hurts your back, you have extension-related back pain. Usually this is the result of a facet joint injury. Facet joints are technically the articulations between the superior and inferior articular processes of two vertebrae. Just think of them as the connection point between some of the projections off of the back of the spine. Here is a picture:
The thing about facet joints is they have a habit of being very sensitive. When the spine goes into extension, like the first picture above, force builds up at the facet joints which can lead to pain. Facet joint injuries are most common in younger lifters, as a general rule (but certainly not always the case), weight-trainers 30 and under are more likely to complain of facet joint pain whereas trainees over 30 are more likely to complain about flexion-related pain.
Working around facet joint injuries in the gym involves avoiding extending the lumbar vertabrae. Note, this is not the same as the exercise commonly dubbed the "back extension" but rather describing the situation shown in the first picture.
When selecting exercises for a facet injury, minimizing compressive force is not the #1 priority since usually the discs will be unaffected by this type of injury. As mentioned earlier, exercises that can result in excess extension should be avoided.
Oftentimes when dealing with facet injuries, it is not the exercise itself but the way the exercise is performed that needs to be changed. An example would be the deadlift. Many lifters, especially working with heavier weights, lean back at the top of the deadlift:
This places some load on the facet joints and is simply not appropriate for someone with a facet injury. By focusing on hip extension and ending the lift without lumber hyperextension, the facet joints can be spared. The top of a deadlift in this situation would look like this:
The problem with this type of deadlift is that while the form may be textbook, when lifting maximal loads, like the lifter in the first picture, deadlifting is hardly textbook. When you are holding 400+ lbs like the person in the first picture, some leaning back is necessary or you would simply fall forward. That is why for someone with facet joint injuries, I prefer to use the trap bar deadlift for some of the heavier work. Since the center of mass of the trap bar is directly in line with the lifter's foot, there is no need for back extension at the top.
Other Lifts to Watch For:
Again, with facet joint injuries, back extension should be avoided. Just like with the deadlift, any movement where a majority of the weight is in front of you can result in some back extension. This includes holding a bar in a front squat or zercher squat grip. At the top of these lifts, a small amount of extension is necessary to stay balanced. Other deadlifting variations where the bar is in front of the legs can be problematic.
Standing movements also can cause a lot of extension. Standing Overhead Military Presses or even heavy curls can throw the back into extension. To work around this, choose a different exercise or lower the weight and tighten up the form.
Additionally (and often overlooked), pressing movements can be an issue. The bench press is frequently overlooked for its role in facet joint injuries. When bench pressing, it is common to form an arch on the bench to create stability. This allows the lifter to support more weight.
As mentioned on CriticalBench (where I snagged this pic), a good arch can significantly improve your bench pressing abilities. However, a tight arch like in the picture above can be very painful for someone with a facet joint injury. In this situation, simply laying on the bench normally with the feet relaxed (or even propped up a bit, I know, the horror) is more appropriate for repetition work.
But What If You Want to Put Up Big Numbers?
Now that is the million dollar question. If you have a facet joint injury, particularly if you have been weight training with it for the long term, I am not saying that these exercises are completely forbidden. If you want to build an impressive bench press, I would recommend performing your repetition and assistance work without a tight arch, but still practice arching and use it for your maximal sets (assuming it is pain free). Many lifters develop painful facet joints after frequent arched benching and deadlifting. Oftentimes, when these techniques are performed sparingly, such as for testing a rep max or performing a maximal set, they will not cause the lifter any pain. Every person is different though, so if it is still causing you pain, find out why this is the case and fix it.
That is it for this edition, I will wrap up this series tomorrow by covering working out around sacroiliac joint pain.
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