I so completely agree with Damien's post, that I will go on to say that the chair is one of the worst inventions of all time.. despite the fact that I'm sitting in one right now as I write this, lol. The chair so pervades our modern lifestyles that many of us have no idea what a healthy back feels like. In contrast, I remember that during what was probably the fittest period of my life, I worked a job where I stood for 12 or more hours a day, and went home to cook and eat my dinner standing as well. Often chained to a desk, I miss those days.. but I digress.
The only thing I would add to the dialog so far, is that there are a number of muscular interactions I encounter in my line of work which are of particular interest to runners experiencing lower back pain. I'm speaking of "pain referral'" in which the actions or tonic state of a particular muscle manifest as pain somewhere else on the body in a way one might not expect. Two areas of concern I will mention briefly are the hip flexors (Iliopsoas) that bring your thigh forward and upward, and the rear muscles of the calf (Soleus, Gastrocnemius) that plantarflex the foot. Both of these muscle groups are of the "tonic" type that tend to tighten and shorten with overuse (such as marathon training), and both by unhappy coincidence remain in a contracted state while we are sitting.
Many amateur athletes spend a lot of time behind a desk or behind the wheel of a car. We further insult our tired and overworked muscles by spending even more of their recovery time behind a table, behind a home computer, or on the couch behind a remote control, then we retire to sleep in the fetal position. During all these times the muscles are "growing" even shorter, revealing their tightness when we attempt to stand, stretch, or assume a better posture. To make matters worse, these muscles are often opposed by "phasic" muscles that tend to weaken with overuse, leading to further imbalance and postural errors in a vicious cycle of dysfunction that becomes most obvious in the athletic and the aged.
All of this is entirely unnecessary, as can be seen in aboriginal peoples who do not use chairs, and who maintain limber erect physiques into old age. Even though such peoples are often capable of amazing feats of physical endurance, they tend not to hold themselves to rigid training schedules and deadlines for major sporting events like marathons, which beat our poor muscles into submission. Despite the obvious virtues and benefits of a life lived in moderation, we are nevertheless doomed to our contemporary lifestyles of relative over and underuse and it often shows when we attempt to stand straight upon rising.
With particular regard to the hip flexor Iliopsoas, it joins the femur to the pelvis and lumbar spine. This means that the shortened muscle, when stretched to its "normal" length while standing, compresses the lumbar spine and sacroiliac joints, potentially affecting all other structures, nerves and muscles related thereto. I'll rest my case for that muscle, only adding a short video below.
When it comes to the Soleus muscle in the calf, at the lower (distal) portion lateral to the Achilles tendon, there is a spot a few inches above the heel that in many persons can "refer" pain to the lower back, particularly the sacrum. While the Soleus is another "tonic" muscle that shortens with overuse such as hill training and speedwork, it should be noted that there is often a hyperactive component even to "phasic" muscles that appear weak. That is to say that even though tonic muscles tend to shorten with overuse, the often opposite phasic muscles may weaken due to the same kind of stress. The stress I'm referring to has a strong tendency to manifest as small mini-spasms or knots in the muscle (often called trigger points) that can produce these opposite results of general tonicity depending on the type or portion of muscle in which they occur. So while a tonic muscle shortens with exercise and is frequently "stretched" to compensate for this, a phasic muscle weakens with exercise and is frequently (and ironically) exercised more in an effort to strengthen it. In either case the solution is the same for the trigger points, but opposite for the follow-up stretches.
Stretching a tonic muscle like the Psoas or Soleus can be a valuable part of rehab, but only after the trigger points in the muscle are released. Stretching or exercising an active trigger point risks making it worse, further tightening the muscle. Stretching a phasic muscle is generally a waste of time, since it loosens with use, but a follow-up stretch to any muscle can be beneficial after trigger point release. I define a potentially beneficial stretch as one done with minimal props or assistance, preferably by using the opposing muscle alone to perform the stretch. An example would be to dorsiflex the foot, using phasic muscle Tibialis Anterior, as a way to stretch the Soleus - without overstretching it. This makes use of Sherrington's Law of Reciprocal Innervation, which states how a skeletal muscle is automatically released from conscious contraction when its opposing (antagonist) muscle is flexed. This is also common sense, although not so common among athletes, lol.
Here is a video highlighting important sections of the Soleus muscle to be aware of...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qXdp6nI838
Another short video showing a cyclist creatively working a point farther up from where you may need to work..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvZOp5ETcNY&feature=related
Some anatomical background video showing how important the Psoas muscle is to lower back pain..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY-4aGKUJeM&feature=related
In order of difficulty, a final link showing techniques for release of a shortened Iliopsoas muscle..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1RARwli_Zs&feature=related
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