Many cases of lower back pain are direction specific, meaning the pain will be worse with spinal movement in a certain direction.
Check out this post for videos and explanations:
Locomotion is what we call an extension-based task. Extension refers to the back bending movement of the spine. If you experience pain with back bending, try repeated forward bending movements and see if this helps. If so try to repeat these several times daily.
The next task is to address the neighboring areas, namely the upper back and hips. This can be done with upper back exercises such as foam roller extensions, and hip flexor stretches.
In addition to improving our mobility we also want to improve our strength and endurance. Building capacity through the abs will help improve the eccentric (muscle lengthening) effect therefore slowing down the arching in the back, and optimising glute function will help us extend the hips, also taking pressure off the lower back.
It may be that your spine is sensitive to the compression element of walking or running, decompression movements such as hanging may be relieving. These types of issues also respond well to calf and oblique training.
A sample program for an extension sensitive spine might look like
Twice per day
- Hip flexor stretches 30 seconds x 2
- 2 minutes upper back extension
- Cat/camel (focus on the camel) 10 times
3x/week
- Glute bridge 10-15 x 3
- Anti-extension press 30 seconds x 3
Comments