Lower back pain is a problem for many people. According to the latest statistics in the United States, it is the leading cause of disability in people under the age of 45 and occurs most often between the ages of 30 and 50. While some back pain is not preventable (i.e. accidents, disease and birth defects), much of it is.
One of the best ways to prevent low back pain is to understand and then practise the concept of 'neutral spine'. If you have ever done a Pilates or yoga class, then you are probably familiar with this or similar terms such as neutral alignment. The spine is made up of discs and vertebrae aligned to form natural curves: in the neck, thoracic region, lower back, sacrum and coccyx. Supporting the spine are ligaments, muscles and other fibres. When the spine is in neutral, the spine is balanced, which allows the structures that surround and support the spine to function properly.
The aim during exercise is to maintain a neutral spine whenever the back should be still. It does not mean allowing the lower back to over-arch or sway uncontrolled. It means recruiting deep stabilising muscles such as the transverse abdominals, pelvic floor and internal obliques.
If you have to recruit other muscles to keep your back stable during an exercise, then you're lifting or doing too much. Of course, if you are meant to flex the lower back, then a neutral spine is not necessary, but you should still focus on using the deep core muscles to avoid injury. Twenty years ago, fitness professionals were promoting a flat back when doing any type of strength training. While doing abdominal curls, bench press or squats, most people were taught to flatten their lower backs as a way of protecting it.
Now, research has shown that while this technique may protect the lower back against any uncontrolled movement, it can cause damage to the vertebrae and doesn't recruit the proper muscles nor promote good posture. One Canadian researcher and spine expert, Stuart McGill, says a neutral spine eliminates the risk of ligament damage since they remain unrestrained. By ligament damage, this means that whenever the spine is not in neutral all the connecting ligaments are under strain which includes the supporting tissues along your spine. Herniated disc problems, meanwhile, often occur when you sit for long periods of time with a rounded lower back (not in neutral). By sitting upright with a neutral spine, these problems often can be avoided.
Just watch any Olympic weightlifter and power-lifter for proof. The spine is always in neutral and they are rarely injured despite lifting enormous weight. So how do you find your neutral spine? According to McGill, stand sideways in a mirror and look at the natural sway in your lower back. This is your back in neutral. Unless your lumbar spine is excessively curved or flattened, you should try to maintain this curve during exercises where your back is not meant to move, such as a squat or dead lift.