Quack Hacks- lower back pain

[meguro]

I thought we might have a series of unprofessional (I have no medical training so this advice should only be taken as entertainment ) solutions for the minor pains we encounter in our training and daily life. Of course, for any acute pain, see a qualified medical professional. I'll start with some lower back pain which I notice after doing exercises like weighted kiba dachi holds or leg raises. The pain is not severe, but the tightness in the lower back that accompanies it makes me feel like an old man, well older than I already am, and when I attempt to run, I end up hunched over and shuffling. The problem, as I have discovered, is a tight psoas.

The psoas, any google search will tell you, is not in your back so any kind of lower back massage will be useless. The psoas stabilizes the spine and also lifts the leg, hence the pain when doing isometric squats or leg lifts. I have found the best way to get at the psoas is to lie on top of a rubber ball (roughly the size of a large orange), the ball placed just to the side of your belly button. You will know that your back pain is caused by a tight psoas when you lay on the ball and it feels like you had just been stabbed.

[MMX]

Thanks Meguro! I have not had that yet but will keep that in mind.

[senshido]

I would never had thought of that for back pain... thanks for posting

[meguro]

Hope it helps, guys. You'd be surprised how much your psoas comes into play in daily life. It's easy to imagine straining it, once you understand what it does. Even if you do nothing, especially if all you do is sit around all day. . .tight psoas, sore back.