Fixing lower back problems from sitting too much
- Thread starter Roosh
- Start date
Vaun said:
Thanks for this. I have lower back pain which causes me to sweat like crazy when doing squats, deadlifts and even overhead press.
I just accepted it's the nature of heavy lifting.
Yesterday, I tried the first bridge exercise at the link above for 2 sets 25 reps each in the morning.
I went to the gym in the afternoon for deadlifts. After my deadlift sessions, 10-minute walk from the gym to my house would be a torture because of the pain I feel on my lower back. It was so bad that I had to pause for a while after each 1-2 minutes of walking so that the pain subsides and I can walk 1-2 minutes more again.
Yesterday, the walk from the gym to home was painless. I still felt pain when I was deadlifting but not like before. I am convinced that if I keep on doing bridges, my lower back pain will disappear. I already did 2 more sets of bridges this morning and my lower back feels good.
There's some good advice in this post - however you can foam roll your lower back, just not in the fashion most people do. I see people in the gym rolling up and down their spine, which is potentially bad for you.
If rolling up and down you should never go lower than the lowest rib, however the proper way to do it is to lie on the foam roller and roll your body side to side, the roller doesn't actually move, your body should move left to right across the roller.
You should be rolling over your spinal erectors one at a time, when you've done your lower back (3 minutes done slowly is enough), you should reposition your body on the roller so that you roll your mid back, where you'll hit the spinal erectors and also catch both your lats in one roll, 3 minutes is enough again, when done reposition your body again to hit your upper back.
Some people need head support for this, in which case you can use a power bag, place it under your head and off you go.
You can also use a swiss ball for the stretch below, I do it often.
One last point is that for people with lower back problems hanging off a pull up bar is often not a good idea. It's a good stretch for a healthy back but can otherwise be too much, sometimes causing pain and momentary instability in a weak lower back.
monster said:These yoga wheels are pretty damn good for stretching your back when sitting. I love it
Switching to a standing desk around seven or eight years or so ago, after back problems getting increasingly frequent through my twenties and early thirties, pretty much cured all issues within a few months. And that was without changing any other habits, including exercise (I walk a fair amount almost every day, but I also did that when I had back problems. No changes to lifting regiment until the last couple of years). I also threw out my back once or twice a year through the last half of my thirties, I can't remember that happening since.
While my shoulders, elbows and knees complain a hell of a lot more the last five years - mostly from lifting where I've had to modify a lot of habits and have now switched partially to bodyweight exercises - my back is much better at 40 than it was at 25 and 30.
While my shoulders, elbows and knees complain a hell of a lot more the last five years - mostly from lifting where I've had to modify a lot of habits and have now switched partially to bodyweight exercises - my back is much better at 40 than it was at 25 and 30.
polnischspeaker234
Pigeon
I want to touch my toes but I can't, so I've been doing all sorts of stretches in the last two months or so, and I haven't made a lot of progress. I'm going to start this now, and I'll say what happens in one month's time.
Dalaran1991
Ostrich
Vaun said:
Holy shit I've been having back pain for a year since I started an office job, and today magically I just cured myself with this!
After some chin-up, I hang myself on a bar, letting go of the body completely, the only thing flexing is the fingers to keep myself on the bar. You need to make an effort to really let go of your lower body because the natural instinct is to tighten the small back to combat gravity.
As I let myself hang I feel tremendous pressure on the lower back exactly where the back pain usually comes from. I bit my teeth and kept going, letting myself sway sideways so the body stretch even more.
Then there's this fucking tearing feeling in my muscle and incredible pain, as if someone just rip my fucking spine off. I had to let go of the bar, rest for a few min, then do some back extension.
For a moment I thought I unseated my disc or something, but lo and behold, after half an hour the pain is completely gone. The tightness and irritation I've been fighting for a year suddenly gone too! I felt like I just got my back back from 2 years ago when i was still doing breakfalls in Aikido.
Gonna hang every fucking day from now on. Thanks Travesty and Vaun for the suggestion.
Guys, try if it works for you.
^ Glad for ya.
I've tried a ton of things, what I posted is what I gravitated towards after trying the low level stuff like yoga & swimming. That may work for some, doesn't go after the problem hard enough in my opinion for people with real issues.
What I posted is directly targeting, the more gravity you use by hanging, doing a handstand, keeping your feet firmly planted through your heels, or using your limbs as extra leverage to twist stretch your lower back and open up your hips, tail bone area is what works the fastest.
The back pain is a symptom though.
The cause is not sitting, standing, walking, or laying correctly aligned. People don't use their foot muscles, ass, hip muscles, groin, abs, and hamstrings nearly enough. They should be doing the grunt work. Think about being in the jungle spear hunting, what muscles you'd use to crouch around and lurk. People don't use though nearly enough.
That's why I first posted standing desk, and yoga ball. Those are the longterm solutions for stationary work that we have now.
I haven't tried movement exercises like Conor McGregor does, I am betting those would help a ton as well.
Also,
Don't be surprised as you get more aligned you have much less pain, yet feel more tender, weak, and get tired easily from just a normal day. Shifting weight off your back and unconsciously lifted shoulder blades onto a group of muscles that haven't been worked nearly hard enough. A day of perfect posture for someone with bad posture is like walking around and doing 10 air squats every 5 minutes.
By the end of the day you'd be exhausted. It is like being a toddler learning to walk again. You truly should go around like a puppet hanging from a string connected to the top of its skull, letting gravity do its work and letting your major core, leg, and foot muscles balance so your torso can completely rest like fluid water.
For those with bad posture, this will almost feel like walking on stilts at first because your muscles aren't used to being worked to balance you. Your hips will feel looser and wider. Smoothes out over time.
I've tried a ton of things, what I posted is what I gravitated towards after trying the low level stuff like yoga & swimming. That may work for some, doesn't go after the problem hard enough in my opinion for people with real issues.
What I posted is directly targeting, the more gravity you use by hanging, doing a handstand, keeping your feet firmly planted through your heels, or using your limbs as extra leverage to twist stretch your lower back and open up your hips, tail bone area is what works the fastest.
The back pain is a symptom though.
The cause is not sitting, standing, walking, or laying correctly aligned. People don't use their foot muscles, ass, hip muscles, groin, abs, and hamstrings nearly enough. They should be doing the grunt work. Think about being in the jungle spear hunting, what muscles you'd use to crouch around and lurk. People don't use though nearly enough.
That's why I first posted standing desk, and yoga ball. Those are the longterm solutions for stationary work that we have now.
I haven't tried movement exercises like Conor McGregor does, I am betting those would help a ton as well.
Also,
Don't be surprised as you get more aligned you have much less pain, yet feel more tender, weak, and get tired easily from just a normal day. Shifting weight off your back and unconsciously lifted shoulder blades onto a group of muscles that haven't been worked nearly hard enough. A day of perfect posture for someone with bad posture is like walking around and doing 10 air squats every 5 minutes.
By the end of the day you'd be exhausted. It is like being a toddler learning to walk again. You truly should go around like a puppet hanging from a string connected to the top of its skull, letting gravity do its work and letting your major core, leg, and foot muscles balance so your torso can completely rest like fluid water.
For those with bad posture, this will almost feel like walking on stilts at first because your muscles aren't used to being worked to balance you. Your hips will feel looser and wider. Smoothes out over time.
dies irae said:
Thats great news. Keep doing bridges. Look for a machine called a "reverse hyper" if you can find one. Also, do "glute ham raises" on a GHD. These are exercises that elite powerlifters use to create backs that can support 1000lbs. By doing these ancillary exercises to your main lifts, you will develop your full posterior chain much faster. If you worked out with these exercises and machines a few times a week, your back will be deep and strong, and will likely fix any lateral disc movement which causes your back pain. If you dont have these machines, improvise with other movements. Bridges though require no machines, are free, and you can do them any where at any time.
And you SHOULD sweat when you lift! You should be drenched after a workout, whether its cardio or lifting.
Roosh I use to have the same problem alot of the time until I became a personal trainer!
The older you get, the more you have to stretch where I highly advise stretching your posture chain (all your rear muscles) from your feet to the back of your necks every morning and before bed. I'm the same age as you where I also recommend buying a 'form roller.' Roll slowly over each rear muscle at least 10 times. If it hurts, your muscles are tight where the form roller should help lengthen them! Best to have a break from sitting every 45-60 mins.
Usual sore lower back is due to shorten hamstring and glute muscles from sitting too much! By stretching all your rear muscles, you will also work out which muscles are tighter than others which is causing your back problems. They are all interlinked so if your upper back is sore for example, it might be your lower back muscles (tight) causing the pain.
I usually stretch (static stretch hold for 30 to 130 seconds x2-3 sets) in the morning and before bed and use the form roller over my muscles before my workout at the gym daily!
Best stretching book!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0936...i=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Stretch
Hint me up if you have any questions! Gym sticks are also another suggestion where form rollers are excellent for hitting all back muscles and feels like a massage.
Someone said a Swiss ball which I can't recommend cause they will cause other problems.
I use the following for my desk chair which is good for lumbar support and
keeps your back nice and straight. Try to use a chair with arm support as well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000...id=1491666986&sr=8-13&keywords=lumbar+support
Magnesium also helps to relax muscles due to tension. If your back is really fuck, find a good masseur that gives deep tissue massages.
The older you get, the more you have to stretch where I highly advise stretching your posture chain (all your rear muscles) from your feet to the back of your necks every morning and before bed. I'm the same age as you where I also recommend buying a 'form roller.' Roll slowly over each rear muscle at least 10 times. If it hurts, your muscles are tight where the form roller should help lengthen them! Best to have a break from sitting every 45-60 mins.
Usual sore lower back is due to shorten hamstring and glute muscles from sitting too much! By stretching all your rear muscles, you will also work out which muscles are tighter than others which is causing your back problems. They are all interlinked so if your upper back is sore for example, it might be your lower back muscles (tight) causing the pain.
I usually stretch (static stretch hold for 30 to 130 seconds x2-3 sets) in the morning and before bed and use the form roller over my muscles before my workout at the gym daily!
Best stretching book!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0936...i=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Stretch
Hint me up if you have any questions! Gym sticks are also another suggestion where form rollers are excellent for hitting all back muscles and feels like a massage.
Someone said a Swiss ball which I can't recommend cause they will cause other problems.
I use the following for my desk chair which is good for lumbar support and
keeps your back nice and straight. Try to use a chair with arm support as well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000...id=1491666986&sr=8-13&keywords=lumbar+support
Magnesium also helps to relax muscles due to tension. If your back is really fuck, find a good masseur that gives deep tissue massages.
http://gokhalemethod.com/
I've been following this method of sitting, standing, and sleeping. Basically your stretching the spine during the major positions and it tends to feel quite good. I found a practitioner in the area which helped me out figuring out some of the movements.
Child pose is great for lower back without round the back to much as in Rabbit pose.
And another view... Looks like you need lose muscles for this one.
Another stretch I like is the pigeon pose which targets the periformis muscle deep in the glutes. If the muscle is irritated it can trigger sciatica since it right next the sciatic nerve. The muscle helps rotate the legs outward I believe.
Hamstrings stretches are great for low back pain as well. I make sure I bend the knee a bit to put the stretch more in the muscle rather than the around the joint.
I've been following this method of sitting, standing, and sleeping. Basically your stretching the spine during the major positions and it tends to feel quite good. I found a practitioner in the area which helped me out figuring out some of the movements.
Child pose is great for lower back without round the back to much as in Rabbit pose.
And another view... Looks like you need lose muscles for this one.
Another stretch I like is the pigeon pose which targets the periformis muscle deep in the glutes. If the muscle is irritated it can trigger sciatica since it right next the sciatic nerve. The muscle helps rotate the legs outward I believe.
Hamstrings stretches are great for low back pain as well. I make sure I bend the knee a bit to put the stretch more in the muscle rather than the around the joint.
I always just thought that I had a big booty. 
I'll give the stretches in Roosh's post a go.
I've been stretching every night for the past 3 months and it's made the world of difference. My hamstrings used to be tight as fuck, causing me all sorts of lower back problems. I could barely bend down and get past my knees with straight legs, but now I can touch the floor. It's made the gym a lot better for me too.
I need to incorporate those 4 though, from the original video. Thanks for posting.
I'll give the stretches in Roosh's post a go.
I've been stretching every night for the past 3 months and it's made the world of difference. My hamstrings used to be tight as fuck, causing me all sorts of lower back problems. I could barely bend down and get past my knees with straight legs, but now I can touch the floor. It's made the gym a lot better for me too.
I need to incorporate those 4 though, from the original video. Thanks for posting.
Sleeping on the floor seems to help, plus you get the added benefit of feeling like a caveman. Just like Edmond Dantes from The Count of Monte Cristo. Dude lived in a fucking island prison for decades and got used to sleeping on the ground. Even after becoming a rich count in France, he felt more like himself forsaking a bed and sleeping on the rock-hard floor.
Roosh said:The sitting lifestyle has caught up to me in 2016 with bad lower back pain that usually started as soon as I woke up. From doing some research, the problem was linked to years of sitting down, which tightened some muscles and caused other to weaken.
Step 1: Stretch the psoas muscle. This muscle attaches to your lower back and wraps around to the front of your thigh. If you sit too much, it will be constantly contracted, shrinking in length and then pulling on your spine, causing pain. What helped me with doing doorway stretches every day (image C)
Within a week I noticed a big difference. After roughly two months, the normal pain is completely gone. I also do short bridges, which is supposed to strengthen unused muscles.
Step 2: Fix anterior pelvic tilt. While my daily pain was gone, I noticed that I've have lower back pain if I stand for at least 2 hours. This is due to my lower back doing all the work while my glutes and abs take a rest thanks having a deformed tilt of the hip that is caused by excessive sitting. From looking at my profile, I can see how my hip tilts down to the front, causing my butt to stick out slightly.
This is the most helpful video I found on fixing it:
Sitting for most of the day will definitely catch up with you eventually, but thankfully there are ways to fix it. Hope this helps anyone who has unexplained back pain.
Can we have a thread for these MIS-POSTURE CONDITIONS with SOLUTIONS for EACH and have people pop in a VIEW and POINT out which conditions may currently apply.
Appreciate whoever bumped this post. My back (since I was a teenager) and neck issues (fairly recent) have increased a bit in the last few months, thanks to a desk job for years.
I've begun to stretch my psoas, but need to do it daily.
For the last few days I've been sleeping on my back on the floor, just as an experiment. It's helped prevent my head from tilting forward and soreness in my upper back and neck in the morning. The lower back feels better. In summary, I need a much firmer bed.
Thanks for the regimen...I'll start doing it daily.
I've begun to stretch my psoas, but need to do it daily.
For the last few days I've been sleeping on my back on the floor, just as an experiment. It's helped prevent my head from tilting forward and soreness in my upper back and neck in the morning. The lower back feels better. In summary, I need a much firmer bed.
Thanks for the regimen...I'll start doing it daily.
I was talking to my friend who is just about to become a physiotherapist and I found out that both of us plus our other friend have this issue now.
He blames his on tightness from doing too many deadlifts plus being on his feet while the other guy and myself blame it on a desk job.
This is going to be quite a situation when our age group gets older( we are 23).
My mattress is garbage now, it sinks in near my hip area which I can blame for causing hyper extension of the spine for the entire night. Im going to get rid of the bed and buy a thin but firm mattress which I will just put on the ground to sleep on.
My pain gets quite sharp and chronic sometimes where it feels like my sciatic nerve has been impinged. I have to do a stretch routine in the morning and at night.
He blames his on tightness from doing too many deadlifts plus being on his feet while the other guy and myself blame it on a desk job.
This is going to be quite a situation when our age group gets older( we are 23).
My mattress is garbage now, it sinks in near my hip area which I can blame for causing hyper extension of the spine for the entire night. Im going to get rid of the bed and buy a thin but firm mattress which I will just put on the ground to sleep on.
My pain gets quite sharp and chronic sometimes where it feels like my sciatic nerve has been impinged. I have to do a stretch routine in the morning and at night.
So glad to see a post on this. I'm 6'2 but have a back the belongs on a 7 foot giant. Its kind of weird. That and computer/guitaring has gotten me into trouble in the past. Then, on top of all that I have been traveling through Europe with a 20+ lb pack on my back, compressing down the spine.
Back in Jan, I was dealing with a months-long lower spine pinch that was excruciating. Then, one day I took my morning puff and did the bar hang for an extended period, reeaally relaxing into it. I then hear an audible 'pop' and felt the lower back totally release. All pain ended right there!
Since then, I stretch more and walk every morning like clockwork. Another massive help has been thai massage. Being walked on and hearing the pops and cracks is key. Of course, the ice-cold showers help as well.
Back in Jan, I was dealing with a months-long lower spine pinch that was excruciating. Then, one day I took my morning puff and did the bar hang for an extended period, reeaally relaxing into it. I then hear an audible 'pop' and felt the lower back totally release. All pain ended right there!
Since then, I stretch more and walk every morning like clockwork. Another massive help has been thai massage. Being walked on and hearing the pops and cracks is key. Of course, the ice-cold showers help as well.