Lower Back Pain

[Notch Johnson]

Bevery careful with back pain. I had chronic lower back pain and just tired to "tough it out". Sometime around last Labor Day I came in from an early morning surf near Southern Shores and realized that my right leg and foot were a bit numb. I decided to let it go until I got back to D.C. at the end of the week. That was the wrong decision. By the time I got back the pain was unbearable and I could no longer move my right foot. I had emergency surgery at Walter Reed and by pure luck they restored most of the function in my leg, but I still have a bit of numbness in my toes.

Keep an eye on it. If the pain starts to shoot down your leg. Go to the Hospital. Immediately.

The quicker they take the pressure of the nerves the more likely you are to heal.

[fupafest]

Strengthen you Core, small changes make a big difference.
Change you computer chair to a yoga ball.
Stretch Daily
Go to the vitamin shop and buy arnica montana (homeopathic remedy for bruises and back pain)
Seek a professional opinion, you dont want to aggrevate your situation.

[whitewater]

Just like everyone else said, strengthen you core. Also stretching your glutes will help out a lot as well. Deep tissue massage and accupuncture are good alternatives to western medicine.

[LBCrew]

In my opinion strengthening your core does wonders for relieving pressure on your lower back.

That's not an opinion, brother. You nailed it on the head... strengthening your core, particularly your abdominals and sacrospinalus (don't know if I spelled that right), is in most cases the ONLY non-invasive thing you can do to improve posture, support your lower back, and alleviate back pain. This includes strength training and yoga. Like it's been said, take "back day" at the gym seriously. My personal experience has been that stretching, and other range-of-motion exercises feels good short term and may help in terms of injury prevention and conditioning, but does little for long-term relief of chronic back pain.

[ClemsonSurf]

I've taken a couple yoga classes and found some on youtube too. I was very impressed with how many of the poses correlated with surfing. It's one of those cool activities that are as hard as you make it. I would recommend taking a couple classes first then you can branch out to videos or the internet.

I was doing your generic gym class stretches and really not gaining any flexibility. Yoga definitely helped my lower back and hip range of motion.

Another type of exercise that is low impact but keeps you moving is biking. I'm riding my bike to work a couple times a week and at the end of the ride I notice my core is fatigued. Like the guy said earlier, keep moving.

[Retro]

like many others have said here - its all about core strength and stretching. I threw my back out so bad i couldnt walk or breathe without major pain. i actually ended up in physical therapy. they showed me some good stretches for the lower back, hamstrings and quads (surprising to me the hamstrings and quads relate to your lower back) AND most importantly showed me how to strenghen my core. they told me 95% of people are back in PT in 6 months because they stop doing the exercises... well after 2 1/2 years later i did not stop and i have had absolutely NO problems recur. it changed my life. so... buy a book go to PT, whatever you need to do ... learn how to stretch properly and strengthen your core. you will not regret it.

[beachkat]

I've been dealing with back issues for a long time, herniated and bulging discs,degeneration (which is common by the way...)etc...
Pilates is the best core exercises you can do, been taking it for over 4-5 years and still a challenge... its the best! Yes a strong core is key for back issues!
Generally, arching good, bending into U shapes not good for discs, (which I have alot of problems with...)
Pilates saves me... though I even have to slightly modify some moves so not too be in too much of in a U shape...
Also strenghtening glutes also good for back issues...! And of course body boarding for me.... : )

[gnurider7]

do yoga, it really helps. i recommend the p90x yoga routine. its 90 minutes and you feel great after. it really helps to stretch and relax as well as strengthen your core muscles. i herniated a disc about a year and 3 months ago. its not 100% and probably never will be but after 5 months of doing yoga and the p90x program i went to nica for the season and surfed pretty much everyday

[wave1rider65]

Core fitness, Stretching, Yoga are all beneficial and must do's in my opinion......Especially as one gets older. I was dealing with the same issues as most, neck and lower back pain and jump started myself with a Chiropractor which quickly got me back into the game. Just dont go to anyone ... do your research. My Chiropractor had a degree in Sports Medicine first and that was a plus to me.

[shark fin]

Thank you for the info! Anyone who suffers from back pain should read this