Back Spasms

Back spasms are involuntary, intermittent and often prolonged contractions in the muscles of the back, they have various causes and severity levels, however they are painful, cause a lot of discomfort and can really put you out of activity for a while. Most people that are active in some way would have felt the wrath of back spasms before, and just like anything else, it is important to ensure that you understand what is going on, in order to get rid of the pain.

Common Causes Of Back Spams

Muscle spasms in the back usually come as a result of another injury or condition. This can be caused by two things, either an injury to the muscles of the back, or an injury or condition regarding the joints.

It is not uncommon to take a fall during a match, be hit, or get injured as a result of a sudden muscle contraction. Pain usually will follow the injury, however some time after you may get back spasms as a response to aggravating movements. These are common lower back spasms causes. It is often the case that muscles of the back are injured or inflamed, and it is a little more common in the lower back than the upper back. Back spasms as a result of a muscle injury tend to occur in response to a single event where you have injured the muscle or overworked it.

You may find if you have bad posture, or are sitting badly all day, that your muscles become tight and irritated, and the muscles are forced to work extra hard to stabilize, and spasms are the result.This could be the result of a tight hip flexor, ensure they are loose.

Flexion of the lower back for extended periods of time are a common cause you need to watch out for. Staying in any position that is not natural for too long will do damage in general. This abnormal flexion happens when there is bad posture, which can be a result of poor core strength, stronger abs than the lower back, the stress resulting on the back means more overuse in the muscles and more irritation.

Lower back spasms can also be a result of a condition or injury affecting the structures around the joint. When the deeper structures within the joint such as the ligaments, discs or the vertebrae are irritated, they can cause spasms as a result. These conditions usually are caused by the aging process or some sort of overuse, they are chronic injuries and often take a long time to develop.

Disc bulges are also a common cause of back spasms, and can be caused by overuse and degeneration where the discs are no longer as durable as before, and they rupture. They will happen in a certain incident, but are usually as a result of long term biomechanical abnormalities. For more info check out bulging disc treatment. Although there may be a disc bulge present, more often than not the pain that is complained of is as a result of the back spasm that is caused by the bulge.

It is often thought that the spasms are occurring as a result of the bodies protection mechanism, trying to stabilize the lower back and prevent further injury from occurring.

Check out this video explaining how to treat back spams.

For more info on how to reduce back pain check out lower back pain relief and thoracic spine mobility.