Rest But Not Too Much
Dont rest too long. A little couch time wont hurt, but light activity speeds recovery, so avoid lying down for long periods of time.
Growing evidence shows there is little or no benefit to bed rest over staying active.
So use this rule of thumb: listen to your body.
Ultimately, your level of pain will determine your level of activity.
If a certain activity led to a pulled muscle dont repeat it for at least a week.
For example, if your back pain started after lifting something heavy, avoid lifting heavy objects for at least a week while your pulled back muscle heals.
Also, avoid sitting for too long. Long periods of sitting can tighten your muscles and cause lower back muscle pain and stiffness.
When you sit and stand, use good posture, avoiding slumping in your head and shoulders.
What Are The Signs Of A Back Injury
Signs you may have injured your back include:
- pain or tenderness
- pain that worsens with movement, coughing, sneezing or laughing
- stiffness or difficulty moving
- swelling
- pain that radiates down one or both legs
However, back pain has many causes. It could be caused by a disease such as osteoarthritis or osteoporosis, your age, physical fitness, smoking, being overweight, or the type of work you do.
It is important to find out the cause of your symptoms so they can be treated properly.
Muscle Strain In Your Back
Pulled muscles are also known as strains, which can affect either the muscle itself or the tendon, which is a thick band of tissue that connects the muscle to the bone. Muscle strains can range from a mild or moderate overstretch of the muscle or a partial tear. In severe cases, a strain may indicate a complete tear.
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons explains that sports like soccer, football, hockey, wrestling and other contact sports put you at risk for muscle strains. They also cite explosive sports that require quick starts, like hurdling, long jump and running races, as potentials for acute strains.
Overuse sprains are a result of a chronic overuse of lower back muscles or tendons. According to the Cleveland Clinic, poor posture, weak abdominal muscles, tight hamstrings and being overweight can put undue stress on your lower back muscles, which increases your risk for a muscle strain.
These problems are all preventable with an exercise program that focuses on proper stretches for the hamstrings, strengthening of the abdominal muscles and proper instruction on how to lift and handle heavy objects.
Read more:Quick Ways to Get Over a Pulled Muscle
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The Most Common Causes Of Lower Back Pain Are A Strain Or Sprain
Whether you notice it or not, your lumbar spine gets put to work throughout the entire day.
Amid all of this work and motion, a lower back sprain or strain can result from an acute injury, such as one experienced while falling, lifting something too heavy or playing sports. A sprain or strain can also develop over time due to repetitive movements or poor posture.
“Straining a muscle or spraining a ligament are the most common causes of lower back pain,” says Dr. Palmer. “While they can be serious, these common causes of lower back pain aren’t long-lasting taking anywhere from a few days to heal or, at most, a few months.”
Your doctor can help you determine the particular course of self-care that can help heal your lower back pain.
“The treatment for a pulled back muscle or strained back ligament is fairly simple and can include pain and anti-inflammatory medications, muscle relaxers, ice to help reduce inflammation, heat to promote healing, and avoiding strenuous activity until the pain recedes,” explains Dr. Palmer. “The best course of care will depend on the severity of your injury as well as your overall core and lower body strength.”
If your lower back pain persists despite treatment, it may be time to consider other causes of lower back pain.
Got Your Gluteal Muscle Pulled Know The Signs & Treatments
We use our gluteal muscles when running, squatting and performing athletic tasks. These muscles take in a lot of tension and sometimes the contractions could be too much for the muscles hence causing a strain. This is known as gluteal strain or pulled gluteal muscle and its characterized by the tearing of one or multiple gluteal muscles.
Also Check: How To Tape Your Back For Lower Back Pain
When To Get Medical Care For A Pulled Muscle
See a back specialist or chiropractor, or go a hospitals emergency department for a pulled muscle if:
- You hear a clicking or popping sound during the injury that strained your back muscle
- The pain you feel is greater than average
- The pain does not respond to the usual over-the-counter meds that usually help you
- There is more than a little swelling of the injured area
- Any degree of fever is present
- You have an open wound s a result of the injury
- These home remedies do not begin to reduce your back pain and muscle tightness in 48 hours
A pulled back muscle can be a painful and serious problem that will stop you in your tracks, and can lead to further problems if it is not handled correctly from the onset. Use these simple and effective steps to keep a pulled muscle in the back from becoming a larger problem.
Managing A Tight Foreskin
Also Check: What Can Cause Lower Back Pain When Sitting
What Can I Do To Help The Pulled Muscle In My Low Back
A pulled muscle, no matter where it occurs, is just another name for a muscle strain. A muscle pull or strain occurs when all or an isolated portion of a muscle is stretched beyond its normal limits. This results in some degree of muscle tear, from a few micro-tears of muscle fibers to a massive ripping of an entire muscle . Regardless of the location of the muscle strain, treatment does not differ much a pulled back muscle should receive treatment that is fundamentally the same for a muscle tear in the leg or neck.
When & How To Seek Medical Care
If low back pain lasts for longer than one to two weeks, seek medical care. First, make an appointment with your primary care physician.
Seek immediate medical attention if any of the following symptoms are present in addition to back pain:
- Severe abdominal pain
- Unexplained fever
- Loss of control of your bowels or bladder
Read Also: Why My Lower Back Hurts All The Time
Initial Treatments For Low Back Muscle Strain
Most cases of a pulled back muscle are treated using standard self-care or non-invasive treatments. Some typical first-step treatments for a pulled low back muscle include:
- Anti-inflammatory medicines such as ibuprofen, aspirin, and naproxen reduce inflammation, which often contributes to pain. Anti-inflammatory medicines are available over-the-counter or with a prescription.
- Over-the-counter pain medicines, such as acetaminophen, minimize pain by interfering with the way the brain interprets pain signals. Acetaminophen may also be included as an active ingredient in prescription medications, such as in combination with an opioid.
- Muscle relaxants may be prescribed on a short-term basis to reduce muscle spasm. Most muscle relaxants do not affect muscles directly, but rather dampen pain receptors in the central nervous system. These medications have many side effects, and muscle relaxants also carry risk of addiction.
- Ice packs reduce inflammation that can occur shortly after a muscle is injured. Typical recommendations include applying a cold or ice pack for 10 – 20 minutes at regular intervals throughout the day, and using a towel or other barrier between the ice and the skin to prevent an ice burn.
See Muscle Relaxants: List of Common Muscle Relaxers
Surgery As A Last Resort
If home remedies and physical therapy don’t make your injury better, you might have a more serious lower back strain. It’s possible to have a complete tear in your muscle, which would require surgery and a longer recovery period. It’s important that you see a doctor if your symptoms don’t get better to rule out this more serious condition.
Read Also: What To Do For Bad Back Pain
S To Quickly Recover From A Pulled Back Muscle
Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Paris, D.C on Nov. 6, 2018.
If you havent already, you probably will at some point experience a pulled back muscle. Theyre the most common cause of low back pain.
It could happen during a game of golf, while cleaning the garage, or even on the dance floor.
While we often tend to refer to any soft tissue pain in the back as a pulled back muscle, were really talking about two separate kinds of back injuries strains and sprains.
In this article, Ill show you the difference between those injuries and how to quickly recover from pulled back muscles without taking drugs like NSAIDs.
What Can I Do To Help With The Pain
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Try not to do things that make the pain worse, like sitting for a long time, lifting heavy objects, or bending or twisting.
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Stick to your normal activities as much as you can. Gentle exercise like walking helps you get better more quickly.
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Some over-the-counter medicines can help pain or swelling. These include ibuprofen , naproxen , and acetaminophen . Your doctor may give you medicine to help with pain or muscle spasms.
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Try using heating pads or taking a warm bath or shower.
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Your doctor can show you some gentle exercises to help stretch your back and make the muscles stronger.
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A physical therapist, massage therapist, or chiropractor may help with your pain and make you feel better.
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How To Treat A Pulled Back Muscle
In many cases, a minor back muscle strain can be treated at home or with the help of a physical therapist. If youre not sure what your injury is or if you are in extreme pain, its always a good idea to consult with a physician. If you are noticing the early signs of a pulled back muscle, consider these treatment options4:
How To Tell If Your Lower Back Pain Is Muscle
by Dr. Don DuffAug 20, 2019
The low back is a fairly complicated structure, so its no wonder the majority of peopleexperts estimate up to 80% of usexperience pain in this area of our bodies at some point in our lives. In fact, back pain is one of the most common reasons for visits to the doctors office.
The key to relieving back pain is understanding the cause. But diagnosing the of a patients pain isnt always a straightforward exercise. It could be muscle, joint, or disc-related in some cases, it may even arise from issues unrelated to the back. So how can you tell if your back pain is muscle- or disc-related, or attributable to something else entirely? Well cover all the possibilities in this post.
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Caring For A Child’s Foreskin
How To Manage Pain From A Bulging Disc In Your Lower Back
Many doctors advise people suffering from a bulging disc to try conservative treatment options first. Thats a good idea, considering most patients gradually recover from disc abnormalities on their own, without surgery, over the course of several weeks to a couple of months.
All the options listed below can help to manage pain. Start with the lower-risk options, like rest, medication, and therapy, before advancing to injections. You may see something on the list you think youd never try, but I encourage you to keep an open mind. Not all measures work for all people, so if you try one option and its ineffective, talk to your doctor and move onbut dont eliminate something that has a chance of being helpful.
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What Causes A Pulled Muscle In Your Back
You can end up with a pulled back muscle for any number of reasons. It could have happened suddenly from an injury. Or it may have developed gradually over time because of repetitive movements or overusesuch as lifting, exercising, or sitting hunched over for long periodsthat overstressed your back muscles.
Even poor posture can contribute to a pulled back muscle because slouching puts an added strain on the spine and the muscles that support it. Carrying excessive body weight is a culprit, too. Being overweight forces the back muscles to work harder than they should to support the extra load. Thats why people who are overweight or pregnant are more likely to have achy backs.
Other common causes of a pulled back muscle include:
- using poor technique when lifting a heavy object from the ground or lowering it from overhead especially if you twist while you do it.
- performing a forceful repetitive motion, such as that required by playing golf or other sports or perhaps swinging a hammer.
- failing to use good form while exercising.
- starting a new exercise routine, sport, or job activity that overworks a group of muscles that are not used to the force of the motion required.
- moving in any way that jars the muscles in the lower back, especially if you hit the ground hard or in an awkward position, such as movements that could occur in a fall or car accident.
- leading a sedentary lifestyle, which weakens back muscles.
Light Exercises And/or Dynamic Stretches For Low Back
This roundtable discussion with doctors discussed the importance of movement and exercise for people with a low back spasm, and not resting too much.
Use Caution:
The three simple exercises below will help mobilize and stretch the strained area, as well as activate and strengthen surrounding areas, which can help with long-term pain relief.
Leonâs Notes:
Furthermore, ONLY DO THESE EXERCISES/STRETCHES ONLY after your pain has lessened⦠So you may want to start doing these only after 3-6 days have passed.
Read Also: Should You Go To Urgent Care For Back Pain
Whats The Difference Between A Strain And A Sprain
A strain happens when you injure either a muscle or a tendon. Your tendons are tough, fibrous tissues that connect your muscle to your bone.
When you are experiencing back strain, it means that you have twisted, pulled or torn the muscles or tendons that support your spine. If you stretch a muscle too much, you actually cause small tears in the muscle fibers.
A sprain, on the other hand, occurs when you stretch a ligament too far or tear it. Ligaments are the fibrous tissues that connect your bones at your joints.
Sprains and strains may not sound like serious injuries, but the back pain they cause can really hurt!
In fact, the pain can be so excruciating that some people are convinced theyve done something terrible to their back and that theyll need surgery.
The good news is you definitely wont need surgery. Pulled muscles in the back usually heal within days or weeks on their own.
Please note, if you have severe, constant pain that keeps you from sleeping, experience a loss of bladder or bowel control or have progressive lower extremity weakness, you may have a more serious injury to your lumbar spine and should be evaluated by a professional.
Although its possible to have a pulled muscle anywhere in your back, these strains and sprains most often occur in the lumbar region, or your lower back. One of the most common symptoms of a pulled back muscle islower left side back pain.
