Bad back pain

[bonesquirrel]

I practice about 2 - 4 hours of piano everyday. Lately I have been getting this really bad aching pain in my back after only sitting at the piano for about 1.5 hours, this never use to be the case. I sit up straight and keep a good posture (although my neck is starting to go forward a bit in my general posture). When I lean over like David Helfgott kind of leaning over, the pain completely goes away. It also obviously goes away when I go and lay down for 30 minutes or so.

I'm over 6 foot 2 inches btw, an I workout and stretch regularly. Thanks in advance.

[mikeowski]

Might be your QL. You can use the "wrong" muscles for back extension (QL instead of erector spinae) and this "good posture" can put a lot of strain on your QL, which in turn can lead to very painful muscle spasms.
Try putting slight pressure on your QL (the video shows how to find it) with your fingers, and if it hurts like hell, you know that you have an inhibited QL.

At about 0:50 the guy in this next video describes what your sitting posture probably looks like, if this is your problem:

As a solution, try sitting upright (= upper back extension) while keeping your lower back "silent" (=lower back neutral). Hope this helps.

If this is not your problem (QL doesn't hurt when you apply pressure on it), then ignore this post.

[cwjalex]

i used to have back pain and it went away when i strengthened my abs

"oh you have a weak back?  when did you hurt it?"

"about a week back"

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA ...

[faulty_damper]

I sit up straight and keep a good posture (although my neck is starting to go forward a bit in my general posture).

"Good posture" is relative to the activity.  What's considered "good" by some would not be considered good posture by others.  If you sit up straight, depending on the music you're playing, it could actually be poor posture.  "Sit up straight" may also not be sitting up straight.  All this is to say that what you say you are experiencing may not really be what you are doing.

[bonesquirrel]

i used to have back pain and it went away when i strengthened my abs

"oh you have a weak back?  when did you hurt it?"

"about a week back"

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA ...

I will do ab workouts, but I can't right now since I have an enlarged spleen.

[slane]

Do you stretch .. that makes sooo much difference to my back! I can send you a little video that guides you though stretches if you like.

[gyzzzmo]

'Good posture' is quite relative to the person.
When i was younger and consequently spent many hours each day at the piano, i got back problems too even though i had the 'perfect posture', at least thats what everybody told me.
After experimenting with seat height i noticed that when i sit 'too low', i have no issues with my back anymore. So i'd recommend you to do the same, just try out and see how it goes.

Gyzzzmo

[stevensk]

I recommend a  backrest
and breaks

[starlady]

Good backs are all alike, every bad back is bad in its own way, (as tolstoy should have said),
but all bad backs need regular rests from the piano bench. Don't wait until it hurts to get up from the bench; set an alarm to go every 15 minutes or even less, and when the alarm sounds stop playing and stand up, stretch, walk around or lie down.  Don't skip it!

And do not think that it is a waste of practise time to take a break while you are playing--quite the opposite: if you take off a couple of minutes here and there, but you are able to play for an hour longer, the math is all in favour of taking the break.

[j_menz]

(as tolstoy should have said),

Leo or Sofia?

[starlady]

Leo or Sofia?

The credit must go to Leo for the  'Anna Karenina principle' of happy and unhappy families.  In many other respects the man was looney-tunes.   --s.

[rmbarbosa]

ther`s in youtube the site of Illinca Vartic, a piano teacher who has many posts. One of them is a complete video demonstration about some exercises that prevents pain in piano playing. They are physical exercises, not piano exercises. But Illinca says they are very useful, even to achieve relaxion.
Also there is in the market one drug - condroytin - that is very usefull to erradicate backpain. You may wish to try it.
Best wishes (and forgive my uggly English ))
rui