Are you dealing with lower back pain after deadlifts? This is one of the worst nightmares for those who work out. But do you know the reason behind it? Well, most of the time, the reason is your technique, so if you are doing deadlifts and want to know how to cure or prevent lower back pain, keep reading.
The price of being consistent at the gym or doing deadlifts doesn't have to be a sore back. Mainly because people recommend deadlifts as a cure for lower back pain, you need to be extra careful with every rep in deadlifting. When your form is wrong, you stress your spinal extensor muscles more.
However, if your back hurts after deadlifts, it can be prevented. You must keep your spine neutral during the exercise and avoid rounding your back. Furthermore, with the proper techniques, you can prevent lower back pain. Want to know more? Let's dive in!
What Causes Lower Back Pain after Deadlifts?
Even though deadlifts look easy to perform, they aren't. It's essential to keep the proper form to avoid back pain. Therefore, let's understand what is the reason behind the lower back pain:
Not Setting Spinal Position
You must ensure that, while performing the deadlift, it's essential that your lower back must maintain an isometric contraction. If your body is not doing that correctly, then it may lead to back pain.
Optimizing your Hip
Starting your deadlift with the hips too high puts extra stress on your lower back. This happens if you keep the bar too close to your shins while doing a deadlift. Always keep your barbell one or two inches away from your shins.
Hips Shooting Up
Another cause for lower back pain after deadlifts could be your hips rising too quickly. This could happen if you lose contact between your legs and the bar. Keep your knees bent longer, and drag the bar up your legs to prevent this.
Consistently Training
Our muscles need rest from time to time. If you're hitting the gym every day and doing a deadlift, sit out for a day or two in between. This allows your muscles to regain strength and helps avoid lower back pain.
How to do a Deadlift?
As we've discussed the cause behind a back sore from deadlifts, let's learn how to perform a deadlift right. So, the first thing you need to do is select a barbell. Then position your feet shoulder length apart, keeping your toes under the bar. Your heels should stay flat on the surface.
When you lift your bar, it should travel close to your shins or even graze them. It would help if you also stabilized your abdominal muscles by bracing them. Then squat down while bending at the knees. Your back should be arched slightly and not rounded at the spine or shoulders.
How to Stretch Lower Back Before Deadlift?
Doing warm-ups before performing a deadlift is essential since doing the exercise incorrectly can lead to injuries. You must stretch and mobilize your joints. This is because stiff joints will make your movements less fluid. You must perform some dynamic hamstring stretches like prisoner good mornings.
For this exercise, you must place your hands on your temples and stand, keeping your feet shoulder-width apart. After this:
- Bend your knees slightly and push your elbows back to open your chest.
- Hinge forward from your hips and lean over without letting your lower back round.
- Stand up again and repeat the exercise.
Another exercise that you could do is alternating leg swings. You need to swing one leg forward, just like you would be kicking a soccer ball. Extend your opposite arm out in front of you. Then lower your legs, swap your sides, and repeat.
But with dynamic stretches, always make sure to start easy and slow.
How to Cure Lower Back Pain after Deadlifts?
Plenty of things could go wrong when you're doing a deadlift. Thus, if you feel like your deadlifts are resulting in lower back pain, here's how you can cure them:
Analyze Your Symptoms
So the first thing you must do is check for any red flags, such as are you experiencing pain in both legs? Is there any problem in controlling your bowel movement? Is there any blurred vision or headaches? You must also check for any changes in the sensation around your legs.
If you face any of these issues, it's best to consult a doctor. However, if there are none of these issues, it's a minor pain and should heal within a week.
Check with a Specialist
It's a good move to see a physiotherapist, as they can give people better advice. This helps you avoid any complications in the future. A specialist will diagnose you and point out any issues to worry about.
Rest
The best form of lower back pain deadlift recovery is resting. If you feel lower back pain, then for the next 48 hours, avoid doing any exercise that would strain your spine. However, rest is not lying down or sitting in one place, as this could further increase the pressure on your spine. Specialists recommend active resting, where you must go for a walk or do low-impact activities.
How to do Deadlift without Causing Lower Back Pain?
Experiencing lower back pain can be a cause of annoyance. However, it can be avoided. All you need to do is maintain good form throughout the deadlift. Here are the ways to prevent lower back pain after deadlifts:
- Keep your head in a neutral position, such that you are looking down at the floor. Your head's back must be aligned with your straight spine and flat back.
- Always align your knees with the middle of your feet and your shoulders over the bar when you reach for the barbell.
- It would help to exhale fully before lifting so that your rib cage and abs are engaged.
- When performing a deadlift, you must do a proper hip hinge, which would place less stress on your lower back, giving you the glutes and calves you want.
What is the Recovery Time for a Deadlift Injury?
If you have lower back pain after deadlifts, mostly, it's because of soreness of muscles. However, it doesn't go away quickly, and you must rest until recovery. Typically deadlift lower back injury recovery time depends upon the intensity of the injury. A minor muscle strain can go away within 10-12 weeks.
To reduce pain, one can apply ice on the sore areas, especially if there is swelling. You can also start with a moist hot pack after 3-4 days of injury. Avoid doing any heavy lifting during recovery to heal the soreness after the deadlift.
Also Read: 6 Isolation Exercises And Their Benefits
Conclusion
As discussed above, lower back pain can be avoided in various ways after deadlifts. However, if you end up hurting your lower back while doing deadlifts, there are ways to heal it too. Once you're all recovered and fit, you can return to your workout routine in no time. Hence, nothing can stop you from hitting the gym and doing those deadlifts again.
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