lower back pain when squating

[Tbone1975]

Hey guys. Usually for squats I'll do a bunch of warmup sets then for heavy sets I'll do 405 for 3 sets of 8 to 10. Problem is, is that, that weight is friggin' easy for me but I start to get real bad lower back pain after one or two sets with that weight so I don't go heavier, and I don't do more sets. I wouldn't be surprised if I could do 495 4 to 8 times. I wear one of the small brown leather belts when squating. One thing, don't give me advice if you are one of the dudes who squats like a quarter to half way down because I know you never get lower back pain and I know I wouldn't either. It seems like the deepest parts of my squats put the most strain on the lower back. My depth is some parallel (the first few) the rest a_s to floor. It seems like when I incorporate lower back into that workout, it just messes it up more. I know I don't have a serious problem, it's got nothing to do with disc blah blah blah and is only sore during the workout. I have a power lifting belt but it is really big and awkward so I haven't used it yet. Do any of you guys go real heavy without a powerlifting belt or no belt at all without any problems or do I need to wear one? Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks!

[barbndr]

When I was younger I had the same problem. About halfway through my squat workouts my low back would tighten up first and then gradually become worse. For me, it was a form issue. As I neared parallel, I would begin to flex my trunk. As I went just below parallel I was in a good morning/full squat position, causing me to overwork the erector muscles of my back. To fix my problem, I did alot of form work to try and maintain an upright position and incorporated some front squats and high bar squats to "get the groove" more upright. Finally added a reverse hyper to the gym at home and after about a year my problem was gone.

People always want to point to a weakness in strength (either in the abs, low back or hams) however we sometimes overlook the simple changes we can make in form (foot position, bar position etc...)

When you added low back work in, all you were doing was overtraining those muscles and perpetuating the problem. If you feel you have adequate abdominal and low back strength, I would look to your form to see the degree of trunk flexion you have at the bottom of your squat. Correct that first.

I generally don't use a belt until I go up above 500lbs, then I use a lever belt. No better belt IMO.

Also, I don't know what you do for stretching, but my warmups on leg day include at least 15 minutes of leg and trunk stretching exercises. As I get older I find I need to rely more on preparation.

[Tbone1975]

When I was younger I had the same problem. About halfway through my squat workouts my low back would tighten up first and then gradually become worse. For me, it was a form issue. As I neared parallel, I would begin to flex my trunk. As I went just below parallel I was in a good morning/full squat position, causing me to overwork the erector muscles of my back. To fix my problem, I did alot of form work to try and maintain an upright position and incorporated some front squats and high bar squats to "get the groove" more upright. Finally added a reverse hyper to the gym at home and after about a year my problem was gone.

People always want to point to a weakness in strength (either in the abs, low back or hams) however we sometimes overlook the simple changes we can make in form (foot position, bar position etc...)

When you added low back work in, all you were doing was overtraining those muscles and perpetuating the problem. If you feel you have adequate abdominal and low back strength, I would look to your form to see the degree of trunk flexion you have at the bottom of your squat. Correct that first.

I generally don't use a belt until I go up above 500lbs, then I use a lever belt. No better belt IMO.

Also, I don't know what you do for stretching, but my warmups on leg day include at least 15 minutes of leg and trunk stretching exercises. As I get older I find I need to rely more on preparation.

Nice response thanks bud! I'm glad you said that adding in lower back only overtrained the muscles because I agree. i do not think it's a strength issue. Yep, at the bottom, it's somewhat like a good morning. So you don't think the lever belt is any better? Just want to be clear on that. Ya know, I think that's what I bought, but I haven't really used it yet. But yeah, I wanna go heavy! I don't want to cheat myself. My legs are pretty strong and were even before juice. I know I could slap on 495 and do it at least three, and I suspect 4 to 8, especially if I put on knee wraps. Well cool, and if you have anything you want to add I'm all ears.

[barbndr]

Lever belt=Best belt, hands down, IMO. I reread that part of my post and realized I may not have made that clear.

It's difficult to say without seeing your form but if you are flexing at the trunk too much, try some form squats trying to stay upright. If you know someone with good knowledge of biomechanics have them watch and then check for muscle length discrepancies (not an easy find). Front squats and high bar squats, paying close attention to form will help you maintain a more upright posture due to the line of force the bar places on your body in that position. You can still cheat...but stick to weights where you can maintain form.

[Tbone1975]

Thanks barbndr. For one thing, I do believe I must stay more upright. I'll have to apply some of your tips.

[Doc.Sust]

lever belt is th wayto fly, you need to get used to the bigger better belt, those little belts do nothing.also ice after the the workout 20 minutes every 2 hours as needed

[Tbone1975]

All right! Thanks guys. I'll have to hook it up.

[RMBros]

Try reverse hypers as well - destresses the discs and gets fluid back between them.

[Doc.Sust]

Try reverse hypers as well - destresses the discs and gets fluid back between them.

it does help it is similar to traction

[Tbone1975]

Good deal thanks guys. BTW I DO have a lever belt. I wasn't sure about it, but that is indeed what I had ordered from INZER about 6 mos back. I found the belt. Now I just need to find the lever dammit!

[Posideon]

Thats good adivce from Barbndr. Bar positioning is a key factor just like he stated. Thats what could've caused you to do good mornings. Also check your footwork, if you base is to wide, it will also cause you to lean forward a little to much. Find a good stance to wear you can explode coming out of the hole with.