Back pain = no hacky :( (Help?)

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 21 Apr 2010 14:59

So I haven't really played for a year.
A little bit here and there, but nothing noteable or significant.

The last time I really played at a normal capacity was in Vancouver with Jorden last summer. I was having bad twinges of back pain that night. After we hung out and walked around town. After sitting for a bit and then getting up to walk down the street my back started to get really bad and then at one point I needed people to help me walk back to where we were staying and then I stayed in bed for like... almost a week unable to even walk across the street to get groceries without pain.

I have really tight hamstrings and I'm really inflexible.
I think I have a weak core and abs.
But exercises to strengthen these areas hurt my back. I try to cycle to stay in shape and that doesn't really affect me in any ill way, but I was just thinking of playing hack to see how I feel, and after a couple ATWs in barefeet in my room I felt twinges and just knew that I wouldn't be able to play at all. Like not even BOPs and tiltless.

Does anyone have suggestions?
I have an exercise ball, which is supposed to be good for developing core strength, but the exercises I've found don't feel very productive.

Help pleeasse.
This is all that's preventing me from playing hack and I think I'm losing my powers from not playing for so long.

professor · Post by **professor** » 21 Apr 2010 22:56

For abs, the best exercise I know of is an ab wheel. Regular situps hurt my back, but the ab wheel doesn't at all and I've seen more results with it than situps. It may hurt your back though, so you'll want to try one before you buy anything.

stephanos · Post by **stephanos** » 22 Apr 2010 05:02

My name is Stephanos. I used to play footbag a lot. I loved it. Last March i got a lacrosse injury which turned out to be bilateral stress fractures on my L-5 vertebrae. My back would get so tight from running that i would hardly be able to move, and the stress fractures didnt show up on x-rays so it took a while to figure out what was going on. When i did get a CT Scan, we went to a spine specialist and he said he sees such injuries a lot, especially in footbal players and he said i had to rest with the goal of me playing next season in mind. I wore a back brace for a while and did some (inconsistent) physical therapy.
I am not pain free and it has now been over a year. I dont have daily pain but i can feel it when it rains and if i twist or over exert myself. I havent run any prolonged distance or played any intense competetive sports and am afraid to start since i have occasional pain. I have tried playing footbag some, focusing on maintaining a tight core and not playing for very long but i feel it later that week.
The spine doctor is baffled since most cases would have healed long ago. I recently went to a rheumatologist who believes that the fractures are not the source of pain but a form of juvenile arthiritis in the form of : http://arthritis.about.com/od/spondy/An ... atment.htm

I'm waiting on a blood test to see for sure. I wrote this because i miss the footbag community and also your inflexibility caught my attention. The doctor said that i was underflexible even though i hadnt been doing any sort of regular stretching. But you could have anything really, and that sucks. I feel ya.

-stephanos

crazylegs32 · Post by **crazylegs32** » 24 Apr 2010 22:02

To Eric- You are getting back muscle spasms. Commonly known as back thrown out. Youll be out of it for a few days at least. Its the body naturally limiting you, a good thing. Take care of it if possible or if not limit yourself.
It sounds like you know alot but have to do work. Build your core up, do some cross country running or some hard mountain biking, some climbing would be great too. Lifelong exercise will be necessary because if you get lazy your back will go out more often.
My back goes out If I go to sleep with a fan blowing on it or in a cold room. It really sucks to have that tiny feeling which you know is going to get worse and worse and worse.

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 24 Apr 2010 22:58

Word.
Thanks for the replies so far.

This has been persistant off and on for, like, many years. I've seen my doctor about it. I'm going to make another appointment just for this and see where that takes me. Any more advice/suggestions/experiences are very welcome!

Iron Clad Ben · Post by **Iron Clad Ben** » 25 Apr 2010 09:44

I use this machine. It's supposed to be THE machine for back strengthening and relieving back pain long term. If you can find a doctor or a gym with this piece of equipment, USE IT! I don't have back pain myself, but I want to be stronger in general and prevent injury.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDT9otJ_ ... r_embedded[/youtube]

Check out these articles too.

http://kellypersonaltraining.blogspot.c ... chine.html
http://kellypersonaltraining.blogspot.c ... pment.html

crazylegs32 · Post by **crazylegs32** » 29 Apr 2010 19:28

So with that machine you get resistance both directions?

Iron Clad Ben · Post by **Iron Clad Ben** » 30 Apr 2010 19:37

crazylegs32 wrote:So with that machine you get resistance both directions?

I think I know what you're asking, so I'll try to answer. You have to push the machine backwards, but you also have to control the movement forwards on the negative rep. The negative rep is as important or more important than the positive rep. This motion on this machine does NOT have to be done quickly. In fact you get more of a workout when you do slow controlled reps. Trying to bang out quick reps on this or any machine is really not beneficial, and in some cases actually harmful. Time under load is what works muscles, NOT number of reps.

cd · Post by cd » 01 May 2010 17:53

Erik Chan wrote:So I haven't really played for a year.

I have really tight hamstrings and I'm really inflexible.

Ok, I'm no expert and I'm only talking from personal experience, but I think this is your problem. This was my exact situation about 6 months ago when I had really bad back pain until I realized it was due to my hamstrings. Tight hamstrings will pull on your back and cause pain to no end.

Your hamstrings are probably very strong compared to your little back muscles, like most footbag players. You've got to work on flexibility. Stronger back and abs will probably help, but it was flexibility that did it for me.

This stretch worked miracles for me; warm up and then try it: Find something like a washing machine or kitchen counter that is about hip height or belly button height. Raise one leg in front of you and put it on top of the object. With that leg straight out in front of you, stand up straight with good posture for a few moments until it becomes comfortable. Then reach forward and touch your toes; you should get to the point where you can do this for a solid 10s before shredding hard.

Again, these are just my observations from personal experience. My only knowledge comes from being a footbag player. I started doing this stretch every day as a matter of habit, and then multiple stretches when I play footbag, and my back pain hasn't returned.

good luck. I want to be able to shred hard with you at footbag events for years to come.

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 01 May 2010 18:11

Thanks Christine.
I'll see if that stretch helps.
I'm so inflexible that for my whole life when I've tried to do a stretch like this, [or touching your toes with the bottom of your leg flat against the ground,] my leg doesn't extend entirely straight; in highschool gym class I got in trouble for "cheating" because my legs wouldn't go straight.

Sitting a lot must aid in tightening hamstrings, yes? Is there an activity that does the opposite?

crazylegs32 · Post by **crazylegs32** » 02 May 2010 21:36

Sounds like a ballet stretch on that bar, Ill try that one.

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 08 May 2010 17:00

The advice about the tight hamstrings will definitely help you Eric. If you think about the anatomy of a hamstring it attaches to the ischial tuberosity (butt bone) which pulls the hip structure posterior and creates added stress to the lumbar spine. Remove the stress by stretching all parts of your hip (yoga is incredibly efficient). In addition to stretching; strengthen your Hip Flexors to remove excess pressure off your lumbar spine. You can do this by doing step ups, lunges, or using a standing hip flexor machine. (A front squat also will help but this is very tough for a beginner.)

Strong and flexible legs lead to a faster increase in overall body health, including your cardiovascular system and posture. New research shows that muscle mass in the legs may even lead to an increase in life span... so don't be afraid to train your legs hard in the gym on top of your footbag game Eric.

I'm hoping to hear the best by this summer!

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 10 May 2010 13:34

Thanks so much for posting Aaron!
This gives me hope!

I'm gonna try those lunges and whatnot. Hip flexors, eh? Cool. Really -- thank you!

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 01 Sep 2011 18:48

Still messed up.
Any further advice?
I have a yoga routine that was prescribed to me by my yoga teacher for back strengthening, but it hasn't been doing much for the past 5-ish months -- no noticeable improvement.

Way back when I made this post I thought that I needed to balance my back by strengthening abs, but my yoga teacher said the opposite, that I need to strengthen my back, and that makes more sense.

I had about half a year where I could play, since the initial injury in summer 2009, but otherwise I'm pretty incapacitated in terms of almost any form of fitness.

etphonehome · Post by **etphonehome** » 03 Sep 2011 19:21

What kind of Doctor are you seeing? You should see if Chiropractic does anything for you. I'm sure they will tell you that you need to strengthen your back, but the structure of your bones needs to be aligned correctly in order for your spine to do its job.

The muscles in your back are straining to make up for bad alignment. I would also advise you to keep on stretching. I'm talking like daily stretching and try to hit the lower back and back areas as well.

See if there are any chiropractors that use the Gonstead technique as it is hands on and not any of the bullshit electronic devices used to "adjust" you.

read here and see if you can find one in your area http://www.gonstead.com/

I'll admit, i've been adjusted since childhood, and it really helps when you're hurting. I guess i'm biased though, my dad is a chiropractor.