Back Pain! This is arguably the most common and nagging type of pain people deal with on a daily basis. Now, there may well be a thousand different reasons why one has back pain, but the reasons I am about to convey to you are the ones that can be avoided. As I always say, the first thing you have to do is understand the injury or pain which should be done with your doctor. And, if surgery or physical therapy is not prescribed, then it’s up to you to right the ship.
Here are my top three causes of back pain and the solutions to stop it:
1. Inflexibility – In my opinion, inflexibility–especially in the posterior (back) part of the body–is the number one reason many people have back pain. I’m talking about the hamstrings, calves, piriformis, glutes, and other muscles in the back of the body. When one or more of these muscles are too tight or when one side is tighter than the other (imbalance), the body compensates by adjusting with abnormal movement. And, the back–especially the low back or lumbar region–is the perfect place to be disrupted. When this disruption is severe enough, the disc between the vertebrae can shift, bulge, or rupture.
- Solution – STRETCH, STRETCH, and STRETCH again. I suggest everyone do a total body stretch at least 4 days a week and stretch specific body parts on the days you use resistance training to work those particular muscles. And, I suggest a brief 3-5 minute warm up by riding a bike, walking, or other type of low impact activity before you stretch.
2. Body Imbalance – Much like inflexibility, muscular and skeletal imbalance causes the body to compensate with abnormal movement which creates unnatural torque and stress in muscle and vertebral disc in the back. Some imbalances can be caused by accidents, injury, and genetic issues but many are self imposed by the way people exercise or their lifestyle. I’m talking about one side of the body being stronger than the other or having a bigger range of motion than the other side. This can also be an imbalance deep within underlying muscle, tendons, ligaments, or cartilage.
- Solution – Treat every part of the body the same which means two things: exercise every part of your body equally and mirror image what you do with one side of your body with what you do for the other side. Exercise the front of your body as much as the back side of your body, and pay close attention to the range of motion within all areas of your body and make it a priority to make them all the same.
3. Incorrect Exercise – There you go, you knew I was going to say it. As I have said before, the gym is a waiting room for orthopedic surgery, physical therapy, and pain management doctors because of what people are doing to their bodies. I see it every day, people slamming, jerking, twisting, and destroying their joints and their backs.
- Solution – You can’t see what’s wrong until you know what’s right. I suggest you take a look at any of the video clips from my It’s All Heart fitness program either on www.bobbywhisnand.com or on Youtube and you will immediately see how to exercise exactly as you should no matter what exercise you do. The three most important things to remember when performing resistance exercises is to GO SLOW counting 4-5 seconds for every single repetition, control your body, and control the motion of the exercise.Back pain, chronic or not, is telling you your body is not right.
Whether it is from an accident, injury, or self imposed, your body is asking for correction within. You have to stretch often, reinstall balance throughout your body, and learn to exercise correctly so you can kick that back pain to the curb; literally.If you’ve found this blog post helpful, take a look at my YouTube videos: The Top Three Causes of Back Pain and How to Find Your Ultimate Body Balance to see my back pain advice in action.
Bobby Whisnand 