Will Losing Weight Help Your Back Pain (and Sciatica)?

Earlier this week, I was speaking to a gentleman on the phone who called me with questions about his neuropathy and his ability to improve his balance.
As we were talking, he mentioned that he enjoyed gardening, but he could only be on his feet for about 10 minutes because of pain in his lower back.
When I asked him what he was planning to do about his back pain, this is what he told me: "My doctor says that if I lose 35# it should take care of 90% of my back pain."
This statement brings up a few interesting questions:
Does losing weight really help with back pain? Can it eliminate 90% of the pain?
Is your weight the ROOT CAUSE of your back pain?
The simple answer to these questions is: No, absolutely not. There's no chance that losing 35# is going to help this gentleman eliminate 90% of his back pain.
The full answer is a bit more detailed in terms of weight loss, its effect on pain reduction, finding the ROOT CAUSE of the pain, etc. And I'll explain everything in today's video.
But there's one more interesting topic I bring up at the end of the video, which is this: the methods used to lose weight can have a significant impact on pain relief.
Check out the video to find out what I mean!
Luke Gordon is a physical therapist and co-owner of Gordon Physical Therapy in Spokane Valley, WA.
www.GordonPhys...

[@wandamapp9032]

Loosing 150lbs didn't relieve my back and neck pain. I'm frustrated with Drs always trying to say your weight is the reason for your pain.

[@kuljeetsingh.4568]

You lost 150 pounds? Seriously?

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Congrats on losing 150#! I'm sorry that it didn't reduce your back pain... did you find any treatment that did help with your back?

[@kiwy1994]

Take care on what mattress do you sleep on and how do you sleep I swear i had back pain and back muscles tightness for years untill i changed my mattress to a medical long onewith a new bed king size that fits my height as i'm 195 cm tall it totally changed my life I had a disc bulge and did physical therapy for a year but the pain persisted and thought it was a bad physical therapy but i lately found out that it was due to how i sleep God bless

[@hermanmunster22]

Yep!! rather than address pain they blame weight.

[@Gamer-dude247]

It is bs, i recall being in peak performance at around 16 years old, regular exersize, never overweight(in fact, probably underweight), never pushing myself too far and STILL suffering from sciatica and even right up to this day as i always remain active EVERY single day yet here i am.....yeah, the weight thing that these 'doctors' always mention is complete and utter BS.

[@abelzoni2138]

If I had a knife sticking out of my chest, the Doctor would tell me to lose weight.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

You have a point there!

[@chloet21]

I’m only 18, 250 plbs & have such sore lower back pain that I sometimes can’t even walk. I’m trying to lose weight bc I do believe this is connected to it. I’m young, I haven’t been doing anything that could have injured it and did not experience this prior to my weight gain. Ik losing weight will be hard but at this point I’ll try anything

[@madpharmtech]

How are things going? I think my back pain is related to weight because I carry all my weight in my mid section. Curious if it has helped?

[@zekec1511]

I'm 18 and weigh 260 lbs so I'm basically in the same boat as u. I understand and know the pain all too well, I can't stand for any longer than 5-10 minutes at a time and I'm in so much discomfort when I sit. I have to sleep all twisted to avoid the pain. I've done physical therapy and haven't really gotten any better. So at this point im guessing it's all because of my weight. So now I'm here lol. Have u lost any weight since last year? Are you feeling any better?

[@amberaddison9840]

@@zekec1511 im in the same boat as yall, and ig it feels better to know im not alone with this but im 44, about 250 or 260, dk bc im scared to look. But i cant walk but for 6 to 10mins. Sometimes not even that long. I got all my weight in my stomach. Its embarrassing. And the steroid shot i was given for my back caused me to gain more weight. Its so hard to lose weight bc i can barely walk or stand, its awful. I wish yall well and hope you find relief. I understand your pain.

[@bigthinkers888]

Liposuction?

[@brockreynolds870]

It depends on how your weight is distributed. If it's mostly belly fat, you can certainly get a great deal of relief from weight loss. Think about carrying around a 40 pound bag of dirt in front of you all day, of COURSE you're going to have back pain. Belly fat is in the perfect spot to pull onb your back muscles, just like women with very large breasts many times get breast reduction to reduce shoulder and upper back pain. To find out if the weight is the underlying cause.... if he lays down in a more or less zero gravity position and the pain subsides... then that answers the question, doesn't it?

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Those are very good points, Brock. Thank you for sharing!

[@LJK2159]

Absolutely agree I don’t think this Doctor took all the conditions into play making the NO statement Weight loss may not be the cause But it could definitely be a contributing factor

[@ackamack101]

Thanks for the video! I was looking for information on this topic because there have been two periods in my adult life where I was probably 20 lbs overweight, and during both periods, I found myself experiencing lower back pain. I felt I had to be extra careful with how I used my body, especially when bending over, as I would often experience lower back pain as a result. These issues did seem to go away after I lost the weight and got into better shape. It makes sense to me that there would be a connection to being overweight and lower back pain, but I also think that body use (good or bad) plays a big part in it as well.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

I agree. Losing weight and getting healthier will typically make your entire body feel better. But the weight loss itself isn't usually the reason your back will feel better. Thanks for watching!

[@ramcharge2704]

Loosing weight will help mange pain and discomfort but not cure it.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Agreed. Unless losing weight includes a really healthy diet that reduces inflammation throughout your body, in which case you might actually experience lasting pain relief.

[@heatherwade2373]

Well when you lose the weight you lose the inflammation.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Exactly! It's lowering the inflammation that really helps, not necessarily the weight loss.

[@separator94]

I'm going through this right now. My back pain got really bad 2 years ago. I could throw my back out just by getting out of bed, sneezing, or moving the wrong way. I also developed really bad sciatica on my left side. Standing for less than 10 minutes I'd start feeling my foot and leg go numb combined with shooting pain down my thigh and in my lower back. It would get to the point where I felt like I might fall so I'd need to sit down. At the time, my weight was fluctuating between the upper 280's and lower 290's. I never hit 300 but got within a couple pounds. I tried losing weight numerous times but it wasn't until I weaned myself off sugar that I actually started losing a couple pounds every week. It took me about a month to wean myself off since sugar is exactly like a drug and the mental and physical withdrawals can be pretty bad if you go cold turkey. It's much easier to wean by eating as little sugar, and carbs, as you can handle each day and sticking to that. Eventually you'll be able to do better and better until you're eating almost none. Just healthy foods like meat (both red and white), green vegetables, fish, eggs, unsweetened tea, black coffee, lots of spring water, etc. Even butter and mayo are OK in moderation as they have zero carbs. I also began walking, doing leg lifts, pelvic thrusts (while laying on back) and lots of stretching which has all been helping a ton. I can't stress enough how big of a difference these made in just a few weeks time. You NEED to build up your strength. All the muscles that support you and your back. Also the ones you use for balance. Last December ('01) I weighed about 290. Currently (in June '02) I weigh 255, and I'm still losing 2-3lbs/wk. However, I only got used to no sugar about 9 weeks ago so most of that weight was lost during that time.(Probably 25lbs of it in just over 2 months.) When I started walking, my back pain and sciatica would flare up after 10-15 minutes and I couldn't walk very fast at all. I was only able to do a half mile. Currently I'm able to go multiple miles (usually 2 but sometimes 3) before it flares up. Even then, it doesn't flare up as severely as it did when I started. The furthest I've been able to go at once is 4-1/2 miles but I needed to take a couple short breaks. That's a massive increase from 1/2 mile. My plan is to get down to 195lbs and to continue strengthening my back, legs, hips, glutes and core. I'm really hoping that I can get rid of the sciatica this way. Also, I currently only take in between 0-10 (natural) grams of sugar each day and a total of around 10-25 grams of carbs each day. I eat nothing processed and also take healthy supplements like fish oil, spirulina, mushroom complex, turmeric curcumin and a daily multivitamin (not all at the same time). Hopefully this advice finds some people. It's really working and I'll report back when I reach my goal weight (or am getting close to it) and let you know how my sciatica and back pain are.

[@samaltayr453]

Hi, I'm currently in the same situation as you were. I have a slipped disc and thus sciatica down my left. I'm around 200lbs (5'9") and I want to get down to around 160lbs. I tried losing weight and went down from 209lbs to 176lbs a year ago but then relapsed after my pain got worse. I get I was exercising a bit too vigorously. I have a sweet tooth too which is annoying. It's hard to get off sugar for me. However, I did when I lost that weight. This sciatica pain just kills me and it can be depressing at times. I'm currently on painkillers everyday which is another annoying thing. I hope I can achieve my weight loss goal.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

This is great advice! Thank you for sharing! I hope people read it :-)

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Good luck, Sam! "Moved by Truth" has some excellent insights. I also have some more information about a weight loss program I use on this website, just in case you want to check it out: spokanevalleywellness.com/

[@whyte666]

I’m in a very similar situation. I lost a good amount of weight already and am now in the 270s. I’ve had an MRI and X-rays done. Was told the pain shouldn’t be that severe as they doc could only see slight compression of a disc. I was given naproxen and now I have the occasional sciatic pain down my left leg. Coincidentally I been looking into doing a sugar detox and reading benefits including lowering inflammation. I’m going to give it a try and hope it helps. Have you looked into yoga? Not sure if it’s “gimmicky” but was interested in trying out DDP type yoga. 🤷🏻

[@limpbizcut44076]

I agree and disagree with this. I think having a more active lifestyle will help with mobility and stretch out his back and in return it will help with weight lose.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

That's true. Being more active in general tends to help back pain and can certainly help people lose weight. Good point.

[@ConstantinPhillipou]

I can tell you from my limited personal experience when I hold my phone too long in my hand it causes my bones to hurt due to the weight. And that is form a phone less than a pound (less than half kilo) - I can't imagine people carrying an extra 2 suitcases of body weight on a daily basis just by standing and walking due to their extra size. Must be destroying their bone discs every step.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Yes, the extra weight definitely makes things worse over time.

[@jergernice1]

this is dissapointing. back pain l6. nothing on any scan. done unlimited pt and chiro. no help. stand for 10 minutes pain and basically locked up.....only thing ive done is gained 30 lbs in about 6 months i was laid up with rib injury.....was hoping at least i could lose the weight that might help....

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Losing weight might help to some extent, and it certainly won't hurt. Especially if you're losing weight by making positive changes to your diet and getting more comfortable exercise. Improving your diet always helps!

[@jergernice1]

@@GordonPhysicalTherapy Thanks. turns out i never figured it out. but tight Ql muscles seem to be an issue. the less i do the more i hurt. i have to stretch and decompress daily to avoid the pain. if go 2 days without im a mess. i havent found the magic exercise though.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

@@jergernice1 have you tried yoga before? It might be right up your alley if your muscles are constantly tightening, especially if you think stress is involved.

[@Lovleyrose69]

I lost 20 pounds I felt better but for some reason it seems like my body like the pressure was coming off my body as the weight was coming off but it seems like I was in more pain and sore more prone to ankle sprains and sometime felt really fatigue after even if I worked out for and hour in went down to 211.

[@KVAMOTOVLOG]

I have a lower back pain. Also I felt the tingling in my left leg. It's hard having like this situation, how can I treat it??

[@Aerion-p3v]

you cant its permaneat

[@KVAMOTOVLOG]

@@Aerion-p3v we'll that's so sad to know.. do you have like this??

[@gioestrada4652]

@@KVAMOTOVLOG it's not permanent listen to professionals not the internet I overcame a bad disc injury and so can you.

[@KVAMOTOVLOG]

@@gioestrada4652 what treatment did you undergone?

[@gioestrada4652]

@@KVAMOTOVLOG my back was extremely messed up. Muscle damage, joint issues, and disc issues. Time, fat loss and rehab healed muscle issues, having good posture and avoiding movements that caused pain. A chiropractor named Joseph Cipriano helped my joint issues resolve. My disc bulge healed a bit with time but not fully. A microdisectomy will take care of the small bulge that is still there. Most of my rehab workouts came from my physical therapist and Stefi Cohen who is also a doctor and very smart when it comes to lower back pain.

[@heatherwade2373]

I disagree.

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

That's allowed...

[@laurajyn1990]

It's the weight it happened to me when I lost weight it all stopped

[@realtalkchannel1275]

Dudeee. Less talking and get to the point. Then when you finally say anything you contradict yourself. This is bs

[@GordonPhysicalTherapy]

Thanks for the advice!