Are you currently cycling through a series of yoga poses first thing in the morning or maybe before bed, praying to get lasting relief from your chronic lower back pain? 

Do you feel like without those stretches, you’re back pain would consume your body, and your day would be even worse?

This is a typical relationship with a lot of the stretches and “poses” found in yoga practices. Still, one of the most surprising things people don’t realize is that their pain may never completely go away because of the constant stretching they keep doing.

In today’s article, I want to give you a list of my top Yoga poses ALL back pain and post-fusion warriors need to STOP doing if they ever want to gain control over their pain and get back to living free to do what they want!

 

Will Yoga Help With low Back Pain Relief?

 

There is a big difference between the sensation of tight muscles and actual shortened muscles. I would bet that 80% of people stretch simply because they “feel tight” but are not tight at all.

What they are experiencing in their lower back is what I call your body’s protection mechanism. It’s your body’s natural response to constant pain in an area and fear of making it worse.

When doing stretches like this, you’re tapping into what is called your stretch reflex. The sensation you get with stretching typically is good while doing it and for a short period after, but if the tightness and pain come back (especially coming back even worse), you don’t want to keep stretching.

All that’s doing is creating this pain cycle fueled and relieved by stretching.

That’s a never-ending loop and a recipe for chronic low back pain.

When dealing with low back disorders, greater spine mobility has been associated with common back trouble in some cases (e.g., Biering-Soreensen. 1984. ) When it comes to trying to stretch the back and increase flexibility, more often than not, this can lead to the stretch reflex diminishing as well as muscle spasms (e.g., Solomonow. 2002)

So to answer the question directly, “not really.” Stretching is the least likely tool you will lose to get long-term relief from your chronic pain or pain post-surgery.

 

What Are The Worst Yoga Poses For Back Pain Sufferers?

 

 

Worst Yoga Pose For Lower Back Pain: Standing Forward Bend:

 

This was always the first or second pose within a series of “Yoga for Back Pain” videos that I would watch when my pain was at its worst.

After including these in my routine, I never understood why my back would worsen the next day. When doing these, more often than not, your legs are straight, which locks your pelvis in place. Because your hip cannot move forward, the pulling tension is focused on the lower back.

You may experience relief for a short period after, but the micro strains your lower back undergoes are terrible for something already inflamed. You can slightly decrease the pressure on the back by bending the knees, but it’s still putting a lot of force through the lower back, and until your pain is under control, you don’t want to do anything that can make things worse.

Worst Yoga Pose For Lower Back Pain: Camel Pose:

 

Check out this YouTube short I did on this same stretch!

I get the general idea with this stretch, but still a hazardous move for someone dealing with acute or chronic back pain.

I will say about this exercise that the majority of basic disc herniations react well to a HEAVILY modified Cobra pose (I don’t even like to mention that stretch much).

I did an entire video on what you can do instead here

In this position, the lower body doesn’t have anywhere to go, so you place a lot of compression loads on the lower back region as you bend back.

If you’re dealing with a ruptured disc, herniations, or bulges, I will start laying flat on your tummy and working small amounts of extension into your routine over time.

I did a live stream talking about this exact topic you can check out here!

 

Worst Yoga Pose For Lower Back Pain: The Childs Pose:

 

Similar to the forward bend this stretch puts a lot of strain on the lower back, and if you’re already dealing with a tight or extremely sensitive lumbar spine, this stretch WILL MAKE IT WORSE. 

It feels good, but remember, you’re getting a dose of the feel-good endorphins being released from the stretch.

Your low back will feel more unstable, sensitive, and prone to random spasms or flare-ups.

 

Worst Yoga Pose For Lower Back Pain: Two Knee Twist:

 

The reason for this is similar to those above. We are trying to chase mobility in an area that thrives on stability. If you have been stretching for some time now and can’t seem to get any traction on working yourself OUT of pain, I would suggest first addressing how much you’ve been stretching.

These are my top 4 poses to stay away from until you can get your back pain under control. Remember, stick to building stiffness and endurance in the core before attempting Yoga to help “relieve back pain.”

Thanks for reading, guys!

William