Hi there, first time poster here.

I have been suffering from some back pain for the last year. The pain seems to stem from the two muscles running down either side of the spine towards the hamstrings. This pain can also occur higher up the back (midway). Rotating the shoulders seems to cause a crunching sound which I'm sure is related.

To give you a bit of a background, I work as an engineer (sitting down desk job) and don't particular engage in any form of manual hard labour. I like to keep pretty active (ride mountain bikes / road bikes several times a week - play basketball as well). I am 6'2" and 90 kgs.

Over the last couple of months, I have been seeing a chiropractor between 1-2 times a week to help sort out the problem.
The first time he saw me, he did mentioned the following things
- Neck was tilted to one side
- Shoulders were out of alignment and my muscles are fighting to keep the spine protected and hence the back / muscle pain.
- My feet pointed outwards (standing / walking)
- I tended to weight most of my bodyweight on one foot.
- Feet roll inwards due to high arches

Special consideration has been made to treat the hamstring muscles which he claims are over compensating to protect the back itself. He claims my case is a pretty straight forward one but despite following all the hamstring stretching exercises, my pain remains (and sometimes is worse).
I have also noticed that my quads / thigh muscles feel very bruised and well used (when no serious exercise has been performed). He has specified to rub these muscles with a billiard ball to get the blood flowing and advised magnesium supplements to help the muscles recover.

My question is, are these symptoms the root of the problem or is there another underlying issue?

After visiting the chiropractor, I do walk away feeling light and pretty good for at least another day but then the pain returns (especially when sitting down on a soft couch or in the afternoons at work). I feel that lying down on a hard floor is preferred rather than sitting on a couch.

Any ideas? Should I find another Chiro / Physio etc?

Any advise would be appreciated.

James - Melbourne, Australia

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