Low back pain is one of the most common reasons for visits to a health professional. A systematic review has shown that up to 60-80% of people experience low back pain in their lifetime1.
Conservative therapy such as stretching and strengthening is effective for treating low back pain, but muscle scraping may be the missing piece that elevates and accelerates your recovery.
What causes low back pain?
There are many causes for low back pain, including building or rupture disc, arthritis, or osteoporosis2. We will be focusing on conservative therapy for less severe injuries such as muscle strains, ligaments sprains, and lower cross syndrome.
Strains and sprains are excessive stretching or tearing to a muscle or ligament, respectively. Sudden awkward movements and repeated heavy lifting can lead to different severities injury.
Lower cross syndrome occurs from muscle strength imbalances around the hip area3. A combination of tight hip flexors and thoracolumbar extensors, and weak abdominal and gluteal muscles, causes anterior pelvic tilt which often results in low back pain.
Scraping for low back pain
Scraping the throacolumbar extensors and hip flexors would likely be an effective way to treat the imbalances experienced in lower cross syndrome.
Studies show that muscle scraping may be able to promote better range of motion through the enhancement of blood circulation, alleviation of scar tissue, and improving tendon and tissue extensibility.
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If the low back pain is due to a sprain or strain, fresh blood flow in the area will provide for an ideal healing environment to encourage the recovery process.
Stretching and Strengthening
Targeting the back extensors and trunk flexors with mobility and strength exercises is effective for relieving low back pain:
- Rebuild strength in muscles and ligaments after a strain or sprain
- Reduces imbalances in muscle groups leading to lower cross syndrome
- Allows you to “brace your core” and tolerate heavy load to prevent future injury
Stretching the Hip Flexors and Low Back
QL Straddle Stretch.
Hip Flexor Stretch.
Cat/Camel into Child’s Pose.
Strengthening the Back and Core
Deadbug.
Bear Crawl.
Glute Bridge Marching.
Bird Dog.
Side Plank Clamshell.
Romanian Deadlift.
Conclusion
When it comes to treating low back pain caused by muscular imbalances, scraping can be a very effective treatment technique. Scraping the hip flexors and trunk extensors increases the extensibility of these muscles and reduce imbalances leading to injuries such as lower cross syndrome. Stretching and strengthening contributes largely to reducing these imbalances. Strengthening also helps the muscles of the core and low back to tolerate more load and reduce risk of injury in the future.
Need to tackle your low back pain? Buy your own Sidekick Muscle Scraper today!
References
- Casiano, V. E., Sarwan, G., Dydyk, A. M., & Varacallo, M. (n.d.). Back pain – statpearls – NCBI bookshelf. Retrieved January 10, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538173/
- Low Back Pain. (2022, December 15). Physiopedia, . Retrieved 19:20, January 10, 2023 from https://www.physio-pedia.com/index.php?title=Low_Back_Pain&oldid=323322.
- Lower crossed syndrome. (2020, April 2). Physiopedia, . Retrieved 19:14, January 10, 2023 from https://www.physio-pedia.com/index.php?title=Lower_crossed_syndrome&oldid=234490.
Ariana Purificati Fune
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