Lower Back Pain

"Do You Know The Cause & Solutions?"

Lower back pain is the second most common reason people seek help from their doctor. It is only second to the common cold. The statistics tell you how common it is, with over 80% of adults suffering at some stage.

Some more statistics first though, not to frighten you but to help you understand how common your condition is. These statistics also teach you that many people make the same mistakes and end up living with lower back pain for life.

Did you know that 47% of adults will have back pain this year? That right now 7% of adults are in pain. That the majority of back pain becomes chronic.

What about the recent statistics that say only 25% of adults with pain today will be pain free in one year. The rest are worse or the same. That means 75% of people will remain in pain, each and every year.

Why?

Your Lower Back Anatomy

The anatomy of your lower back helps to understand why this area suffers with more pain than your upper back or neck.

The lower back consists of five individual vertebrae which are usually freely movable. At the base you have your Sacrum (the wedge shaped bone) and the Pelvis (where there is a left and right component).

The bones in the lower back are larger than the other areas elsewhere for one prime reason - this area does all the hard work.

As soon as you lift, bend, twist or do any activity, it is these joints that "take the load."

To help with this loaded exercise, the muscles are larger and stronger. Some of the muscles main job is stability of the pelvis and lower back, others are for adding strength to your movements.

The reason why pain is more common in the lower back is that the area is more used and hence more likely to be injured or overworked. Small problems turn into larger problems as you continue to work and over work the lower spine. But the causes are more complicated than this alone...

Are The Causes Of Lower Back Pain That Difficult?

The causes of lower back pain are different to what creates your pain.

Lower back pain is the result of both the muscles and joints in your lower spine working inefficiently. What this means is that if these areas are out of balance, the muscles and joints tire.

As these tire, muscles will tighten and therefore lead to pain. This is how pain is created.

What "causes" your pain and why this inefficient action occurs, is explained in more detail on our web page on back pain causes.

But...

One of the reasons why lower back pain is common and also commonly chronic, is that too many people believe that lifting incorrectly, or sitting poorly or twisting too far causes low back pain.

These activities are daily tasks and do not "cause" back pain. But these activities are the minor stresses or micro-injuries that allow tension to build. If your lower spine is out of balance these activities will accelerate tension in the area.

If your muscles were balanced, joints moving well and your pelvis was balanced, you could lift, bend and twist and not have pain. Look at those around you pain free, they bend, lift and twist, don't they. Yet stay pain free.

If the area is both strong and mobile, the day to day activities will not cause tension to build. The key to being pain free is not avoiding lifting activities, or watching how you sit or stand.

It is making sure these joints and muscles function correctly.

Improving Lower Back Function

Improving your lower back function relies on your ability to remove the actual causes of your pain.

Yet the major mistake made in low back pain has nothing do with treatment. It also has nothing to do with the causes, well actually it does in a sense.

The major error made is not determining the underlying causes. This again does not mean how you sit, stand or lift. It is the distortion patterns that occur in the area that cause muscles and joints to work inefficiently.

There are 4 main distortion patterns that occur in your spine.

Each causes certain muscles to work poorly and allows joints to become under greater stress. Muscles are designed to pull in straight lines. Why?

Muscles strength relies on its ability to cope with maximum load. The same as if you lift a weight with your arm angle altered. You suddenly lose power at certain positions.

The same applies to your spine. Certain muscles will strain, tire and then tighten. These distortion patterns allow this process to occur and with time tension and lower back pain develop. If you can identify which distortion pattern you have you can target the causes and remove pain.

Finding these patterns is the first step in back pain relief. Once you can identify these, symptom relief is directed towards those muscles that are creating your pain. Long lasting relief occurs when you rebalance these patterns and allow your muscles and joints to work with power and strength.

The first thing you should do is request a copy of our Free Back Pain Relief Guide which teaches a simple technique to find these patterns. Once you know what patterns exist, you can start to remove your lower back pain.

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