Keep hurting my lower back any tips so this will stop.

czgunner

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I've got chronic back pain since I left the At in 06. No disc issues. The number one help for me was zero drop shoes. I don't do minimalist, just zero drop. Takes a few weeks to get the foot, ankle, and calf strength up.

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GMann

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Jun 17, 2022
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San Diego
I had similar compression issues as you and it sucked. As stated above, upping your water intake does help....and not like just a little bit of water; really hit the bottle hard and drink A LOT of water.

Also, yoga. Before I started yoga I thought it was lame. Then I did it and saw results and wondered why I didn't do it sooner. This book helped me a lot with my lower back issues. Stretching helped me a bit but adding the core strengthening was a game changer.

Back RX: A 15-Minute-a-Day Yoga- and Pilates-Based Program to End Low Back Pain Fully Updated and Revised https://a.co/d/9uOf55Y

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2ski

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Haven't read any of this. Sounds like maybe an SI joint sprain. Ice should help it heal faster. Fond a good chiro and he can make it heal faster too. Some krill oil should help as well.

Again didn't read much past your first part about the pain lasting a week. And then 8 months later. But after reading that? That was my first thought.
 

TxxAgg

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Dec 27, 2019
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Things that have helped me tremendously:

Zero drop shoes
Lots of water
Stretching (especially hamstrings)
Lift with your legs. Be diligent about it even if it's just bending over to pick up something small.
Core strength almost every day
Lay off the sports with any amount of twisting (soccer/basketball)
Dead hangs


For lifts, I stopped using bars or going real heavy. I use body weight or kettle bells. Almost always barefoot when I lift. And I always keep my core tight. It's my main focus during a workout...more so than how much weight or how many reps I can go.
 

Marble

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For those totally opposed to surgery, have an open mind and consider the surgery options of today are far different than what they were when back surgeries used to be rarely successful.

Understand the surgery

Interview your doctor and know their background.

Use a specialist. Someone who specifically does the surgery you need.

My hunting partner had his lower back fused about 6 years ago. He can carry a pack and moves like anyone else. There are some UFC fighters that have had the procedure done too.

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So, I have no advice, but was listening to the latest Gritty podcast and probably not the issue in your case, but they spent a lot of time talking about diet and how what we eat causes so much inflammation. I don't have time to summarize but there was some very interesting info in it. I think episode 882, the one that just dropped. Got me to thinking about how much of my lower back pain, which isn't bad, might be caused by what I eat.
 

huntineveryday

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Apr 8, 2019
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Once you have an injury to that fibrous outer part of the disc, it's always going to be more prone to re-injury and that flare up from time to time is pretty common. Flexion of the spine pushes the bodies of the vertebrae above and below the disc together, forcing the squishy middle part of the disc back, where it protrudes or herniates out from that week spot. You really need 2 sets of exercises to manage this.

The first set should be positional extension oriented exercises to force that squishy part of the disc back to the middle, or positions to decompress the disc and "suck" it back to the middle. These are the exercises you need to manage flare-ups and get symptoms calmed down to a tolerable level. Sometimes traction can help. If it does, an inversion table for home use might be beneficial. (Don't just buy one and go hang upside down, work with gradual controlled traction in a therapy setting to see if it helps, then think inversion table at home for future management of flare-ups)

The second set would include exercises to improve hip mobility and to increase core stength. These would be exercises you need to keep doing as a form of maintenance even after you get things calmed down. The goal of these is to protect the disc and keep the spine from going into lumbar flexion during activity. The better you can do that, the better you can prevent flare ups and further degenerative changes to your discs. Core strengthening should include exercises for the transverse abdominus (and multifidus, but those will be the same exercises) and will be more plank based exercises. The goal should be stabilizing your spine and keeping your core stable while moving everything around it. Start with simple positions and progress to functional movements and lifting. Your core strengthening shouldn't hurt, you need your spine in a good position where pressure on the discs is minimized, then maintain that position during the exercises.
 

Muddler

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Nov 5, 2019
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If it fits your budget buy a reverse hyper machine, or if your lucky your gym might have one.

If not, you can build a decent enough proxy out of wood. That's what I did. I just use resistance bands instead of fiddling with some sort of weight system. I need to be more diligent about using it, but when I'm consistent with it I can tell a difference.

Invented by Louie Simmons after he blew out his back:

 

The_Jim

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Sep 20, 2021
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Nebraska
Stretching is a lot different that functional mobility. A good mobility routine requires a little work but when you finished you just feel good. It can help strengthen imbalances if done correctly.

Lots of free routines on Youtube. I also think you could really benefit from a good personal trainer. If they don't start with a fitness and mobility assessment they aren't good. A good trainer will instantly notice any weak areas or imbalances and focus on correcting those.
 

Laramie

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Quality, supportive footwear and increased core strength have been 2 things that changed my life. I went through bad problem from my mid 20s through my mid 30s until I figured it out. I haven't had a single day of lower back pain since.
 

Johnny Tyndall

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MT
These are all basically right on, but to help navigate the many options and come up with a plan I'd recommend finding a good physical therapist.
 

FI460

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Jan 14, 2019
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Decades of back pain. I tried a plan that seemed off the wall: linear progression training for dead lift along with squat and bench plus stopping all situps and crunches>>>No pain in 4+ years.

Back surgery would be last page of last resorts.

Nothing sets my back off more quickly than situps and crunches. My injury wasn't as severe as ops, but core and posterior chain strengthening have helped tremendously. If you're doing squats, deadlifts, overhead press correctly you're working your core as well as the target muscles.
 

Rich M

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So, I have no advice, but was listening to the latest Gritty podcast and probably not the issue in your case, but they spent a lot of time talking about diet and how what we eat causes so much inflammation.
This is a great comment.

I have gout and it is triggered by some foods and also by dehydration. Beer and fried foods are big no-nos for me. Days at the beach or out in boat are also triggers.

Contrary to popular opinion, it affects my feet, knee, elbow, shoulder, and a general stiffness when standing or getting mobile. Dr says no way, my experience says he’s wrong. It is all interconnected.

Food and fluid are very important.
 

huntineveryday

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This is a great comment.

I have gout and it is triggered by some foods and also by dehydration. Beer and fried foods are big no-nos for me. Days at the beach or out in boat are also triggers.

Contrary to popular opinion, it affects my feet, knee, elbow, shoulder, and a general stiffness when standing or getting mobile. Dr says no way, my experience says he’s wrong. It is all interconnected.

Food and fluid are very important.
A bit of a sidebar, but wanted to note that there are some common foods that have anti-inflammatory effects as well.

Beets, beet juice, tart cherries (most dried cherries are tart cherries, but check the label), ginger, and tumeric (in curry powder for seasoning) can all be added to your diet to have some anti-inflammatory effect.
 

Rich M

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A bit of a sidebar, but wanted to note that there are some common foods that have anti-inflammatory effects as well.

Beets, beet juice, tart cherries (most dried cherries are tart cherries, but check the label), ginger, and tumeric (in curry powder for seasoning) can all be added to your diet to have some anti-inflammatory effect.
Great post!
 

Ross

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Severe l5s1 extrusion in 2018. Extreme sciatic pain until had the microdiscectomy. Age 60 with lots of wear on the body. Lift proper, eat proper, hydrate, find the best sleeping position for your body, stretch and strengthen the posterior chain. Do the best you can and stay active. Good luck it sucks, both getting old and back issues🤙

Also, I have learned more than I ever wanted to learn about neutral spine, proper bracing, hip flexion, and lift/twist stuff that I wish I knew 4 decades ago but no doovers sadly.
 
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4rcgoat

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Quality, supportive footwear and increased core strength have been 2 things that changed my life. I went through bad problem from my mid 20s through my mid 30s until I figured it out. I haven't had a single day of lower back pain since.
Footwear makes a huge difference in my opinion. I've been a Carpenter for over 25 years,I pay good money for quality leather boots and ditch the cheap insoles for some quality insoles.
 
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Stem cell injection(marrow, amnionic mix) if that doesnt work then nerve block.

There are a few countries that are working to be at the fore front of stem cell in-terms of replication.

In america best you can do is pull, spin, separate and mix with a exosome graft, and re-inject, but has to be that day.

Few countries are about to allow pull, replicate, train and then re-inject.

I have stems cell pulled from my hip on 6 different occasions in shot in joints, ligaments and disc’s. Being that I HAD degenerative disc issues and went through 7 plus years of cortisone shots, I can tell you Stem in disc is the real deal

Some insurance will pay for it as an add on to another surgery, but seldom a stand alone.
 

Wyo_hntr

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Oct 20, 2023
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Wy
Flexibility, specially your hamstrings. Having a flexiblility imbalance is bad too.
 
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