Can Running Cause Lower Back Pain?

Experiencing lower back pain during or after running? You’re not alone – this is an extremely common experience for both new and seasoned runners. Is running causing your lower back pain, or is it something else? Today, we’ll explore lower back pain in runners, common causes and how to stop it.

Related Content: I’ve Got Some Pain, But Not Enough To Justify A Visit To The Doctor

Can Running Cause Lower Back Pain?

Yes….and no.

Running itself doesn’t cause your lower back pain, however the act of running can trigger an existing condition or injury, which then causes lower back pain. The distinction is important, because the natural reaction to experiencing pain after doing an action is to stop doing that action – in other words, you experience pain after running so you stop running. 

However, this isn’t addressing the root cause of your pain – which means that it’s likely to flare up again in the future.

Common Causes for Lower Back Pain During or After Running

1. Muscle Strain

Often, muscle strain is the cause for a pain flare-up during exercising – which is also why it’s the first thing you should consider and eliminate when trying to determine the source of your pain. A strain is short term, and will typically disappear on its own – but can be relieved faster with heat/ice, stretching and physical therapy.

2. Muscle Imbalance

Another common cause for lower back pain for runners is a muscle imbalance – meaning that some muscles are stronger than others. For runners, this is often in your deep core muscles – which are weaker in comparison to leg and superficial muscles. 

An experienced physical therapist – like our team at PRO Therapy – can examine your running gait to determine which muscles are being worked unevenly. From there, they’ll create a care plan to strengthen those muscles. By addressing the muscular imbalance, you address the root of the pain and eliminate it when running in the future.

Related Content: How to Manage Back Pain Without Surgery

3. Joint Irritation

We tend to think of legs and arms when we think of joints, but your spine hosts a collection of facet joints trailing along your vertebrae. When these joints become inflamed, they can cause lower back pain during physical activities, like running. Your pain might be caused by facet joints if your back is stiff, pain comes and goes for no reason and your pain flares up when stretching your back.

The only way to know for sure is to meet with one of our physical therapists who can assess and determine if your joints are the cause of your back pain. 

These are just the most common causes for a lot of lower back pain while running, but by no means are extensive. If you’re experiencing lower back pain during and/or after running, your best bet is to meet with one of our physical therapists to avoid worsening the pain or damaging your body.

How to Resolve and Prevent Back Pain From Running

At PRO Therapy you will always experience one-on-one care from a Licensed Doctor of Physical Therapy – no tech aides, no rehab assistants, no personal trainers – to help you decrease pain by the time you walk out the door of your first session and create a plan to adhere to going forward.

If you want to make physical therapy a success, partnering with one of our Doctors of Physical Therapy is going to help you avoid future pain and resolve current pain.

We Love to Help People:

• Keep Active – So you can run after your kids all day, take your grandchildren to the park with ease, enjoy a nice round of golf, run or walk anytime that suits you.
• Stay Free From Painkillers – So you’re not always reaching in the cupboard for pills to ease the pain whenever it strikes, getting only a “quick fix” when you need a “permanent fix” – PLUS they’re no good for your long-term health, “mask” the pain and certainly don’t actually do anything to fix the problem.
• Avoid Dangerous Injections/Surgery – We’ll help you get to the root cause of what’s going on – so you don’t have to get to the point of having to face injections or surgery.
• Found Out What’s Wrong – We’ll help give you peace of mind and ensure that your problem is “corrected” and “healed” properly – also give you a set of exercises perfectly catered to you to help speed up recovery.
• Get More Enjoyment Out Of Life – So you can enjoy quality time with family and friends that your daily aches and pains steal from you – also finally get a good night of sleep without constantly tossing and turning.

Are you ready to make physical therapy work for you? Give us a call! We offer complimentary phone and in-person consultations. We aim to meet our patients wherever they are in their journey and answer all questions we can to ensure a smooth experience at PRO Therapy. We want to help you make the best decision for you!

Read Now: Why Our Physical Therapy Team Are Amazing (And What They Have Taught Me)

Related Content: Which Is Better for Back Pain: Physical Therapy or Chiropractic?