Back Pain & Lifting

peaceout_aly

I've had back issues for the past four months. Have been taking it easy, not going as heavy and recently took a 2-week break yet it's still acting up. Anyone have any experience with this or advice? I'm taking Advil, icing and using IcyHot patches like it's my job. I just want to lift again, I'm starting to get frustrated.

TR0berts

Still painful? Time to see a doctor and get X-rays and probably an MRI. Oh, and don't lift in the mean time.

TavistockToad

Have you seen a doctor or physio?

jjpptt2

Upper back or lower? I've been dealing with some lower back issues for a while and have found some things that help , most notably
- lower impact activities, so I've cut back on my running and basketball
- strengthening my core with lower weight higher volume lifts that target my core (landmines, knee raises, side bends, etc)

A couple things to note -
Lifting has never exacerbated my back issues.
If you've shut yourself down completely and are still having problems, then your back issues are probably worst than mine.

Getting it looked at can't hurt... even if it just gives you peace of mind.

Danny_Boy13

At this point based on how long it has gone on for and you even took a break I think it is time to seek a professional opinion. I also will say that i would see a sports doctor... one who specializes in athletes and not just a regular family practice dr. I have had much better experiences with sports doctors when it comes to injury over my family doctor that I see when I get sick.

kzooyogi

What kinds of activities are you doing outside of weight lifting? Is it your upper or lower back that is bothering you?

If it's the lower back, it could be one of several things. When my yoga students complain to me about lower back pain, I tend to think one of three things: 1) lack of core strength, 2) a tight psoas, or 3) tight hamstrings

1) Lack of core strength - focus on exercises that strengthen transversus abdominus, the deepest layer of abdominal tissue. This is the muscle that runs horizontal across the belly, the fibers of which are used to support the delicate lordotic curve of the lumbar spine. Strengthing the TA and keeping it strong and engaged during weight lifting helps keep the low back supported (you know how people who lift heavy weights wear a belt to help with this? Same idea.)

2) Tight psoas - the psoas is a powerful hip flexor that is the only muscle that connects the spine to the legs. It originates at L1 - L5 and threads through the pelvic bowl to insert at the less trochanter. If this muscle is tight, we tend to feel it at the origin (i.e. the low back) because the tightness in the fibers will cause it to pull taut, even when not in contraction. You can google some awesome psoas stretches - my favorites are a simple low lunge, side angle pose, and warrior I. Just be sure you take it easy!

3) Tight hamstrings - this can also be a common cause of low back pain. Tight hamstrings cause a decrease in mobility in the pelvis, which in turn can lead to an adaptive rounding in the low back. The low back curvature (lordosis) is meant to be concave, but tight hamstrings can cause it to flatten out, which destabilizes the vertebrae and stretches out the small muscles that surround and support them. Hamstring stretches are done safely when the low back is immobilized, which helps prevent the lower back muscles from over-stretching. Be sure to bend your knees as much as you need, keeping a belly-to-thigh connection, so your low back is supported by the femur bone.

That might be way more information than you were looking for, but in my experience, these things are pretty common. It could be any of these, a combination of any of them, or none of them at all. These are just my suggestions for things to try that could help unwind the underlying cause, as opposed to treating only the symptoms. As always, I'm just a yoga teacher, not a medical professional, so if you're very concerned and everything you've tried so far isn't helping, definitely make an appointment to be seen!

Hope this helps!

cwolfman13

Yeah, time to see the doc. I was having issues earlier this summer and finally went in...herniated disk...8 weeks of physical therapy and then about three months of taking it pretty easy and doing a lot of rehabby type work. I'm just back to being able to get back to my normal stuff in the weight room and otherwise as of January.

lenkearney

was there a triggering event that started the issues?

Assuming you practice good form and use a trainer to check every once n a while , right?

going light for a while is not a bad thing. use light weights and supper slow motion

I had a good experience using a massage therapist.

bbell1985

Just go to the doc or a massage therapist. You don't want to be taking NSAIDs, just masking the pain, and then lifting through it. It could make it a lot worse.

peaceout_aly

I dunno how I just saw all these messages but it's definitely still an issue (nearly a month since this post was created). I saw the doctor and she just said, put heat on it. It's my lower back into my butt (kind of a pinch feeling) but that is more an on-and-off pain. Some days it hurts and some days I'm totally fine. What really bothers me is my upper back (I think stemming from my shoulder blade) and that is a constant dull ache which is worse in the morning and when lifting (and affects my lower back because it makes me lift less efficiently and strain to achieve proper form).

I was wondering about tight muscles - @kzooyogi mentioned this. I stretch a ton, but I am going to look into the poses you suggested! There wasn't a specific event that triggered this, only ones that I have noticed so far that make it worse, so I've cut out certain exercises (very begrudgingly) like goodmornings and lowered weight with others (like RDL).

I go back to the doctor on March 7th but I may go to the massage therapist in the meantime and see if there are any knots that can be worked out. I can't wait to not feel uncomfortable in my body and be able to lift efficiently again! Even when I crush my work outs I feel like I could have gone harder if it weren't for my back, and it's even making sleeping unpleasant because I have to sleep in weird positions to feel comfortable.

Has anyone had any success with kryotherapy? I had two people from my gym suggest it.

jenilla1

The couple of times I've had a back problem it took about 4-6 months on my own to heal. It seems like it's a pretty slow (and frustrating) process. Good luck!

twistedingenue

I hurt my back deadlifting a little over a month ago and the tight muscles are what's bothering me the most (I luckily hurt myself just as we were starting a new training cycle, so I'm able to heal and progress at a good rate), and massage is helping. Go for a nice deep tissue massage too.

It's slow and stupid and I don't plan on making any progress on my lifts this cycle at all and it sucks.

Jm172017

I literally just treated a patient like you today! Your best bet is to see a physical therapist or a good solid chiropractor. Speaking as a PT, we love seeing patients like you who are motivated and focused more on their lack of function than the pain.

I don't want to speak negatively of primary care physicians or massage therapists, but they are very limited in this kind of thing. If you have questions on how to find the right physical therapist I'd love to direct you!

Good luck and the only way to know what's wrong is to have a good evaluation in person! Anything else just puts you further away from feeling better.