Back pain in its prime can be debilitating leaving you lying in bed unable to move, it is one of the most common injuries for all ages and all sport levels being the leading cause of disability, worldwide. In fact, nine out of ten people in New Zealand will experience acute lower back pain at least once in their lives. Fortunately for most individuals most cases of lower back pain can be relieved with simple flexibility training, home treatment and proper movement patterns to relieve pain and promote a healthier stronger back. Surgery being the last resort and rarely needed to treat lower back discomfort.

What are some causes of back pain?

• Back pain that comes on suddenly and lasts up to 6 weeks can be originated from a fall or from improper form while heavy lifting or doing exercises out of your own ability. This can often develop from repeated poor posture and form throughout a movement like a deadlift where you are picking a dead weight from the ground, without good form it is easy to strain back muscles and spinal ligaments through not enough even distribution of the weight throughout the posterior chain. Tight gluteal can be a major factor in lower back pain with most cases received with trigger point and myofascial therapy.
• Muscular imbalances through poor lifting techniques and favouring of the dominant side of the body can lead to a muscular imbalance within the erector spine and lats causing pain after lifting from unevenly pulling on the weight putting stress on the spinal ligaments and vertebrae.
• Skeletal irregularities or Arthritis can be two factors affecting the back. Skeletal irregularities like scoliosis are a curvature of the spine leading to discomfort from the spinal column being shifted to the side. Osteoarthritis can be very uncomfortable during day to day tasks and in some cases, it can cause a narrowing around the spinal cord causing spinal stenosis.

How Can i treat Acute back pain?

• Exercise is a treatment regularly used to strengthen the abdominals which take a lot of pressure off the lower back when properly engaged and strong enough to take the load. Doing exercises to strengthen both the core and lower back to make the pair work in unison to protect the back during lifts and daily movements.
• The next step to improving and relieving back pain is flexibility training, foam rolling and stretching the posterior chain which can often be extremely tight causing a chain reaction pulling into the lower back causing acute lower back pain originating from lower down the posterior chain, Calves, Hamstrings and Gluteal. Mobility throughout the hip flexors and quadriceps can align your pelvic bones to improve how your back is aligned resulting in relief through the back.

• Exercises safe for me to do to strengthen the lower back.
• Hip Thrusters, when done with proper form. Engagement of an anterior pelvic tilt, tight core and using the gluten as the primary muscle they’re a highly beneficial exercise to strengthen the glutes, abdominals and lower back.
• Prone Plank hold, with an anterior pelvic tilt and the abdominals engaged can be an excellent exercise for strengthening the transverse abdominus and rectus abdominus and protect the lower back.