Back pain, leg weakness, muscle spasms - physically active man

[jonofst]

Hi,

After a month of sitting on a chair with bad lower-back support (actually, almost no support at all, which caused me a bad posture), I have back pain.
The pain is in the lower back, both on the "edge" of the pelvic-bone, and a bit higher. Sometimes the pain feels "on" the spine, and sometimes a few centimeters to one of the sides.
The pain is most of the time like a constant low pain, and sometimes gets very strong, have some muscle spasms in the lower back, and my legs are a bit weaker than usual (with some tingling feeling through the feet - very gentle most of the time, but sometimes it's like a 'shooting' pain for a few seconds).
Sitting and resting worsens the pain, standing is better, but walking sometimes helps and sometimes not. In general, physical activity ("warming the muscles" tends to relieve the pain). Cold weather (especially a/c) worsens the pain.
Last week I started stretching the back and legs very often, and it seems to help a bit. Also massaging the back (rolling the back on a tennis ball against a wall) seems to help a bit as well.

Some more details on myself: age 23, physically active, not overweight, usually healthy, no back problems in the past.

What could be the cause of the pain? And what would you recommend me to do? what kind of exercise?


Thanks.

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[finchr]

You gave the key when you said sitting & resting after a period of a month or so of increased forces on the posterior elements of your spine. The tingling or paraesthesia is caused, almost always, by nerve compression close to where the nerves exit your spine en route to the muscles etc. Now what could the structures involved be? The model of the disc fit very well with the research but call I what you will, the response to force, pressure, & movement will be the same.
If you sit long enough, particularly over time, the structures restraining the inner disc gts sretched and allows just enough movement to allow a blip t contact the exiting nerve.
I'll bet the times you feel tingling are in sitting, bending, or shortly after sitting. Try lying on your stomachi there is no increase n symptoms and then try the downward dog yoga movement 5-10 times. Then assess your Sx. It is a ruling in/out process. IF you begin to notice a positive change repeat every 2-3 hours in standing ( backbends ) or on your stomach.
If sitting produces your Sx then do not bend to touch your toes or bring your knees up to your chest. Why? It is the same position as how you think you got here in the first place. Do not sit in a soft easy chair without support an for no longer tha 30-45 min for a day or two.
Your Sx are classic and from the sounds of It not medieval et.
This software doesn't work too well with WORD. Homework: Look up McKenzieMDT.org - not case sensitive. Read it and tell me what you think and how you responded within 24 hrs

[jonofst]

Hi,

I have looked up the mcKenzie method, and have been constantly doing the mcKenzie stretches every few hours (sometimes every hour). Sometimes they seem to help and sometimes not, so it is hard to say if there is an improvement in my condition or not.
Do you have any suggestions to what else I could do? In my job, I sit all day (sometimes for 10-12 hours, including bus rides). I try to sit in a good posture (as suggested in mcKenzie's book), but it is hard, and sometimes painful (though it's hard to say if the pain is the "regular" back pain, or pain from muscles working-out as well). I try to get up and move every 20-30 minutes and backbend.
Will you recommend back (& abdomen) muscle strengthening exercises?
In your experience, how long does it usually last before I could feel improvement?


thanks again!

[finchr]

Any Changes? Any Developments?

[toddchaney]

Bad posture can cause a lot of pain issues.You should consult a doctor and search for online sources to find out what type of exercises are suitable for you.

[kcho]

Perhaps, u need a lumbar roll??