Did you know that your lower back is the site of almost all back pains? This is because there are many different muscles and ligaments in your lumbar area. If one or more of those gets strained, it can cause back pains and result in a lot of pain.
We unknowingly do so many things every day that strain our lumbar area. For instance, lifting heavy objects without bending your knees, prolonged sitting, and bending forward at an awkward angle while doing something like tying your shoes.
Lower back pain can be a nuisance and go away after a few days or weeks. In case it doesn’t get better by itself and continues to give you trouble, here are some tips on what you should do to alleviate the pain and prevent a relapse.
Plank Exercise for Lower Back
Coach Chris: I’m a pretty active person; I exercise regularly. I sometimes tend to overdo things and strain my lower back, which bothers me for days. It’s achy, and it’s stiff. I feel like I’m not sure what I should be doing.
Should I rest and not do anything? Or is there something particular I should be doing to alleviate the pain?
Rick Kaselj: If it’s so bad that it changes what you do daily, rest for a day or two.
Coach Chris: I feel the pain when I am just sitting.
Rick Kaselj: If it’s annoying, keep doing what you’re doing.
But if it’s like, “Oh my God, I got to lie down,” if you got to lie down and you can’t do what you regularly do, take two days off.
If it’s just like, “Oh man, it just won’t go away,“ I recommend you to keep doing what you’re doing. Take it a notch or two down below.
Recommendation
I’m not suggesting that you never visit the fitness center, but you will not be able to perform your maximal deadlift. You might focus on other things – perhaps a cardiovascular workout. You might finish up focusing on isolation exercises instead. The biggest issue is that you may make your back pain worse.
You may be nervous about doing things when trying to heal from an injury. You might be having a conversation with yourself, like, “I shouldn’t do this because it will make it worse or irritate it.” If you keep living without thinking about how quickly you will recover, you will distract yourself and keep living.
Coach Chris: Maybe I should avoid stretching until it calms down and works around it by performing isolation lifts that keep my back in a safe position for a few days.
Rick Kaselj: No, I would find a way to get around it when it comes to stretching, building on what you mentioned. I advise working on your hips if your back is troubling you.
- Improve the range of motion in your hips.
- Stretch your hips regularly.
- Improve your thoracic range of motion.
Working above and below things that benefit your back is possible since everything tightens up to protect the back when it hurts.
I would advise letting your mid-back loosen up a bit so that it can move more freely and feel less tight, as this will benefit your lower back.
Coach Chris: Thank you.
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