There's nothing worse than coming back from a ride and feeling that familiar soreness in your back and shoulders. This pain is typically the result of poor flexibility and core strength.
RELATED: 6 Core Exercises to Injury-Proof Your Body
While there are a lot of factors that can contribute to back pain, such a poor bike setup, or mashing big gears, poor mobility and core strength are the most common culprits. Often when we're crunched for time, we prioritize our workouts on the bike over everything else. But whenever possible, it's important to get in other workouts to help you get the most out of your rides. Your core is what stabilizes your body as you ride, and a strong one allows you to put more power into your pedals. And your flexibility can not only help you get into a more aero position, but it also helps prevent muscle strain and soreness.
These four mobility moves take less than 10 minutes and can be done before or after your ride (try both for maximum pain relief). You don't need any special gym equipment or weights, just a yoga mat and some space to stretch out.
It's important to keep in mind that these moves shouldn't be causing you any pain as you do them. You should be only push yourself until you feel a slight stretch and build up that mobility over time. (Ready to really up your training? Check out Bicycling's Maximum Overload for Cyclists.)
