Consistent back pain after riding...Help!

What up, I was ridint at the beginning of this season (early april), and rode in the am w/o stretching and pulled a muscle in my back (according to the Dr.), they gave me motrin and vicodin and told me to relax and stay off the board for a couple weeks.

Now I work as a mechanic, and it doesnt really bother me during the week, and I workout and still nothing, but now after a day of riding the next day I damn near cant walk. I have been religious about stretching too before I ride, nor am i going super big or crashing hard. Matter of fact I rode switch pretty much my whole session yesterday, so it was pretty much just some light riding and minor jumps.

What Im wondering is anyone else having this problem? I know im not 21 anymore, but im also not in bad shape. Maybe i need a second opinion? Im just getting frustrated and I dont want to be sidelined all season. Thanks !

Get into a pt program and strengthen those core muscles! It takes some time, but be consistent with the workouts and it will work. Also adopting a wake to wake style, at least temporarily, will do wonders for your back!

Increasing core strength though will only help if those muscles are engaged. Focus on keeping your abs tight and engaged while you ride, especially when you do any sort of twisting or bending. It also might help if we knew where this muscle was at. Is it upper back, like below your shoulder blades, lower back a little off to the side, etc.?

Yeah lower back left side... Ive been doin p90x also and that has helped with core training, and flexibility.

Just load up on the vicodin and you shouldn't have any problems!

Do not take the Vicodin. Proper stretching is the only way to avoid the back pain. Send the Vicodin to me and I will dispose of it properly. Leave the disposal to trained professionals. My uneducated advice though, based ont the fact that I work I've been thru this for years is, the only thing that gets rid of back pain and muscle spasm for me is Naproxen. Not sure why. Everyone reacts different.

(Message edited by dudeman on May 18, 2008)

With all the mention of core workouts i gota dispel a few popular abb workouts.

If you are moving your hips in any abb work-out don't do it!
for example. laying on your back and doing leg lifts and/or having a friend add resistance to you feet as you lift them up does little for your abs and does a lot of Crap to your back. Do your abs connect to your legs? No.
another popular one is doing abb workouts on an incline or even up side down. Again, a lot hip movement, Bad for the back!

your psoas major and minor muscles are in charge of your hip flexion, not your abs. Abs help to stabilize the movement and nothing more. the psoas muscles attach to the spine and thus compress the spine when activated. it is crazy how many think these exercises are great for abs (i used to be one of them) The Psoas muscles are located in the same region as the abs (but more deep and in back) so when they get sore doing these exercises which people think are good it is easy to think your abs are feeling most of that, but really they are not.

crunches and planks are fine and any other exercises like unto them.are fine too

A full sit-up with you feet on the floor is flexing your hip the last bit so don't do those either.

ohh and twisting while doing a sit up is not recommended either.

This is just a little tid bit that i thought was most usefufll of all the things i learned in my exercise science classes my last semester at BYU, and now i extend it to all you, my friends and family of wakeworld ;)

(Message edited by wakerider111 on May 18, 2008)

(Message edited by wakerider111 on May 18, 2008)

Ok so how do you work out your abs?lol

Jeremy, thats defintaley an interesting point and makes sense, but how would you hit your obliques w/o twisting?

Randy - Naproxen, isnt that Aleve?

Check out crossfit. I've been doing it during the offseason and was not even that sore after my first ride of the year. It focuses on core exercises and movements with WOD (workout of the day).

www.crossfit.com

For my back problems I got an intermediate pilates DVD from my grandma and it helped tons! (I didn't mind looking at the girl either.)

do you have any leg pain at all? If so, you could have a bulging/herniated disc. You still could even if you don't have leg pain.

Derrick~
"crunches and planks are fine and any other exercises like unto them are fine too."
My teacher pointed out this little contraption
as "the most Hard Core Ab exercise Ever" it is called a power wheel. The object is to hold a plank position while walking with your hands forward and backwards while maintaining stability the best you can. I tried it and he is right, HARD CORE man. BUT i don't like the pressure on my wrists so it isn't a seller for me. My personal fav ab exercise is bouncing on my back on a trampoline repeatedly over and over again. My record is 2000 jumps in one set. after something like that you will double over in pain with the slightest chuckle of a laugh, guaranteed!


JimmyF~

Twisting is fine, just not WHILE doing a crunch-type motion... like the ol' routine of twisting with a medicine ball while on an incline bench... another back torcher i commonly see in a gym.

if you want to do crunches-actions to work on obliques, IN A BACK FRIENDLY WAY, then you lay on your side kinda and do a sideways crunch... if that makes sense.

-------------------------------------
i know this pic is not in english but it is pretty good at showing the psoas muscle and the origin and insertion and action for you all to immagine what it does. If you have lower back pain then this is deffinately something to consider... even if you have no back pain this is something to consider!
Nothing is sexier than a ripped hip flexor guys... especially since no one can see it unless your ripped open. hehehe


ohh and i leaned this in both muscular anatomy and orthopedics impairment class just last semester so i am pretty sure i know what i am talking about, just fyi

Is it because you pull the muscle or because it's spazzing(sp?)and tightening up? I know during football when I injured my back and the first few weeks of basketball, the erector muscle that runs down the side would just totally seize up and and it killed to do anything. A little bit of work from the PT with the elbows did wonders. Hurt like hell at the time, just about had me crying many a time, but the next day felt a ton better. If it's tensed up, and you can feel it, it'll be rock hard, just get someone to lay into it with an elbow and just work it out.

back pain sucks.. but little things like adjusting your car seat to line up your vertabraes or walking with full, upright posture helps. A visit every 2-3 weeks (depending on condition) to the chiropractor helps a lot! I find myself much more flexible after a good adjustment.. it doesn't last forever, but temporarily relieves stress and gives you an overall better understanding of ways to keep yourself active without pain. I got adjusted right before I went to wake camp in florida and my back felt so much better. The thing about back injuries is they force you to be conscious of the strain on the back. With some care, any of you could improve the condition and I hope you find success.

Jimmy,

I went through very similar injuries in my mid to late twenties and was pulling back muscles with regularity, i.e. every time I snowboarded, mountain biked, etc... What I find works best is stretching my abs. Instead of trying to stretch my back and hamstrings, which have already been stretched (hence the pain), I stand up with my hands on my hips and lean back at the waist so my stomach muscles are stretched. Hold it for 20-30 seconds both before and after a set and see if it relieves your back pain.

Again, stretching your back after it's been strained only serves to reinjure the muscle. By stretching out your abs, you'll relieve stress on your back muscles.

Like I mentioned earlier, I was out for a week at a time five or six times and generally could get my back to spasm just by stepping off a curb funny back then, but since I learned about stretching my abs when I felt the first twinge of back muscle weakness I haven't missed a day on the lake or in the mountains.

I'd say stop falling so hard but ill tell ya what. from the driver's seat it sure is fun to watch!! I say we do it all again next weekend

The thing is none of my falls were all that bad, its just the nagging soreness from like 5 weeks ago.

btw mike you get ur phone back from that chick? Ill be out there Sat. Morning... I would come out Fri but steph and I have to go to Sac for one of her friends grad parties.

Stretch your hamstrings!!!! dont bend over though...get a towel or a belt, use two hands while sitting down with your legs out throw the towel on the bottom of your feet keeping your knees locked out and pull your chest over your thighs. the hamstrings torque on the illiac(hips) and that might be one cause of your back pain. just my professional opinion. of course it could be a number of things but having flexible hamstrings can't hurt

jimmy, i did not read this whole thread. but the first question i had was about your board size. can you go up a size or two? i find riding a bigger board, and a dedicated focus on riding switch helped with the lower back pain.

i saw to wipe the sand out of your vagina and take up checkers ... lol

just kidding.. that what all the giuys tell me every time i hurt myself which is every set.. i just keep meds on the boat and then a few beer to go with em.. the pain goes away and you sleep realy well. lol