One of the main problems of acute lumbago, in addition to the pain, is the inability to move.

This dilemma is often caused by your quadratus lumborum. This is one of your back muscles, which when tense can lead to severe restrictions on movement.

Pressing your hands into the muscle will usually allow you to move immediately and at least get from point A to point B.

Simply put, your quadratus lumborum muscle runs from your hip over your lumbar spine to your lowest rib.

There are two areas I recommend here, in which you manipulate the muscles.

Be sure to experiment with other positions and find the most effective location for you.

• To be able to move again, press into the muscle and take a few slow steps. Make sure to take it slow.
• Go through each of the positions shown below and lean forward and to the side. Only go as far as the pain allows you. And please don’t overdo it! You are in a very “delicate” state.
• Do these exercises – walk, bend forward, bend to the side – a few minutes and work your muscles in this way.

Sometimes lumbago disappears almost completely thanks to these exercises and you will be able to move fairly normal.

If this is your case, you will be thrilled. I still recommend that you take care of yourself a few days, walk a lot on flat surfaces and do the massage described below.

Although your pain has almost disappeared, the muscle is far from “healthy” and relaxed.

Even if you are free of pain, it will still take a few weeks and self-massages until your muscles return to a normal tension level, which has not been the case for years or even decades.

I urge you to do the self-massage and to practice doing it to get better at it. Of course, it will take time and patience, but your back pain and well-being are now literally in your hands.

2. Lumbago treatment: Your self-massage

For the self-massage, you will need a massage ball and preferably also the Body Back Buddy.

Although the latter is not essential, it is very useful, because it allows you to work on your back very precisely.

It is not cheap, but serves well!

As already mentioned, there are usually trigger points and tensions in the muscles of your back and buttocks, which leads to lumbago.

If you do nothing; they will persist for years and keep causing problems.

With a self-massage however, you can “knead” the trigger points out of your muscles and normalise muscle tension.

The reason for this is that by directly applying pressure to your muscles you can “get in touch” with your nervous system and point out this tense area.

As a result, it will reduce the tension in the area concerned, because the nervous system is, among other things, the muscle tension control station.

2.1 Self-massage of your back

Muscles: Erector spinae, quadratus lumborum

Here you will massage the entire lumbar region and the area of transition to your sacrum.

You can reach all of these areas with a massage ball.

With a massage stick you can only reach the lower to the upper lumbar region, however, it will allow you to be much more precise and effective than with a ball.

Below I’ve described both, the massage with a ball as well as with a stick.

Before getting started, here is some helpful information:

• Always pay full attention to the most painful spots in a muscle
• Keep the massage pressure moderate. On a pain scale of 1 – 10, you should oscillate between 4 and 7.
• If you are not able to “massage over” a spot, because it is too painful, then simply apply pressure to it for 20 – 30 seconds, without moving, and wait until the pain subsides somewhat. If it does not, or if it amplifies, then you are pressing too hard.

2.2 Self-massage of your buttocks

Muscles: Gluteus maximus, gluteus medius

These two muscles are part of your buttocks. They connect your thigh to your hip and should be included in every lumbago treatment.

Tension and trigger points in these muscles interfere with the muscular and connective tissue stress ratios at your hip and in the lumbar region.

Often, a definitive and successful lumbago treatment is only possible if these muscles are relaxed and, any trigger points present are eliminated.

A massage ball is the best choice in this case.

Whether you use rolling movements or simply apply static pressure on a single spot for approximately 20 – 30 seconds depends on what gives you the best results.

Lie down on the floor and put your legs up.

Place a ball under your buttocks and search the entire area for painful spots.

Then, massage each of these spots a maximum of 15 times using rolling movements or apply pressure to the spot for 20 – 30 seconds.

To massage the upper portion of your buttocks and the gluteus medius located there, you will have to roll on the side a bit.

For the gluteus maximus place the ball in the lower half of your buttocks, and right under your iliac crest.

4. Supportive measures

Keep moving:

This is especially important in the first few days.

Due to the excessive tension in the muscles, the circulation to your lower back is limited and very often your sacroiliac joint is blocked.

Movement allows you to counter this effect.

Once you sit or lie down, the tension and pain often get worse again.

When you move, press into your strained back muscles regularly, as described previously.

Avoid sitting if possible:

Sitting puts pressure on the muscles of the buttocks. For most people with lumbago, these muscles are already tense and sitting will only add to that unnecessarily.

This does not foster healing.

Heat your back muscles…

…Use an infrared lamp or take a warm, almost hot shower. A heat treatment often relieves your lumbago pain because it relaxes your muscles.

And make sure not to sit, stand instead.

The most common triggering factors are

• Bending forward while simultaneously rotating the upper body
• Lifting heavy weights
• Getting up after prolonged sitting – for example, after driving or working in an office
• Psychological stress – reluctance, inner turmoil

Supporting factors

• Lots of sitting and untrained muscles
• Lots of sitting
• Bending forward while simultaneously rotating the upper body
• Frequently climbing up stairs and walking uphill
• Psychological stress
• Unbalanced strength training
• Excessive jogging or mountain climbing – especially if you are not used to it
• Etc.