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Strengthening Lower Back? Injury


Stephen Ruby

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Had a pretty bad lower back injury several months ago that has put me out of any training. My upper back and upper body surprisingly didn't lose a lot of strength and I didn't drop much weight either but I want to focus on building my lower back strength up to move back into doing light squats and deadlifts without pain. I know a lot of you have probably had some back injury or know someone who has so I wanted to see what you guys did to help strengthen it so you could train safely.

Basically I'm looking for exercises to start doing now that I'm feeling a little more comfortable with light training that you used with good success. I was kind of getting tired of the heavy powerlifting anyways and this will also be a good excuse to try to slim out a little and eventually reach 275 weight class which has been a long time goal. I expect my power lifts to go down and or it to take about a year but I think I will be stronger grip athlete and overall healthier and less prone to injuries.

Despite lifting for a few years I really don't know much about lifting I stuck to pretty much only barbell lifts-squat, overhead press, some bench, and deadlifts +rows and a few dumbbell exercises. So I'm a little clueless on exercises in general.

Just signed up for a gym so hope to start slow and get stronger.

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I've never had a severe back injury, but I have beat up my back before from heavy rack pulls. What has never failed to make it feel better is a nice long stroll on a hiking trail. High rep swings with low weight(30lbs-50lbs) have also helped me, of course your mileage may vary.

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Every injury is different and will need a different rehab protocol. Start reading Stuart McGill for a better picture. In my case it took me a while to find out what works "for me" but you may need different. Below is what I came up with - I started out with BW and have now worked up to a 20# ankle weight on each leg. Often the problem is that your hips aren't working as well as they should and your low back and hamstrings have to overwork - when I fixed that - my low back got better. There comes a time when we just have to be smarter.

Cat Camel

Upward and Downward Dog

Bird Dogs

Fire Hydrant - or side leg raises

High Steps

L Sits

Glute Ham Raises - mini band

A few stretches

Ab Wheel on knees

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I discovered Foundation Training (http://www.foundationtraining.com/) about a year ago and it has really improved my posterior chain strength. The exercises may seem a little remedial (no slinging around big free weights), but in my opinion they are excellent for improving back health and preventing injuries to the spine. The attached video is an example of the "Founder" which is probably the most important exercise in Foundation Training. Hope this helps.

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I bought an inversion table a few weeks back and it it is awesome. My back is feeling great and ive been using it in the morning and night. 3-4 min inverted at a time only. Oicked mine up for 180 bucks online and its very solid.

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Very light (to start with) back raise, in addition to above.

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LBP is very hard to address with a catch all exercise program as the cause of each person's pain can be related to totally different causes; one person may be due to tightness (hamstring, piriformis, hip flexors), weakness, discogenic (herniated disc), leg length discrepancy, improper fitting shoes (high arch vs low arch), spinal instability, neural tension, etc. So without a full evaluation to determine which of those or a combination of those may be your problem it is hard to say what is correct for you. As a physical therapist I would definitely start by trying to address flexibility and mobility limitations first then progress to a strengthening program as you want to be able to achieve full ROM then begin strengthening at those new ranges. The exercises that Chris Rice has would be a good starting point as many of those address both flexibility and spinal hypomobility issues. The only concern I would have would be to figure out if there is a more serious diagnosis going on, first rule out that!!

Good luck with everything and feel free to PM if you have any questions.

Edited by Lucasraymond
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I will say that I had both an X Ray and MRI diagnosis in hand before I started working on mine. I knew what I was dealing with.

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Thanks so much for all the replies I really appreciate the feedback and knowledge. I hope others can hopefully gain some insight on how best to work around back injuries as well. I know its a common issue for many athletes.(our spines are not designed that well so are easier to injure if not careful, something I now realize)

I will start working on several of the exercises listed, along with trying to regain flexibility that I lost. I think the flexibility is a big one that I neglected in the past and I'm sure it helped contribute to the injury. I know I'm more fragile then I realized now so I will be a lot more careful with my training going forward.

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Buy a purple Jump Stretch band. Keep one end of the loop on the floor by standing on it. Stretch the other end over one's head so that it rests on the back of the neck. Then bend over and stand up for reps.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I had a nasty lower back injury a few years ago. Try hitting the foam roller. It works wonders for me. I use The Grid by Trigger Point Fitness. Don't bother with the cheap blue foam ones.

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+1 for McGill.

Every back problem is different. Through random happenstance, I found kettlebell swings and deadlifts helped my back a lot. But without knowing what the issue is, no one thing or methodology is going to work.

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I did not read the entire thread since is it out dated now but if you need anymore help shoot me a message will see what I can do for ya.

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