Common Back Pain Myths That You Probably Believe

Most people will at some point in their lives experience back pain. Because it is so widely experienced, there is an equally wide range of supposed causes for back pain and just as many cures and remedies.

Throughout human history, back pain has been a favourite target for quack doctors and healers. For as long as we’ve had back pain, we’ve had myths about it, some as a result of misunderstanding cause and effect, some with a more profit-driven motive.

What I am going to tackle in this blog series are the myths that are widely believed by the average person or even well-meaning professional physiotherapists and how they stack up against the latest evidence on the causes of back pain.

Today we start with myth one.

Back pain myth one: don’t bend your back

The most common back pain myth, one which is widely accepted as common sense, is that you shouldn’t bend your back when you pick something up.

Advising someone not to bend their spine is as absurd as advising them not to bend their elbow. Bending and twisting is what the spine is clearly adapted to do – just look at all those joints! If you’re just picking up a pen, unloading the dishwasher, or tidying a kids bedroom floor, there is absolutely no reason not to bend your back and utilise its flexibility.

An issue does arise when lifting heavy objects or lifting repetitively. In these instances we should be dividing the load between the legs and spine, using both to maximise power. With heavier loads, it is important to maintain a neutral spine where possible. That means you will use the strong glute and thigh muscles to assist the back muscles, such as in the figure below.However, a problem arises when people live their lives without bending their back at all, even for tasks the back is more than capable of taking on itself.

If I was to guess how this myth was born, it would be from people who already have sore backs bending their back and feeling pain, making them think that bending was the cause. As most people will at some point have back pain in their life, most will also encounter this situation.

But feeling pain upon movement doesn’t mean that movement is the cause. If I have a cut on my knuckle, I’ll avoid bending that finger so that the skin can heel. I won’t, however, avoid moving my finger for the rest of my life!

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what some people do. I’ve met many patients who have avoided bending their backs for years – sometimes decades. They didn’t even know they were doing anything wrong; they genuinely believed keeping their back straight was the healthiest option. They would pick a sock off the floor by performing a full squat and keeping their back straight. This should be avoided.

Much of the time, weak back muscles are the real culprit for pain felt when bending your back. The irony is, avoiding bending your back is exactly what makes back muscles weak in the first place, so you can see how easily someone can get caught in a vicious cycle here.

Now a word of caution: if you’re someone who has been keeping your back straight for years, you shouldn’t take this advice to mean that you can now safely pick up your 30kg luggage next time you’re on holiday.

Years of deconditioning requires months (at least) of reconditioning, not to mention having to unlearn deeply ingrained bad habits. At CGP, we can design a safe and graduated training programme to give you a stronger and more flexible back.

To book your appointment, email info@coventgardenphysio.com, call 0207 497 8974, or book online.

Cameron Tudor

B.PHYSIOTHERAPY PG CERT INDEPENDENT PRESCRIBING, MCSP, MHCPC