Hey guys,
39 year old male here. Long time template buyer and user. I’ve been dealing with a low back injury since January. I started to notice pain during squats. Just a slight tinge of pain at the initial part of the descent. No pain throughout the rest of the rep. In response, I backed off loading to a level where the pain was no longer there. That was effective for a bit but after a short time the pain would return. I continued a cycle of reduced intensity for a couple of months.
I then turned to the Low Back Rehab template. I was only able to tolerate the first week. Adding volume resulted in more pain. I restarted the template at a lower load, only to be met with the same pain upon increasing volume. I continued this process for about 6 weeks, trying different loads and exercises, with no improvement.
I decided to go to PT. This served to only increase the sensitivity - same pain but with even lower loading. The PT discharged me, recommending I see a doctor.
I saw my GP. An X-ray revealed minor decreased disc height, with mild to moderate endplate irregularity and osteophytes at L4-L5, along with 2mm of L4 on L5 retrolisthesis. He didn’t seem convinced this was causing my pain, but couldn’t rule it out.
My doctor also prescribed a muscle relaxant, in case it was a seized up muscle. This had no noticeable effect. He also sent me to a different PT, but I’m having the same experience - increased sensitivity to extremely minor loading - Body weight squats now trigger pain. Throughout all of this, the pain only comes on when nearly upright.
I’m not sure where to take this next. I appreciate any guidance you can offer.