I've been sitting on my ass for a while now thanks to working from home, and just got back into lifting again. I've been progressing rapidly everywhere except my squats. I seem to get odd sharp but low intensity pains along my spine- as if my spine is compressing or something. It does not feel like muscle soreness and when I stop the lift I feel fine. I could probably squat a lot more- my form is still solid but I try to be cautious with my back and have not been pushing it. It almost feels like the weight on my back is just too much for my spine- and I'm not lifting anywhere near my max. Back/spine seems to do fine with lifts like overhead press. Obviously I don't want to end up with a bulged disc or something, but don't recall hearing about what this could be or how to eliminate it. Am I just weak in the stabilizer muscles?
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Thread: Spine pain while squatting
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12-02-2020, 08:35 PM #1
Spine pain while squatting
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12-02-2020, 10:06 PM #2
- Join Date: Dec 2010
- Location: Northfield, Minnesota, United States
- Age: 49
- Posts: 865
- Rep Power: 4891
Don't do it
If it hurts like that, don't do it. Find a squat variation that you *can* do and do that.
Injury will set you back much further than shaving some effectiveness through lighter squat variants.330->210. Drop me a PM if you're just getting started and want some advice.
Do what you love and you'll never workout a day in your life.
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12-03-2020, 03:20 AM #3
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12-03-2020, 09:16 AM #4
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12-03-2020, 01:51 PM #5
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12-03-2020, 01:56 PM #6
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12-03-2020, 03:04 PM #7
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12-04-2020, 09:56 AM #8
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12-10-2020, 03:07 PM #9
After a back injury I stopped doing back squats, there's just too much temptation to go a bit too heavy and start cheating by leaning forward.
I now do front squats. Sadly you are limited somewhat to how much you can hold on the front of your shoulders, but I find them to be very lower back friendly and they do put a lot of focus on the quads.
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12-10-2020, 03:15 PM #10
Where in your back is the pain? Neck, mid-back, lower?
Any shooting pain or pins and needles in arms or legs?
If you’ve taken time off your ligamentous attachments have weakened. Muscle builds exponentially faster than tendon/ligament.
Take it easy. Progress much slower. Focus on form.You have my word as a Schons.
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12-17-2020, 01:34 PM #11
Thanks. Unfortunately things got worse since I started the thread- I started having pain even when not working out. Luckily, it is really a mild pain- like 2 -3 at worst, but something is clearly 'wrong'. Mainly lower and mid back, kind of a general creakiness rather than localized to one place. No shooing or limb pain. Still feels like it is coming from my spine rather than the muscle soreness. I took a week off and then started some stretching and strengthening exercises which seem to help. I have started workouts and am taking it easy with fingers crossed.
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12-17-2020, 03:03 PM #12
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12-19-2020, 05:08 PM #13
Similar thing happened to me. After being stuck at home, I finally got back into the weights. I took everything nice and slow (I was lifting well below my max). Everything else was fine but squats seemed to really aggravate things for me. I kept trying to tweak things and train my way out of it but ended up making things worse. It's been months since then, and my back is only now beginning to improve.
Some things that helped:
applying heat (this is sweet relief when you need a break from the pain);
stretching (safely - i.e. don't do big hamstring or hipflexor stretches is your lower back is sore - do things like trying to stand really tall with your hands outstretched);
cold shower (if the pain is chronic this can help - my theory is it shocks your nervous system and stops you from dialling back into your pain);
no more lower body work outs (to be honest just getting back to normal has been the priority and that has meant putting lower body workouts on hold - I've tried numerous variations e.g. front squats etc, but pretty much most exercises will cause me grief - I'm still trying to figure out how to get back to doing proper leg work outs which really sucks but better to able to do normal things than be crippled or with chronic back pain
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12-22-2020, 09:39 AM #14
Things I found helped me with a similar problem...
Add SLDL into regular routine to build strength in lower back.
SLDL as a pre-squat warm up to activate lower back and hamstrings first (found waking up hamstrings helped pull kneecaps tighter and reduced knee pain).
Work up in weight slowly and focus on really good form.
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