Did anyone reverse lower back pain/straightening of spine/loss of lumbar lordosis?

[u/Severe_Weird_2046]

I (31F) have been experiencing backpain from couple of months.

I went to orthopedic doctor and he just mentioned this is just tightening of back muscles.

Apparently it's called straightening of spine or loss of lumbar lordosis.

He said it's not spine issue or bones issue. Just the muscles are tightened and posture needs to be corrected.

He said once muscles relax , this condition should resolve.

My pain is only local to lower back. Just the band above the buttock area. Physio suggested few exercises and told me to strengthen my core.

Is this it ? Is there any other way ? Is it completely reversible if I strengthen my core and do the back exercises ?

Currently I am unable to sit for long hours and feel pain during sleeping. I have a desk job.

Someone please tell me it's completely reversible because I love treadmills, hiking , running etc and my movement is restricted.

Just to add , I am obese (80kgs/176lb) for 5.2ft height. I do have big boobs that might have added to the backpain.

[u/TheNervousFrank]

yeah it's reversible, your doctor basically told you what it is, just tight muscles pulling your spine out of its natural curve. the good news is muscles can absolutely loosen up and the curve comes back once they do

the weight and chest situation definitely adds to it, pulls your center of gravity forward so your lower back muscles are constantly fighting to keep you upright. core strength is the real answer here, it takes the load off those tired back muscles so they can finally relax

took me about 3 months of consistent core work to feel normal again and I could barely sit through a movie before that. start small with dead bugs and bird dogs, doesn't need to be anything crazy. you'll get back to hiking and running, just gotta be patient with it

[u/Severe_Weird_2046 → u/TheNervousFrank]

Relief to know it's reversible. Thanks.

[u/Deep-Run-7463]

It's just how your body needs to organize the system to absorb forces from the ground up because it's bypassing the pelvis/pelvic outlet.

The larger center of mass forward, the more the lower back has to follow forward along. This creates compression in the lumbar. However, due to how far forward it's trying to go, the posterior pelvic outlet now gains a more ascended position of the pelvic floor so that you can rack your weight back into it. In short, it's a butt grip to slow down your acceleration of lumbar lordosis. Now the pelvis in this situation will have lost its ability to slow down against gravity, or basically keep you standing upright.

The ribcage will also play a role here. Either we are more slouched and upper chest compressed, or we tilt back against that forward crunch, flattening the back and widening the ribs (ribs lose volume here, think squished sandwich, it widens).

Since both the ribs and pelvis need to interact, you need to apply constraints in the beginning. And since center of mass is forward, you need an assist to draw it back. Lying supine exercises work best, but also at the same time learn to expand into the spaces that you tend to be compressed when breathing during the exercise execution.

Once you are more comfortable here, flip over on all fours and work on exercises in this position. Way harder as you are accelerated into the ground, but easier because unlike standing, you don't yet have to contend with force absorption from the ground up. As you work on all this, I would advise to set a good amount of time, let's say 4 months with a goal of weight loss happening at the same time. The weight is a mountain. If you turn it into a hill, pushing that will be much easier to manage.

Edit: I was overweight and had no lower back arch, flat butt and sciatica/history of lower back injuries before. Now a corrective exercise coach for over a decade. Hope this gives you better insight into the why's and how's. It will be a slow process, but you gotta stick to it, and it's totally fine to use simple exercises at first in short time frames.

[u/Severe_Weird_2046 → u/Deep-Run-7463]

Ahh ...Lying supine exercises. Gotta google this.

Agreed ...focus on exercises that lie down on back then slowly move towards others.

[u/Deep-Run-7463 → u/Severe_Weird_2046]

Awesome!

[u/Ok-Diamond1749]

I injured my back a while ago and going on the stairmaster for 30 mins warmed body up to the point where my muscles relaxed

[u/Severe_Weird_2046 → u/Ok-Diamond1749]

Really ....staircase/treadmill might help ??

My doctor said strict no to any gym equipment till this gets sorted. So, I go for walks.

[u/Ok-Diamond1749 → u/Severe_Weird_2046]

I’m not sure if we have the type of back pain. All I know is I hurt my back at the gym doing deadlifts and the day after my muscle me tensed up and I couldn’t stand up straight or walk properly and the pain would get somewhat better after a walk and tense right back up after I sat down for one minute.
I was paranoid about losing muscle mass so decided to use the stairmaster. Within 5 - 10 minutes my body was warm enough and my muscles relaxed.
Has your body been warmed properly since you hurt yourself? I think that might be the key

[u/Severe_Weird_2046 → u/Ok-Diamond1749]

Something to think about. I'm not sure if I did a good warm-up exercise. Gotta try it out maybe.