Pain in lower back on Squats and Deadlifts

[SomeRandomGuy]

I read up on Lordosis, an exaggerated curvature of the lower spine in the lumbar region due to excessive weight, poor posture, sedentary lifestyle, etc...

I have gained a ton of weight on a cycle and now am over 240lbs, I'm wondering if that's why? I had some intermittent, sporadic pain from Squats and Deadlifts naturally, but it wasn't every single time. Now it's every single time.

The weight doesn't seem to matter, I get the pain just from the rep itself regardless of weight. I use good form, I think. I try to keep my ass down on Deadlifts instead of using my lower back to pull the weight, and keep my shoulders from being rounded. Squats used to be OK for me, I didn't get the pain often, but now I do.

Using a belt, or not using a belt doesn't seem to matter. I did 405lb Squats with no belt just fine, but I would have gotten the same pain from doing 315 Squats.

It flares up during sets, and goes away about 5 minutes afterwards, and I don't feel it after that, as long as I'm not working out.

It's mostly on my right side. I had a car accident injury a long time ago that never really fixed itself, and I also get pain sometimes from heavy inclines, military presses and heavy dips. Like right where my right shoulder blade connects. I think there is something wrong with the right side of my spine.

I just do the workout anyway and try to wait and stretch and get the pain to go away between sets. It works to some degree. I pulled 475lb Deadlifts easily, but then I was sick of the pain and stopped. I could probably do over 500 pretty easy.

Do you think this is Lordosis? When I back up to a wall, I seem to hit all the correct parts of my spine, I don't know if I'm convinced it's that.

People talk about doing partial reps to help stop the problem, but I can't see how you can do a partial deadlift. And doing a partial Squat sucks. The first 3 inches out of the hole is the most important for hip flexors, adductors, glutes, etc...

I'd go to a Chiropractor, but they are - they don't instill me with the greatest of confidence.

Any ideas or stretches or exercises I should be doing to fix the problem? My cardio has been somewhat lax, but I don't know that it will fix the problem. Maybe I could quit sitting on my ass all day on the computer... Or sit up straight at least while I'm doing it?

Thanks.

[yannick35]

I got injured doing both of them, now why do people have to keep doing them. I am doing leg press now and feel great. Thanks to prolotherapy.

Most people get injured doing theses lifts and after there rehab they get right back doing them.......

[SomeRandomGuy]

Leg Press? The Sled? Where you push a stack of plates up at a 45 degree angle? This doesn't work near the amount of muscle groups as Squats and Deadlifts. Do you isolate all the muscle groups you've missed? In my experience and from what I've read, Leg Press is one of the most injury causing machines ever. I'd have to agree as it puts a lot of stress on the knees. You don't have to stabilize anything, so it only really works quads and glutes. You can go heavy as hell because you don't have to stabilize anything, which seems to me that it's going to build your muscles imbalanced. Not to mention it rocks your knees horribly.

Supposedly there isn't anything wrong with Squats and Deadlifts if done correctly...

[yannick35]

I really have nothing to reply to you, if you feel that squats and deadlifts will give you the type of body you want continue doing them, i stopped and feel so much better.

The squat puts enormous pressure on the whole spine, my sport doctor told me everything i need to know about squats, even done properly there is still injury done to the disc.

My sport doctor as treated atheletes of all ages most commun injuries are squatting deadlifting and jogging.

If you feel you still want to risk it then go ahead, until you get injured permanently from doing them, then you will post back on the board saying you should have quit when you where ahead.

[stevey_6t9]

Leg Press? The Sled? Where you push a stack of plates up at a 45 degree angle? This doesn't work near the amount of muscle groups as Squats and Deadlifts. Do you isolate all the muscle groups you've missed? In my experience and from what I've read, Leg Press is one of the most injury causing machines ever. I'd have to agree as it puts a lot of stress on the knees. You don't have to stabilize anything, so it only really works quads and glutes. You can go heavy as hell because you don't have to stabilize anything, which seems to me that it's going to build your muscles imbalanced. Not to mention it rocks your knees horribly.

Supposedly there isn't anything wrong with Squats and Deadlifts if done correctly...

i dont know where you pulled that out from, but its a totally stupid statement to make.

the leg presses main advantages is to take pressure away from the knee and lower back but include a squatting compound movement. Ive never ever heard of someone being injured using it.

[yannick35]

Leg press, make sure that the lower back does not lift of the machine and you should be fine. Even then you dont have to put a lot of weight to feel the leg press.

[SomeRandomGuy]

Well I sure don't want to argue with you guys. I'm the first to admit that I might be wrong and I don't really have a strong opinion one way or the other. I just read a lot of articles online that bash the leg press, so it has influenced me. I just felt personally that it leaves out a lot of muscle groups including not having to use the core muscles to stabilize the weight. And we can't bash deadlifts, everywhere you look online they'll tell you that it's the best exercise you can do. A true test of total overall body strength and a great builder of many muscle groups. If you do leg press, how do you recruit the rest of the complimentary muscle groups you're not using to perform that lift? I guess you can isolate them with other machines/exercises. But surely you're not suggesting that this exercise be your sole way of training legs.

I guess it really comes down to your goals. If you aren't shooting for strength primarily, then I guess you can do whatever for 8-12 reps. But even so, I thought with steroids you still want to go as heavy as possible for 8-12 reps (mass) and with at least 12 working sets per muscle group.

In fact it seems if I read about steroid training, most places say to start as heavy as you can go, and then basically burn out; low rest/more reps staying with the most weight you can do.

I would assume being able to do 15+ reps of something means you're not going heavy enough. Then you're just burning calories and training muscle endurance.

OK, I'm off topic now. But - I didn't take Deca by itself. That would be epic fail.

[goodlifting]

is it pain in the lower back or pain nex to you shoulder blade? the shoulder blade may be an irratated romboid that will heal with some frontal shoulder exercises that i could give you.

if it's the lower back while squatting or overhead work then i would focus on doing plenty of core work.

i notice when i train some athletes for the squat they tend not to engage they're hips and do much of the work with the low back and hammies. the chest sometimes falls and their ass kinda scoops in at the bottom of the squat. have someone watch you squat and observe if your ass scoots in at the bottom...try to focus on using your hip and butt muscles to descend and ascend and will take the pressure of that lower back.

[SomeRandomGuy]

Yeah I'm aware that the back must stay arched and I try to exaggerate this, and I sit way back first before lowering the bar. But like you said, I can't see myself squatting. I'll ask someone when I do the lift if my ass is coming forward at the bottom. With the Deadlift, I need to know if my ass is coming up too fast (using low back to pull the lift), and/or if I'm not pushing my hips forward halfway through (by squeezing with the glutes). It's such a bitch to break the deadlift down because it's heavy and you just can't think too much about it when you're doing it. (it's heavy). Maybe do some 315 reps and have someone watch me while I do them slowly. The problem is when you jack the weight up, you tend to lose form.

I wonder; can anyone lift a lot with those hamstring isolation machines? I can deadlift over 500, but I cannot max out those machines. And all the reps in the world on them doesn't seem to increase the amount I can lift on them, either. It's kind of like training biceps. If you do a million curls, it seems like you A. don't get sore, and B. don't get any stronger. But if you do heavy back, then I actually get sore biceps! That's why I don't particularly like the leg press. I like big compound lifts that use all the complimentary muscles that will get built because they're along for the ride. Isolating them takes more time and I don't think it's as effective.

I guess I just didn't want the answer to getting rid of my back pain from Deadlifts and Squats to be 'stop doing them'... Although that is an obvious solution, I didn't want to stop doing them. The guy who was training me screwed up his hip joint and can't lift at all anymore... Of course he's in his 50's, but still lifts more than I probably ever will.

Thanks for the help, I'll check my form out.

[SomeRandomGuy]

i notice when i train some athletes for the squat they tend not to engage they're hips and do much of the work with the low back and hammies. the chest sometimes falls and their ass kinda scoops in at the bottom of the squat. have someone watch you squat and observe if your ass scoots in at the bottom...try to focus on using your hip and butt muscles to descend and ascend and will take the pressure of that lower back.

Would doing wide squats and sitting back use more hips? Maybe I should just do all my squats wide? I used to. But I was trying to do some narrows to use more quads. (Sometimes called a 'quad squat'). Wide squats are actually easier for me. Although it changes the center of gravity of the bar and puts more of the weight on the low back instead of the knees.

[goodlifting]

putting your feet out wider will be easier. the range of motion is smaller. i squat with my heels just about under my hips and my toes pointed slightly outwards.

really using all of your hip and glute muscles is hard for alot of people. there are a ton of muscle that you have to engage and it takes some practice. i still really have to focus on it when i warm up.

also, you don't necessarily want to arch your back too hard while you have a ton of weight on your back. hyperextension is good for some lifts but you want to keep a straight torso with your chest up for heavy squats.

[lovbyts]

Maybe Ill go into detail later but I really dont feel like it now. I read a lot wrong with your post in regards to squats, dead lift, leg press, arching and lifting heavy. I dont know what or where you have been reading but I would use it to start a fire only and not for any educational advise. Sounds like a bunch of doctors who are desperate for work wrote the stuff hoping people to get hurt so they have more business.

[Misery13]

I have the same problem and I finally had x-rays, mri's and a ct scan...my L5 is broken and my L3-L4-and L5 are herniated.

[blackdove]

I went to a physiatrist (rehab doctor) for lower back pain from heavy deadlifts many years ago. What worked really well for me in therapy was set of exercises called Williams flexion exercises for the lower back. This year, I strained my lower back and did these at home with much success.

[Popeye's]

U should train ur abs more! It'll help u with ur lower back pain!