How Can I Get Rid of Lower Back Pain From Sitting All Day?

Most people are sitting for far too long during the day. The average American is static for over 21-hours per day. That includes all time sleeping and sitting. If you’re doing the math, that leaves only a few short hours where we’re actually moving. So, how can you get rid of lower back pain from sitting all day? Adopt these 3 strategies:

• Regularly change the position of your hips throughout the day
• Piriformis stretch
• Deep squat

Your Lower Back Pain Probably Isn’t the Main Problem

Many people make the mistake of thinking their back pain is due to a bad back. This may be true, however, it isn’t always the case. As an analogy, take the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It has regular restoration work being done to the upper part of the building. They are fixing things like plaster and arches that fall down. These are all problems, but they’re secondary. The core problem is the fact that it’s leaning. Until they fix that foundational issue, they’ll always have the secondary trouble.

The Real Core Problems

Low back pain is oftentimes not the core problem, it’s secondary. There can be a few different core issues.

• One such reason for back pain could be the position of your head. An average head weighs approximately 10-12 pounds. However, every inch the head moves in front of the body, it gets 10-12 pounds heavier. This weight will need to be dealt with somewhere. Because of gravity, it will run downhill until it hits the low back and hips. This can often lead to significant lower back pain. You can massage, adjust, or inject something into your low back, but if the problem is elsewhere, the relief will only be temporary.
• Another reason for lower back pain after sitting could be due to the hips. Your hips are the engine for your lower half. If your hips are fully mobile and functional, they’ll be able to carry weight or force and not cause problems. However, if your hips are restricted, imbalanced, or problematic, your lower back will have to make up the difference. Unfortunately, it wasn’t designed for that. So, over time, it will begin to fatigue and wear out, likely leading to lower back pain.

Can a Sit-to-Stand Desk Fix the Problem?

Sitting isn’t the enemy. It’s meant to be your rest position. The problem for most people is that’s all they do, and their bodies aren’t designed to be hinged at the waist for multiple hours per day, every day. It is best to break them up. However, standing isn’t much better, if that’s all we do. It can also be a very static position. The point we need to adopt is movement. More of it.

What Can You Do To Get Rid of Lower Back Pain From Sitting All Day?

There’s a few different strategies to reduce the pain in your lower back that occurs after sitting. The first idea is the most important theme, and if used properly, is all you may need.

Strategy #1: Move

Most people sit far too long during the day. Because of this, the tissue around the hips tightens and restricts movement. Other muscles and tissues will then try to compensate to make up the difference. This will lead to lots of imbalance and back pain over time. What’s the solution? You need to move, more.

Your hips are ball and socket joints. So, they move in a lot of directions. Walking or standing aren’t enough to keep your hips happy. You also need to externally and internally rotate your hips, as well as flex and extend them. This should be done many times throughout the day, not just one time, or every few hours. The ideal amount of time to sit is 20-30 minutes before you get up and move.

Strategy #2: Piriformis Stretch

Your piriformis muscle runs deep in the buttox and can tighten down after too much time sitting. Your sciatic nerve is nearby and can often get pinched or irritated from a tight piriformis muscle. In these situations, a person may feel sciatica-like symptoms, such as tingling, numbness, or pain down the back of their leg. If it’s due to your piriformis, it’s not true sciatica. Instead, it’s what’s called Piriformis Syndrome.

The piriformis stretch, among other things, is great for reducing the tightness in this muscle. Begin seated, and cross one leg over the other in a figure-four style. Attempt to bring your knee down closer to the floor. This will lead to a stretch deep into your buttox area. Hold this position for at least 30 seconds before moving to the other side. Repeat as necessary.

Strategy #3: Deep Squat

The last strategy to implement will continue to put your hips into different positions than you’re used to using during the day. The deep squat isn’t an exercise to strengthen, instead it’s designed to mobilize the soft tissue around your hips and low back.

Simply squat down as far as you can and attempt to hold the position. This can be done for as little as 15-30 seconds, or as much as 5-minutes. If you can’t do this comfortably in the middle of the room, back up against a wall and use that for support on your back while you squat down. You may find that to still be too difficult. If so, first, sit on the floor and then bring your knees as far up to your chest as possible and hold.

By attempting this position, you’re getting your hips into their deepest flexed position. This helps to restore normal mobility to the hips and improves lower back function as well.

Next Steps For Getting Rid of Lower Back Pain

If you’ve found these positions to be helpful, at least temporarily, but you’re still struggling with back pain, it may be time to get help from a specialist.

At Prime Chiropractic in Centennial, Colorado, we’ve helped hundreds of people who suffered with lower back pain after sitting. The first step is to measure and analyze the structure of your spine and nervous system, so we can better correct any core problems in your spine and get you back to living the life you want.

If you’d like to schedule your Neuro-Structural Examination, click here!