Pain in Lower Back: Loosen The Psoas Muscles

Pain in lower back and back aches in general, are one of the most common medical complaints in the United Kingdom to date. As a matter of fact, these are the second most common reason for visiting a doctor. However, not all back problems are serious enough that will require surgery. Among the adult population in the UK, 49% reports experiencing pain in lower back at least for 24 hours some time in a year.

Usually, a pain in lower back is caused by unstable spine and weak core muscles, which is developed when they become inactive or less functioning. The advancement of technology has certainly transformed us from being active cave hunters to seated individuals; and it’s taking a toll on our health! There are an increasing number of scientific evidences that prove that a pain in lower back may originate from lack of spinal stability. Good thing there’s a way to reverse back pain and it’s something you can do at home. By working out our deep core muscles, it will help stabilize our spine.

This article is the first of the deep muscles series and we are going to discuss about imbalances in the deep muscles and the causes of pain in lower back, concentrating on the PSOAS muscles.

The Psoas muscles are the largest and thickest muscles we have and they are located deep down our bodies, which often makes it difficult to access or address. Deep muscles are attached to all disks and lumbar vertebras, hooking to the greater tubercle of the femur.

What Makes the Psoas A Major Cause of Pain in Lower Back?

The Psoas muscles are responsible for the flexion of our thighs and hips. It also influences the posture of our lumbar, as well as the positioning of our hips. This gives a clearer picture as to why people with hip and back ache issues have knotted Psoas muscles. When your lower back feels stuck and you are unable stretch back or bend forward, your Psoas must likely be involved.

What makes the Psoas a source of pain in lower back?

With most of our time spent seated at our workplace, we often subject our hips to flexing, causing some of our muscles, particularly the Psoas, to restrain and tighten, while the reciprocal muscles to stretch and weaken. A stiff Psoas puts more pressure on the spine, which is not good, especially if the abdominals aren’t strong enough to compensate the pressure. This situation is made worse with incorrect posture when walking or standing, which causes more pain in lower back.

If you are someone who sits a lot for extended hours and or love to cycle as a hobby or as a form of exercise, you need to stretch your Psoas muscles, preferably 2 to 3 times daily. Stretching releases and relaxes the muscles, reducing the pressure on your back and hip. As a result, your pain in lower back will be minimized, or you may avoid experiencing pain in lower back caused by tightened psoas.

Your pain in lower back that may be caused by a tight PSOAS may include the following:

•  Lordotic Posture – when the Psoas is in tight and contracted state, it will cause your lower back to move forward, giving you an anterior tilt.
• Disk Degeneration – as the Psoas muscles are exerting pressure, it affects the discs and joints of the lumbar vertebrae, which can cause disc degeneration, making them more vulnerable to injury.
• Scoliosis – when the Psoas muscles on one side of your body are shortened, it will cause the spine to be pulled and curve to that same side.

When the Psoas is tight, the glutes are prevented from working normally, which only worsens the pain in lower back.

How to Avoid Pain in Lower Back Caused by Tight Psoas Muscles?

There are easy ways to prevent your Psoas from tightening, which in turn help you avoid pain in lower back.

The thing about posture is that our tissues, in this case our Psoas, adopt the resting position we maintain all day long. So, it is essential to keep in mind to change posture every now and then.

• When sitting, rest your back against the backrest of the chair. Don’t lean forward, as we normally do, because this causes the Psoas muscles to shorten and tighten.
• Stop the habit of hooking your feet under the chair. Many of us have this habit of hooking our feet under the chair. This only provokes more hip flexion; thus activating the Psoas all the more. The proper and healthy way of sitting on a chair is to set your feet flat on the floor. If you have a footrest, it is ideal to use it.
• When exercising at the gym, avoid seated exercises. When your work requires you to sit all day, would you still want to sit down while exercising? Put your whole body at work; choose to run on the treadmill or use the overhead press as replacement of the seated press.
• Sleep on your back. Sleeping on your stomach allows your back to hyperextend which only intensifies the tightening of the psoas muscles, promoting lordotic posture.
• Avoid staying stationary. It is always advisable to move more – do stretching exercises or change positions – to avoid contracting our Psoas.

It is always best to see licensed therapists to help release your psoas muscles and prevent and or stop pain in lower back. Also, the pain in your lower back may be caused by wrong hip position, which is probably associated with spinal misalignment; hence it is recommended to get your spine corrected prior to working on your muscles.

However, choosing to address or treat your Psoas at home is certainly feasible and effective as well.

Exercises for Tight Psoas Muscles

If you feel that your pain in lower back is caused by tight Psoas muscles, which is often the case anyway, get yourself cracking with these exercises:

Adopting or performing this flexed position a few times a day helps release tight Psoas; therefore minimizing pain in lower back.

When doing this exercise, you can stretch further if you hold your feet.

Perform this exercise on both sides, but insist more on the side that feels tighter.

Here are other versions of this exercise. 

Another excellent exercise for the Psoas can be done by lying on a table, holding one knee on the chest while the second leg is hanging down.

As you maintain this position, your Psoas muscles will slowly relax and lengthen your leg.

As it helps its own weight, the leg will gradually lower towards the floor. You may put weight around your ankle for added density.

Find out more about balancing your muscles and get relief from your pain in lower back.