the kayak in order to relieve the pressure on your lower
back is not a realistic option in most cases, and this is why most
kayak fishermen and paddlers keep sitting in their kayaks although they
feel a growing discomfort, and eventually pain in their backs.
This pain is known as 'Yak Back', and most people who paddle sit-in and
SOT kayaks for periods longer than an hour experience it sooner or
later, to some extent.
The pain is the result of the abnormal pressure on the cartilage rings,
and the contraction of the the muscles in this area as a result of the
effort they have to make in order to prevent back (spine) injuries, or
at least minimize them.
Try to imagine the fight between the extremely powerful legs pushing
your lumbar spine against the backrest behind you, and the much less
powerful muscles in your lower back that are trying to protect your
spine, and prevent it from being damaged.
Luckily for you, your lower back would soon enough start to 'scream'
that it's being hurt, or in other words - you're going to feel pain.
This pain should tell you to stop this unhealthy struggle between your
legs and your back, before your back gets seriously injured.
Ignoring the pain at any given moment would result in the aggravation
of the problem, that is to more pain, and eventually to a more severe
back injury that would take you a longer time to recover from.
How much pressure do your
legs
exert on your lower back (lumbar spine) in the L position?
We've measured 40 to 60 lbs in adults.
You can try and measure the pressure yourself, using a bathroom scale
positioned vertically between your lower back and your kayak backrest:
Have someone stand behind you and read the dial for you.
It's bad news for your lower back, considering the pressure is
constant, and you can't avoid it.
It's even worse news considering the fact that effectively, this
pressure is applied on a few lumbar vertebrae and cartilage discs that
are badly positioned to resist it in such angle.
In terms of lbs per square inch, these pressure figures would be
impressive, as well as most alarming.
Proper Paddling Technique,
Cushioned Seats, and the Reality of Back Pain and Injury
Kayaking and kayak fishing instructors would tell you to sit straight
in order to improve your kayaking technique and perform the required
rotational movements of the torso in a more efficient manner. However,
you need to remember that the people who initially invented and
perfected this technique or paddling styles never used a backrest in
their kayaks, because they didn't need to. Consequently, they didn't
suffer from 'Yak Back' - unlike you.
This is to say that perfecting your kayaking technique would not
improve your lower back's situation in any way: You will keep feeling
discomfort and pain, and you'll keep being at risk of back injuries,
and even chronic damage.
The obvious reason for this is the fact that your legs will keep
pushing your lumbar spine against your kayak's backrest.
Sit-in and SOT kayak vendors would offer you to 'upgrade' to the latest
'ergonomic' seat, that's bound to more more expensive than the last one
you bought. They would praise the extra cushioning offered to your hips
and lower back, and claim that such seats would get rid of your
fatigue, back pain and leg numbness - once and for all.
The reality is quite different: Special kayak seats have been around
for decades, and none of them has produced the desired effect of ending
the Yak Back, simply because all seats have a backrest by definition,
and no amount of cushioning can reduce the total amount of force that
your legs use when they push that backrest against your lumbar spine.
On the contrary: The extra soft cushioning may reduce the point
pressure on softer tissues in your lower back (E.G. skin), and by that
somehow delay the sensation of discomfort and eventually pain in your
lumbar spine and in the muscles that support it. In other words, you'll
start feeling the problem when it's already at a more advanced stage,
which is not necessarily a good thing for you, if you think about it
from your a health perspective.
What Your Lumbar Spine
Requires
When Kayak Fishing is Considered
Obviously, you need to avoid paddling and fishing in the L position,
because it's not merely uncomfortable, but in fact potentially harmful
to your lower back, and sitting in it regularly for prolonged periods
of time could lead to back injuries and chronic back pain.
Having said that, what would be the ideal fishing kayak for you? -One
that would offer you comfort at all times, and the ability to take care
of your sore back.
In fact, such kayak does exist. It's the patented W kayak, and by
patent we mean a patent for an invention (utility patent), and not just
a design patent.
To begin with, W fishing kayaks
feature no backrest whatsoever - similarly to bikes, horse saddles,
snowmobiles, off-road motorbikes, all-terrain vehicles, and other
high-performance outdoor equipment. What all of those have in common is
the fact that when you ride them it's your own legs that support your
upper body. This is good news for your lumbar spine, since it's
basically a posture equivalent to walking, or running - since no
unnatural pressure points are being created.
Second, the saddle type seat that W fishing kayaks feature offers a
variety of positions, including standing up, plus the ability to change
between any two positions at any given moment. Thus, whatever
discomfort felt in your back, or local pressure building up in any part
of your body can be effectively relieved as soon as you feel it.
As a result, even paddlers and fishermen suffering from chronic and
acute back problems report spending long hours in their W kayaks
without feeling discomfort or pain. You can find such testimonials in a
number of fishing kayak reviews,
where they say that without their W kayak paddling or fishing from
kayaks would be impossible for them - because of their back condition.
More
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