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A month and a half ago I started a new exercise routine and I've stuck with it longer and better than I ever have before in my life. However, I've noticed that squats cause me lower back pain. I have a pretty pronounced lumbar curve, and at a glance I might have mild lordosis. I tried focusing on making sure my core was tight while squatting and that seemed to improve it, but only slightly. I'm 25, work in retail and use good posture when lifting. Most of my leisure time is spent at a computer. I get 8 hours of sleep a night, usually sleeping on my side or back. I'm 5'7", 137 lbs. My diet is mediocre - I stay away from chips, soda, fried foods, and hydrogenated oils but have a mild protein bar addiction, drink an average of 2 alcoholic drinks a day, and have too many simple carbs. Does the motte have any idea how to fix the back pain, or failing that, any good leg workouts that don't use squats?
Elevate your life from the back squat life to the front squat life. It moves the main load in your back up to your mid back and reduces your chance of injury (if you get into a bad position, instead of feeling like you can tough through it and hurting yourself, you literally can't help but drop the weight). Embrace the Squat-Hinge Continuum from this article at Stronger By Science and realize that the variations don't matter that much unless you're planning on competing on a particular movement. Grab one from the squat end (front squats are safest) and one from the hinge end (whichever you prefer; good mornings are ones that most people end up most susceptible to injury, so perhaps avoid), and you'll be fine.
Only downsides are that you'll need to work on wrist flexibility (it'll probably hurt your wrists when you start; it'll go away) and that you'll have to take the ego hit and drop the weight ~25% (but you can always compute a fake 'back squat equivalent' when you're inevitably wanting to compare yourself to some other bro in your own silly head (no one else cares)). The other downside is that you'll start looking at all the Oly lifters out there and be constantly tempted to want to learn how to start throwing the weight above your head.
(Parting shots: Split squats are also fantastic, especially for some sports, but the extra stability of going bilateral helps you get to the loads you probably want. Don't be afraid to learn to use a belt.)
EDIT: Can get to more refined advice with measurements of your mobility. It took me a long time to learn that my sports resulted in me really lacking mobility in internal hip rotation and needing this sooooo good. Yoga can definitely help, but I find that the most common yoga programs do miss some directions that can be important, depending on your particular needs.
I've always thought RDLs were the same thing as SLDLs.
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Some people cheat their squats by doing a semi 'Good morning' as they ascend from the bottom of the squat. Since you mentioned lower back pain, 95% prior you are doing that. Since that's a lower back exercise.
I don't squat because I dont want to grow a fat ass. Leg extensions, hack squats and deadlifts are all I do for legs.
I did a couple very slow squats with a lot of attention paid to my form and it's possible I was doing these. I'll focus on it next workout - I think I start off well and then my form degrades as I get tired.
Thanks for the exercise recommendations, but I'm working with zero equipment and don't yet feel the need to add weight to my routines.
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Deload, work on your form, build back up. Split squats are a good call for legs while you work on form for the full squat.
Do the full 30 Days of Yoga, it will improve the way you move permanently if you haven't done it before.
As daunting a prospect as that yoga routine looks, it would probably be hugely beneficial. I spent the first 20 years of my life entirely sedentary and I am positive it has resulted in problems that I don't even know the full extent of. Have you tried it? Is it pretty brutal on someone who hasn't done yoga before, or is it manageable?
100% manageable, I did the whole thing during my 2L winter finals. And you don't seem like you have a big ego, about this anyway, so you won't have a problem being open to using offered progressions for how a pose can be done, or drop into child's pose/down dog. It's not necessarily about hitting the hardest progression when you aren't ready for it.
Everybody is different. My wife and i go to hot yoga together multiple times a week right now, and there are poses where she crushes it and I suck, and poses where I crush it and she sucks. Sometimes it's whole categories (I suck at balance poses), sometimes it's physical quirks (she can't do plow due to... nature's Endowments), sometimes it's seemingly random (I can hit a bind in one pose, but not another).
Don't feel bad that you're not hitting the hardest version of the pose, just do what you can and make progress. The 30 day program is good because if you stick with it until the new year you will definitely notice a difference in eg your down dog and tree by the time you finish. And if you ever want to pick it up again or go to a live class you'll be competent.
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For the leg workout: split squat, or split squat, or split squat.
How are deadlifts on your back?
These squat variations all look great. I'll give them a shot, thanks.
I don't do any weighted exercises, all bodyweight. I'm at a low enough level of fitness that bodyweight is plenty with the right routine, and I'm more interested in calisthenics than hypertrophy.
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