Sitting Down for Too Long Reduces Hip Mobility and Causes Back Pain

Over the course of their lives, nearly eighty percent of Americans will experience some sort of back pain. Many of them will experience pain so debilitating that they actually miss work because of it. These are extraordinarily high numbers of people with discomfort in this region of the body. While many causes of back pain can be prevented, it is only by understanding two of the most important reasons leading to soreness and injury that people can take preventative action and reduce their chances of experiencing pain. These two causes are sitting for long periods of time and lack of hip flexibility.

However, people should also realize that these two causes of back pain also work together to increase injury and soreness. Sitting for hours and hours every day in front of a computer or at a workstation leads to a cramming of the spinal discs, as well as a reduction of mobility in the hips. The hips are designed to be extremely mobile with a large range of motion, But sitting down causes the lower back to take over when movements are required. In essence, the hips tend to "turn off" and the low back takes up the slack when sitting. And when the person gets up, this habitual use of muscles continues unless corrected.

Sitting down puts increased pressure on the vertebrae of the back, especially compared to standing up. When standing, the loads placed on the spine are reduced because the abdominal muscles are more activated and the hips and leg muscles are also working to support the body. But when sitting in a chair, all of the weight of the upper body comes to rest on the pelvis directly, with no transfer of the force through the hips to the legs and feet. This results in higher loads being placed on the joints of the lower back where the lumbar (lower) spine meets the pelvis. Over time, the tissues supporting this area of the body tend to weaken and break down.

While many people feel that standing for long periods of time causes soreness and discomfort, this is usually the feeling of sore muscles. The back extensors, hips, and legs may get sore from spending too much time standing up, but usually the pressures on the tissues such as the ligaments and the spinal discs are reduced. But when sitting down for too long, the muscles may be saved from working to support the spine, but the loads are then directed to the ligaments, discs, bones, and other connective tissues. Muscles soreness can be recovered from much more quickly than damage to the discs.

Sitting also places the hips in a position where they are not allowed to expand, move, or activate muscles to support the body. This can lead to reduced flexibility and range of motion in the hips. When this happens, additional stress is placed on the low back, as the body seeks necessary mobility from the tower back that is missing in the hips. The lumbar spine, however, is not meant to have a large range of motion -- it is built to be very stable and supportive of the joints directly above and below it. When the body is lacking in mobility at the hips, back injuries occur.

Thus, sitting down for long periods of time and reduced mobility in the hip joints can lead to back injuries. The longer one sits in a chair and the less flexibility in the hips, the greater the chance of lower back pain and the worse that soreness can be. People who are seriously concerned about the health of their back must learn to reduce or mitigate the compressive forces on their spines and use their bodies as they were designed -- to keep the loads off of the discs and ligaments of the lumbar spine and utilize the natural mobility of the hips for movement and activity.