About 80% of the US population will experience low back pain in their life. Today I am going to share a contributing factor to low back pain and share some ideas of how to decrease some symptoms.
Most individuals with low back pain will have had some sort of imagery, MRI, X-ray, etc. The findings of these results can sometimes sound scary "bone on bone", "pinched nerve", "degenerative disc disease", the list goes on and on. A lot of times what your back is really asking for is a reduction in tension. When your pelvis or low back is in a poor position it can add stress to the areas that matter most. We just don't recognize the poor positioning until we have pain! A great example of poor positioning is when an individual sustains an anterior pelvic tilt while ambulating or sitting.
If you want to know if you have an anterior pelvic tilt, look at your belly button in the mirror. Is it parallel with the ground, or does it slightly tilted toward the ground? If your still looking at the mirror, you may also notice that when you turn sideways your butt sticks out and your low back has a lot more of curve to it. This positioning closes down the facet joints in your low back and can contribute to some of the discomfort you are having. Typically individuals go into an anterior pelvic tilt because the muscles are either weak, tight, or both.
The most common muscles that are tight in this scenario are your hip flexors and paraspinal (muscles around the spine) muscles; weak muscles are typically seen to be your hamstrings and abdominal musculature. To correct this, you need an exercise program to help address your tight and weak muscles. You can also utilize muscle energy techniques as described in the video below (exercises 1 & 2). At times individuals can get instantaneous pain relief.
Their are a variety of ways to stretch and or strengthen these muscles. My best advice is to do exercises that do not increase symptoms. If you are interested in scheduling a one-on-one call to go over any of this information let me know via email.
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Remember this information is for educational purposes only and should not be used for evaluation or treatment of yourself. Consult your Primary Care Physician (PCP) or other medical professionals for more information.
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