| p>(Please note: this article does not address major | | | | strengthen all of the above! |
| structural spinal issues, such as disc degeneration or | | | | Why Am I in Pain? |
| slipped discs. Please see a medical professional if your | | | | The back and core muscles described above all |
| concern is structural or spine-related) | | | | converge at a place on the spine where the |
| For the millions of people that work in an office all | | | | vertebrae dramatically changes shape from those in |
| day long, by the time the weekend rolls around, | | | | the thoracic spine just above. The discs become |
| they're ready to go out and hit a few golf balls, ride | | | | larger and bend much more easily in every direction |
| a bike, play tennis or basketball. And then their | | | | (try this experiment: move your head around and |
| Sunday is spent lying on the couch, nursing a sore | | | | feel how your neck bends easily. Then move your |
| lower back and wondering what happened. Let's get | | | | belly around and feel the same range of movement |
| to the bottom of this problem and find out how to | | | | in the lower back. Then try and do the same with |
| fix it! | | | | the middle of your ribcage. It doesn't happen!) |
| A Close Up of the Low Back | | | | Because of this mobility, the lower back can often |
| Let's identify the three major groups of muscles that | | | | take the brunt of any movement we undertake. So |
| make up the low back. | | | | we have a combination of weak muscles with a |
| The first are called the quadratus lumborum that | | | | highly mobile part of the spine taking on more than it |
| attach to the bottom of the ribs, the lumbar | | | | should, and it's easy to understand how this would |
| vertebrae (spine) and the top of the pelvis. | | | | lead to discomfort. |
| Additionally, running the length of the spine are a set | | | | How Do I Fix It? |
| of muscles called the erector spinae. And also | | | | 1. Identify the Pain If you've pulled a muscle in your |
| attached to the spine are the upper fibers of the | | | | back, your first approach should focus on reducing |
| psoas, a long and famously tight muscle that | | | | inflammation in the muscles using the RICE method |
| connects the torso to the legs. Because of our habits | | | | (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation) so that the |
| of sitting for long periods of time at a desk or in a | | | | tissues have a chance to rest and recover. If you're |
| car, all of these muscles often become both short | | | | only suffering from discomfort brought on by |
| and weak. | | | | overuse, try a hot bath with Epsom salts, or a |
| In addition to these back muscles, three of the | | | | massage to increase the flow of blood and nutrients |
| major core muscle groups also attach around to the | | | | to the area. |
| lower back (both sets of obliques and the transverse | | | | 2. Strengthen the Low Back You don't need to give |
| abdominals). | | | | up your weekly pick-up basketball game; instead, add |
| And as if that wasn't enough, the hamstrings tend to | | | | targeted low back exercises and notice how this |
| get passively tight and weak from sitting (a condition | | | | positively affects your jump shot! |
| called adaptive shortening). When tight, they start a | | | | 3. Abdominal work Create even more support for the |
| chain reaction of pulling that runs up the back of the | | | | back by strengthening and stretching the abdominal |
| body and leads right into the lower back muscles, | | | | muscles with targeted core exercises. |
| compounding the discomfort. | | | | Lower back pain is an increasingly common complaint |
| So you can start to get a sense of how many | | | | as we grow older, but with some targeted yoga |
| different muscle groups are involved in maintaining a | | | | therapy exercises and preventative measures, it |
| healthy back, and how important it is to stretch and | | | | doesn't have to disrupt your game! |