Welcome to Massage Therapy Guide
Massage Therapy Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
Back Pain Slowing Your Run to a Crawl?
from: Dr Marybeth CraneOver 80% of the population has or will suffer from back pain at
some point in their lives! Proper footwear can potentially
prevent, reduce and treat biomechanical factors associated with
low back pain in runners. Back pain can be a mysterious thing.
Every time your feet hit the ground, the reacting shock is
transferred up your legs to your hips and spine, and any
biomechanical imbalance can ultimately cause lower back pain.
It could be that you have flat feet, and your over-pronation
(rolling in of your feet) is causing your back ache. It could be
that you have really high-arched, rigid feet and the lack of
pronation is causing your back pain. It could be that one of
your legs is ever-so-slightly shorter than the other, or that
your pelvis is just a tiny bit uneven or tilted. You could have
a curve in your spine. More seriously, one of the discs between
the vertebrae of your spine could be degenerating or arthritis
is setting in.
Back pain can be a tough mystery to solve, but with a little
help from your friendly neighborhood sports medicine specialist
you should be able to track down the cause. By far the most
common diagnosis in patients with low back pain is the lumbar
sprain/strain, which accounts for about 75% of all cases of low
back pain. While muscle strain is the most common cause of back
pain for runners, play it safe and visit a sports medicine
orthopedist or a chiropractor to have your spine and vertebrae
examined if you are experiencing severe pain.
If you have ruled out all the worrisome spine issue, you may
have an uneven pelvis or unequal leg lengths. These conditions
are relatively common and can be ascertained with a good
biomechanical exam. With either, the muscles on one side are
being pulled. They're tense to begin with, and the added stress
of running can put them into spasm. Relatively weak abdominal
and lower back muscles might also contribute to the problem.
Running generally tends to cause strength imbalances between
these muscle groups. Add a pinch of tight hamstrings and you
have a recipe for disasterous back pain. Core strengthening
exercises and a lot of stretching can help.
Finally, the root cause is often in your foot, the last place
most people look! Back pain is one of the many possible injuries
associated with flat feet and over-pronation. Likewise, if your
feet are rigid and high-arched, their lack of stress relief and
under-pronation can cause stress imbalance resulting in back
pain.
For immediate relief, cut back on the mileage, moist heating
pads, anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen, and a good massage. If
the problem is disc deterioration or spinal arthritis, surgery
may be necessary, and an adjustment in training is absolutely
required. Take this condition seriously, and see a spinal
specialist. If your spine is merely out of alignment,
manipulation by a chiropractor or physical therapist may help
ease your pain. This may also ease your muscle strain.
If your doctor confirms that you have an uneven pelvis or
unequal leg lengths, the solution will likely be to try to
correct the problem with a heel lift on the short side. This may
be as simple as putting a piece of 1/4" foam or cork into the
heel of your running shoe. If you don't get any relief at all
within a week, go ahead and take the lift out. If it does no
good, its better just not to wear one; your body may have
adjusted to different leg lengths, and "fixing" it may cause
more discomfort. Whatever the case, make sure that the remedy
matches the problem; do not use a heel lift if your doctor does
not confirm that you have an uneven pelvis or unequal leg
lengths, or you may only make your problems worse.
If your problem is in the structure of your foot, your solution
may be as simple as wearing different running shoes or adding
orthotics to the mix. Shoes have been shown to lose almost 75%
of their shock absorption after approximately 500 miles. This
appears to be the critical point in which injuries tend to
develop as a result of shoe wear. Thus it is important to have a
rough idea how many miles are on your shoes and to replace them
before soreness begins. If your shoes are not worn out, see your
podiatrist for recommendations of shoe types and to see if an
orthotic will help decrease the biomechanical strain causing
your back pain. . In most cases of lower back pain, you will
benefit from exercises to strengthen your back and abdominal
muscles.
Back pain can be an indicator of a serious problem and can lead
to a cascading injury that slows your running to a complete
halt! Muscular back pain is the most common and can be annoying
and complicated to treat due to the myriad of causes. If you
have severe pain, seek medical attention immediately. If your
pain is mild and seems to be directly related to your running,
look to your feet as a possible contributor to you pain.
Massage Therapy Specific links
Massage Therapy News