Back Hurts?

dodgecharger

dodgecharger

Ball Breaker
Silver Member
hello i have been playing for a while and i notice when i play even a single rack my back hurts afterwards and after a nights sleep it kills me throughout the day? i figure its my stance but i ahve watched vids and looked at pictures of the stance and i dont see how im messing it up what else could be wrong with what im doing ...i dont have any back problems so i must be doing somthing OR everything wrong
 
You try streching before hand? Maybe just taking a few days off will fix the problem...
 
When you get down on your shot, are you bending at the waist? I have found that if I put my bridge hand on the table, and then kick my back foot about 12 inches back, it allows me to lower my center of gravity without excessive bending. This brings my head to within about 3 inches of the cue. Try this method and see if it reduces the stress on your lower back.
Steve
 
Consider bending your knees. Some folks aren't very flexible and in order to get down on their cue they bend by hunching their back rather than bending at the waist. If you can't keep your back nice and straight, you can also try spreading your feet a little further apart. Hunching your back naturaly forces your neck downwards causing you to have to really lift it upward in order to see properly. Over time you may also develop neck problems.
 
With me the Back problems stopped me from playing for years. My back hurt so much one day, my sister sent me to her Chiropractor. They took X-rays and discovered my Hip was out of alignment. They adjusted it and I walked out of the office feeling like a 20 year old. Stopped by the local bowling alley, put a some quarters in the bar box, bent over, broke a rack of 8 Ball against the Ghost, and the magic was still in me. This was in 2003. I had not played since winter of 1996.

You may just need a back adjustment. I know people say Chiropractors are Quaks, but if you find a good one, they can keep your back adjusted so you do not have to deal with any pain. I go every few months and have it adjusted. As our body ages, the disks in the spine wear a bit, and
it effects some folks but not others.:)
 
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CaptainHook said:
With me the Back problems stopped me from playing for years. My back hurt so much one day, my sister sent me to her Chiropracter. They took X-rays and discovered my Hip was out of alignment. They adjusted it and I walked out of the office feeling like a 20 year old. Stopped by the local bowling alley, put a some quarters in the bar box, bent over, broke a rack of 8 Ball against the Ghost, and the magic was still in me. This was in 2003. I had not played since winter of 1996.

You may just need a back adjustment. I know people say Chiropracters are Quaks, but if you find a good one, they can keep your back adjusted so you do not have to deal with any pain. I go every few months and have it adjusted. As our body ages, the disks in the spine wear a bit, and
it effects some folks but not others.:)
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yep i guess ill give that a try...but im only 18 i hope my back isnt wearing out YET lol
 
Back problem

I am a chiropractor and it sounds like a simple mechanical problem in your lower back, such as misalignment of the vertebrae. If something is out of place it carries weight differently and then a lot of previously "normal activities" will bother a person, such as sitting, standing, or bending. There is a slight chance that it is something else( cancer, tumor, unknown disease which is highly unlikely) causing your discomfort and inability to play one rack without pain. But look at all the other people that are out of shape with big guts hanging over their belts that can play pool for hours without any hint of discomfort. If you can't bend over slightly to play pool for one rack without pain then it is not an pool alingement problem, it is physical. My dad and grandfather were well drillers and I did the same work and at 19 years old I thought I had a "bad back" and I was blaming my pain on the heavy work I was doing. Then one day at work out of town it got so painful I couldn't continue and the driller made me go to a chiropractor. It was a one treatment miracle! ( Which is not always the case as it might take 3-5 treatments to get some results). It should be a real easy fix with just a few adjustments and you will feel better than you have felt in years. I treat many professional athletes who get regular care and without chiropractic intervention their careers would have been over. Pool is not a contact sport and you have not said that you sustained any tissue damage recently (strained muscles or ligaments), so your problem should be easily corrected with very little treatment necessary. So as Dr. Laura says, "now go do the right thing!" Spend a few dollars on your health and you will be happy in the long haul! If you had a tooth problem I would think you would go to a dentist.
 
See your Doctor

The kind of pain that you're describing, after playing even one game of pool, is not the norm by any stretch and it is unlikely that your issue will go away without professional assistance. If your doctor can't help, then maybe an adjustment by a DC may help, but start with your family doctor and don't wait forever to see him or her.
 
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Terry Erdman said:
I am a chiropractor and it sounds like a simple mechanical problem in your lower back, such as misalignment of the vertebrae. If something is out of place it carries weight differently and then a lot of previously "normal activities" will bother a person, such as sitting, standing, or bending. There is a slight chance that it is something else( cancer, tumor, unknown disease which is highly unlikely) causing your discomfort and inability to play one rack without pain. But look at all the other people that are out of shape with big guts hanging over their belts that can play pool for hours without any hint of discomfort. If you can't bend over slightly to play pool for one rack without pain then it is not an pool alingement problem, it is physical. My dad and grandfather were well drillers and I did the same work and at 19 years old I thought I had a "bad back" and I was blaming my pain on the heavy work I was doing. Then one day at work out of town it got so painful I couldn't continue and the driller made me go to a chiropractor. It was a one treatment miracle! ( Which is not always the case as it might take 3-5 treatments to get some results). It should be a real easy fix with just a few adjustments and you will feel better than you have felt in years. I treat many professional athletes who get regular care and without chiropractic intervention their careers would have been over. Pool is not a contact sport and you have not said that you sustained any tissue damage recently (strained muscles or ligaments), so your problem should be easily corrected with very little treatment necessary. So as Dr. Laura says, "now go do the right thing!" Spend a few dollars on your health and you will be happy in the long haul! If you had a tooth problem I would think you would go to a dentist.
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Great post, I gave you Rep points.
I just got the results of my MRI and X-rays I took last week.
My Dr said I had a herniation at L3 & L4, I showed some Arthritis in some of my joints and some dehidration. he recomended Glaucosumine and drink lots of water and keep getting my back adjusted. And he said that I showded some disk degeneration, but nothing to worry about:confused:

What do you think? Will this effect my ability to play pool in the future?

I would appreciate any advice you can offer. I love Pool, I missed it so bad
the years I could not play. I tried to sell my gear back then, Thank God nobody bought it.:)
 
lol...great post. i saw my back/neck surg. last week. now i get to have an MRI done then most likely go under the knife for my neck in november. but...i will never quit playing pool, i hope. i am only 36...lol
 
I have developed back problems over the last few years and started using an inversion table.

http://www.amazon.com/LifeGear-7511.../104-3125042-6684706?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods

Basically you hang upside down and take all the weight off of your spine.
Using it a few times per week maintains my back nicely. I've even gotten back up to a decent weight (300+ ) with deadlifts and squats for weight lifting. Just for reference the last session with the chiropractor lasted about 6 weeks....4 trips total.That was about a year and a half ago and haven't been back since I got the table.
 
Common problem

for people that stand too straight on their stick (snooker stance) because their back is not straight when they bend over, which it should be.

Back leg straight (60% weight on it), front leg slightly bent (40% weight on it), stand at a 45 degree angle to your stick, when you bend over at the waist keeping back straight, you should be right over your stick for aiming. If you are overhanging, back your feet up more away from your stick.

If you stand in a snooker stance more, you back can not stay straight and line up properly for aiming over your stick, and you unconsciously make adjustments, which usually results in pain in areas where you made adjustments. Remeber, a proper Pool stance is about straight lines that result in you being directly over your cue when aiming without having to make any compromises.
 
I seemed to have a pretty bad back at 18. It seemed as if my kees and back were hurting afer a night of pool. I went to the doctor and he told me to touch my toes.....:D . I first thought I was at one of those touchy feely doctors....:eek: . But the point he got across was that I couldn't even touch my toes. My hamstrings were so tight that they were putting stress on my lower back. My hands were going to about the middle of my shins and then I couldn't go down any farther. Try and stretch out your hamstrings. It worked for me.

Tony
 
Well Captain Hook it sounds like you need to try Glucosamine Sulfate as it is about 86% effective in the studies conducted. They say it takes about 2 months to get it into your system. It does not kill pain what it does is allow the cartilage to hold more water and it hydrates the discs and "cushions" the joint ends. One of my patients told me about it 15 years ago and she said she was only on it 2 weeks and she could tell a difference. She has continued to use it daily. Costco is the least expensive around here and it is about $20.00 for a months supply. Even with a slight herniation of a disc doesn't mean that it is a surgical necessity if there is no nerve encroachment. So we are talking different stages of degeneration. Surgery is very effective for an acute herniation but the chronic degenerative disc problems are better left alone or as a last resort. Those are the ones you hear about needing multiple surgeries with not too good of outcomes sometimes. You should be able to play pool without major problems but you might need to stand a little taller or whatever to relieve some stress on the lower back if that is the case. Stretching the hamstrings and piriformis muscles are great and will allow an easier position pool stance with more flexibility even in older players. I stretch before and during play and I never have any issues with my back. Well only a flair up every 8-10 years but I get adjusted regularly and stretch daily. But I never see any other players so any stretching. Even golfers should stretch but not many do. To make a long story shorter, you can live and play with some degeneration in your back and it shouldn't bother you much at all if you will do some simple daily stretching and strenghening exercises. Pulling both knees to my chest 5-6 times a day(laying down or squating) and putting one foot up on a rung of a chair if standing for any length of time are two things that "save my back." Have your D.C. show you how to stretch your piriformis as it is too difficult to describe in words to get the right position. Also if you ever have muscle cramps or spasms get some Magnesium from your local health food store and they will disappear. Play in good health, Terry
 
Snapshot9 said:
Back leg straight (60% weight on it), front leg slightly bent (40% weight on it), stand at a 45 degree angle to your stick, when you bend over at the waist keeping back straight, you should be right over your stick for aiming. If you are overhanging, back your feet up more away from your stick.
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This kind of percentage type advice is always sketchy at best, and I don't like seeing people give "set in stone" formulas. Everyone will be different, depending on how they stand and their body type/weight.

I happen to be 50% front 45% back and 5% bridge hand. Forgot about the bridge hand didn't you?. This is where a huge portion of your stability comes from, the weight you distribute by pressing into the table with your bridge hand. Tripods are more stable than Bipods.

Another option for someone who wishes to get low on their cue but isn't naturally flexible enough is have them bend both legs so they are comfortable. I can't keep my back leg straight since I'm not very flexible, but I am solid as a rock and have almost no body movement through my shot.

This old school theory about keeping the back leg straight might have cut the mustard twenty years ago when players stood a foot off their cue, but todays players stand very low. As for the snooker reference, snooker tables are taller than pool tables, which makes getting down low easier.

Sorry to pick at you, but you shouldn't throw out "one size fits all" advice.:)
 
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