low back pain relief - Dynamic Sports Medicine

Lower Back Pain after Exercise

Mild soreness, tightness, or fatigue in the lower back after some workouts is common, particularly if you have done weight work or other exercises specifically designed to engage those muscles. Like any other muscle group, the lower back will feel the work during and after deadlifts, kettlebell swings, barbell squats, and even long runs. This feeling should be entirely tolerable and short-lived just your posterior chain acknowledging that it has been challenged.

If the pain is severe, long-lasting, or causes you to cut back on physical exercise, it may be time to consider a few things.

How’s your form/technique?

While strength training is a key factor in longevity and mobility, Improper body alignment while lifting heavy objects, including weights, is a primary reason for injury to the lower back. When performing tasks like deadlifts, it is vitally important to push your hips back, and keep a flat back and your neck in line with your spine while in motion. Instead of pulling the weight up with your arms, think of the exercise as the result of pushing the heels of your feet into the ground. If you can’t maintain a proper posture without rounding the back and shoulders during a deadlift, you’re likely lifting too heavy.

Similarly, with kettlebell swings, the work comes from the thrust of the hips, not from any movement in your spine and shoulders. Your arms and the kettlebells only swing because of the momentum created by the lower body.

If you have pain after running or participating in stop/start sports, it is likely from repetitive stress that has caused one or more spinal misalignments in discs and vertebrae. It could also be the result of an underlying weakness in the core or gluteal muscles.

Are you Working with Opposing Muscle Groups?

With both strength training and cardiovascular activities, it is important to focus on muscles as antagonist pairs, and not just work the “major” muscles we think make us look most fit. Intentionally targeting all muscle groups not only leads to a better overall physique, it improves mobility, coordination, and balance, and it can help prevent pain and injury. Many extremely fit patients who come in with lower back pain often have unknown muscle weaknesses or imbalances, i.e. runners with weak glutes or tight hamstrings from weak quadriceps.

If you have persistent lower back pain after working out, it is important to make sure you do not have the beginning of injury or other conditions that will be exacerbated by continued activity. A sports chiropractic evaluation will be extremely beneficial in several ways.

The dedicated team at Dynamic Sports Medicine can:

check for body misalignments and perform spinal and limb adjustments when necessary
perform gait and technique analysis during motion
conduct strength and mobility testing to identify imbalance and weakness
utilize a variety of healing modalities such as therapeutic massage, dry needling, myoacoustic compression therapy, among others, to assist in range of motion and healing
prescribe targeted stretching and strengthening exercises to balance muscle groups and optimize movement

Remember that while fatigue is normal after engaging lower back muscles, sharp and enduring pain may be signs of current or potential injury. Contact Dynamic Sports Medicine today for a sports chiropractic approach to relieving lower back pain after working out.

There’s no doubt that participating in outdoor sports is good for health, as it is also a form of exercise and physical activity. However, it’s also known that sports can be strenuous for the muscles, joints, and tissues, leading to pain and soreness. Golf and tennis are both two such intensive sports, and it’s not uncommon for players to often develop lower back pain.

If you’re a regular golf or tennis player experiencing pain in the lower back area, whether mild or severe, you must treat it as quickly as possible. You can consider various options for low back pain relief, but chiropractic treatment is often considered one of the most ideal, non-invasive options.

Find out more about how chiropractic care can help relieve low back pain in golf and tennis players, and what makes it an effective treatment method.

Why are golf and tennis players prone to low back pain?

Both these sports involve swinging motions and muscular movement, putting significant pressure on the lower back area. A recent study also found that low back pain was extremely prevalent among athletes from various sports, including tennis. Similar research regarding golf players stated that lower back pain alone accounts for between 18% and 54% of all golf-related ailments.

These numbers and studies are not meant to discourage people from practicing these sports, as their health benefits are undeniable. But one also needs to be aware that certain factors can cause serious back pain among tennis players and golfers, such as:

Overexertion

If you play intensively for long hours or on a regular basis without giving your body enough rest and time to recover, you’re likely to develop back pain.

Incorrect motion and technique

Strokes in golf, as well as serves and swings in tennis, require proper posture, stance, and movement. Incorrectly performing such motions can hurt the muscles, ligaments, and tissues, leading to lower back pain.

Lack of proper warm-ups

Warm-up and stretching are crucial to loosen stiff muscles and make your body flexible before golf or tennis matches. If you’re heading into games without warming up properly, it can strain your muscles in the low back region.

Repeated motion

Many times, even with proper technique, simply performing swinging motions over and over for a long time can cause wear and tear of the muscles and tissues in the lower back.

When should golf and tennis players see a chiropractor for lower back pain?

If the pain doesn’t go away within 1 or 2 days, it’s best to consult a chiropractor immediately. Even if it may not be a serious condition, there is no harm in seeking professional advice through chiropractic care as early as possible. And if the pain persists for more than 4-5 days, or if it goes away but keeps recurring, you should see a chiropractor without delay.

How can chiropractic care relieve lower back pain in golf and tennis players?

Chiropractic care has proven to be effective in all kinds of pain management. Here’s how golfers and tennis players can benefit from chiropractic treatment for low back pain relief:

Spinal manipulation

Lower back pain is often caused due to problems in the lumbar spine, such as stiffness and tension. Spinal manipulation techniques can treat such issues through controlled pressure in targeted areas of the lower back region. The chiropractor usually does this using their hands or some special equipment to apply thrust to the spinal joints. In doing so, it improves the mobility of joints and releases built-up tension, which can relieve pain.

Myofascial release

Myofascial release is a chiropractic technique that involves the application of gentle but constant pressure on affected areas or trigger points. It’s a special massaging technique that can loosen stiff muscles and increase blood circulation in the targeted area, reducing inflammation as well. By stretching the muscles and myofascial tissues, this technique frees pinched nerves, if any. So there are multiple ways in which it can address and treat different underlying causes of lower back pain, be it stiffness, inflammation, or pressure on the spinal nerves.

Spinal Decompression

Herniated discs are also common causes of lower back pain in golf and tennis players, given the range of twisting and turning movements involved in the sport. It can be treated with spinal decompression therapy, such as manual or mechanical traction, which restores the position of the affected disks between the spine.

Corrective Exercises

Chiropractors may also prescribe a wide range of stretching and strengthening exercises to correct certain defects which might be causing low back pain, such as muscular imbalance or postural defects. These exercises are meant to be performed regularly, improving mobility, flexibility, and strength of targeted muscles. So, specific corrective exercises targeting the muscles in the lower back will effectively alleviate pain and tension.

These are just some of the chiropractic techniques and treatment methods that can relieve lower back pain in athletes. In addition, chiropractors also offer diet and lifestyle advice for athletes to prevent back pain and injuries in the future.

What should I expect in chiropractic treatment for lower back pain?

When you visit a chiropractor, they will conduct a thorough diagnosis and observe your condition. You will also be asked where you feel the pain, how long it has persisted, and how sharp or intense it feels. After an initial inquiry of your condition, they might suggest various physical tests, imaging techniques, or any other diagnosis techniques as they see fit better to understand the underlying cause of the back pain.

Based on the complete diagnosis, they will determine the right course of treatment that addresses the exact underlying cause. For example, spinal decompression will be necessary if herniated disks are causing back pain. But if it’s a mild pain caused by muscular stiffness, only performing corrective stretching exercises at home may be enough to treat the condition. In some cases, different techniques may be required to treat your low back pain completely. Based on the severity of the pain, the treatment may require one or multiple sessions.

Get the Best Chiropractic Care in Austin for Low Back Pain Relief

If you’re a golfer or tennis player experiencing low back pain and seeking a reliable chiropractor in Austin, reach out to us at Dynamic Sports Medicine. We are one of the leading service providers for sports medicine in Austin, offering a wide range of the latest and advanced treatment methods for sports-related injuries and conditions.

With state-of-the-art healthcare and rehabilitation technology, and some of the best chiropractors for sports medicine, we can effectively treat a wide variety of ailments in athletes, including low back pain. Contact us for a personal consultation or book an appointment so that our professional chiropractors can help you get relief from lower back pain and fully enjoy your sporting activities.