Lower back pain normal when building up muscles for long distance?

[kbhit]

I've been training for a long distance paddle - and generally go out about 4 times a week. 2 times a week I generally go for about 6.5 miles and the other two I'll go on average around 8.

However, my lower back is the first to start to give. I'm not sure if that's because it's getting stronger, or because I'm doing something wrong. I fear the later but I'm not sure. I normally use the Tahitian stroke and do a lot of 'forward folding' to get as much reach as possible. I stack my shoulders and make sure the paddle is vertical.

Any ideas if this is common or if there are certain things I should be cautious of? For what it's worth, it feels like I'm using my lower back and upper shoulders more than I'm using my abs.

Thanks for any advice.

[pdxmike]

At his clinic in Seattle, Dave Kalama stressed that when you bend forward, bend from the hips and not the waist.  So, even though you're bending forward, your back should stay fairly flat.  That keeps the stress off your back, similar to not bending your back when doing heavy lifting.  Maybe that can help.

[blueplanetsurf]

Try to straighten the back during recovery and when reaching and don't lean forward until you start the power phase, like you are falling onto the paddle as it creates lift.  If your back keeps hurting, try to use more twist and less lean in the power phase.  And like pdxmike said, keep your back straight and bend from the hips.

[DavidJohn]

How long is your paddle? .. If it's just a little short you need to bend more to fully dip the blade and after a while it will result in lower back pain.

DJ

[hbsteve]

In addition, make sure your knees & legs are not stiff. This could effect how you use your back.

[kbhit]

Thanks for the tips!  I think these two may be at play
- Folding from the waist and not the hips.. I definitely have to focus on that and didn't know
- I do think my paddle is too short.  Probably by 2-3 inches.  Going to the local surf shop to determine a good size...

Thank you!!

[hbsteve]

let us know if having a longer paddle & bending different make the difference.  If not, you might try changing up your stroke tech. every once in awhile for a minute or so.  Also varying your stroke rate even for a short period might help. 

[boardrider78]

one of the most common causes for low back pain is tight hamstrings

[beaglebuddy]

Bending at the hips not the waist means sticking your butt out.
Try to keep that small curvature in the small of your back like when you are practicing good posture, don't round it out.

[surfnpoppy]

I used to have the same issues. During the power phase of your stroke the lower back is taking all the torque or torsional twisting load. My fix was to bend my knees during the power phase of the stroke transfering the torque to your legs. You only need to bend your knees very slightly each stroke to make a huge difference. 

[JeffBach]

with x4 workouts/week, I wonder if you are giving yourself enough recovery time? 

While SUP doesn't, or at least shouldn't, pound on you like other sports do, recovery time is still in the mix, especially after a longish effort.

[Adolfo]

I used to have the same problem. But then I saw this video: and started doing the exercise Laird does @ 1:57.
It helped me a lot.