Hi Carl, I tried the shots on 2 seperate occasions and they did not work. I have had 4 back operations and I can tell you the best thing would be see an orthopedic surgeon. They will most likely, because of insurance issues take an x-ray but that usally does not show anything, so then they will do an MRI and that will let them know what is going on in there. Good Luck ! I hope everything turns out ok. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ! John C. Springfield IL.

Hi Carl, Sorry to hear about your back. I tried 2 cortisone shots and they did not work for me. I would see a orthopedic surgeon. I have had 4 back operations and I can tell you the best thing is to get an MRI. Good Luck ! Happy Holidays !

Hi Carl, Sorry to hear about your back. I indeed can relate to what you are going through as I had same issues years ago and still do ocassionally. What really and truly worked for me was the chiro, many ortho's will tell you not to see a chiro, but that's an old war they have been fighting with chiros for years. Many Ortho's today still have hang-ups about a good chiropractor. A good chiro can adjust your back and get you out of this pain and tingling most of the time. I would try the chiro before you would ever consider any possible orthopedic surgery and I hope its no where near that far in your prognosis. That tingling sensation is when your disk is "bulging" and compressing the sciatic nerve. My lower back was killing me and I stayed away from golf for a while and got the lower back adjustments by the chiro. Cortisone is "okay", I tried this too, but you cannot take it that often and it can be a cover up for a the real issue you are having-which I think may be a bulging disk pressing against the sciatic nerve. It's hell on the golf game, believe me I know. An MRI will reveal the root problem if it doesn't clear up in the near future as it will show any possible bulging disc issue. A regular x-ray will not show any disc or related nerve issues. Avoid any suggestion of surgery at all costs at this point. I wish you well, hope this helps and Merry Christmas to you and your family. Lastly, I am not a chiro-just so you know. Rick

Happy Holidays All Team Titleist Members! Carl sorry to hear about your back. Tiggling down your leg can be a sign of Sciatica Id say get looked at by your doctor and possibly get an MRI.

I am an Orthopedic Spinal Surgeon. With tingling down to your foot it is most likely a herniated disc. You need an evaluation and a neuro exam. If it is a herniated disc, 80% are successfully treated without surgery. MRI is only necessary if you require surgery. Transforaminal epidural steroids can relieve a lot of the symptoms. A good spine physical therapist can be your best friend. Indications for surgery are 1.progressive weakness, 2. loss of bowel or bladder function (very rare), or 3. pain in the leg lasting greater than 6 weeks duration. Remember your leg is from the knee down. Thigh pain alone can be referred and doesn't necessarily mean a pinched nerve. Hope this helps. Where do you live? Maybe I can get you to the right person. SpineAustin.com can give you more info. Look under spinal problems.

I appreciate all of the responses and I have made an appointment with an Orthopedic group of doctors here in Little Rock. My appointment is in the first week of January and I am looking forward to find out how I can treat this lower back issue. Thankfully the tingling I felt for a few days has gone away but the chronic tightness and dull pain stays pretty persistant. I have been doing a lot of lower back exercises since mid September but I need to find out from my visit if I am doing the right ones or even if I am doing the wrong ones. Believe it or not my back feels worse when I am sitting in a chair. It feels best when I am standing or walking. I bought a TempurPedic mattress and it has helped a lot especially if I sleep without getting in a fetal position. Unfortunately I cannot have an MRI as I have a pacemaker. The receptionist I talked to making the appointment said they have lots of patients with artificial hips,knees and pacemakers who cannot have MRI's but they can work around that. Club Surgeon, if I do have a herniated disc, can the disc go back into it's normal position and since the tingling has stopped I guess the pressure on my siatic nerve has let up ? The group I am going to is Arkansas Specialty Orthopaedics. I never have had what I would call a sharp pain but just a constant tight feeling of the muscles across my back just above the belt line. In the past (since my early 20's up until this year) when I would "strain" my back I would have the tight feeling from any where from a couple of weeks up to maybe 6 weeks but this recent issue has just dogged me now for 4 months. It has really messed up my golf game as feel I can't play or pracice as much and when I do play I started wearing the back brace. The 80% that were successfully treated without surgery would you say they could play or practice 4 or 5 days a week without any problems? I really appreciate your input and wish you and all the other responders a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

I looked up the Docs at Arkansas Specialty Ortho. Dr Saer I am familiar with from the Scoliosis Research Society. You should be in good hands there. The problem with spinal problems is that they are often misdiagnosed. Everyone has an opinion on what to do as is evident from the posts here. No one, including you and I, knows your true diagnosis. The fact is most patients regardless of what is causing the problem, can be treated without surgery. At my center 93% don't get surgery. We are a referral center for complex problems so many referred in already have a surgical problem. They have been seen by Ortho or Neuro surgeons. Many times the exact cause is not known but if you recover who cares. Some health care providers are full of names and labels to give patients as the cause of their problem then give credit to your recovery to the treatment they prescribe. The truth is they are all guessing to some extent. The definition of an expert opinion is an educated guess! Everybody knows someone who didn't do well with the treatment prescribed including surgery. We don't know that you have what they had. Bottom line most back issues are self limited and non surgical. MRI is not always the answer and may not be the best exam if it is determined that you need a scan. I don't know your age, but from the fact that you have a pacemaker, I'd guess you are over 60? Herniated discs are most common in the 30-60 age group, avg.. 40 years old. If you get an MRI of someone age 60 that has NO BACK PROBLEMS, 2/3rds will have a diagnosis. The only way surgery works is if your clinical symptoms match your physical exam and then an imaging study confirms the problem. If you are not sure don't do it! Good luck with your back. Statistics are clearly on your side especially since the leg issues have resolved. There is every reason to believe you can go back to your beloved addiction of Golf. As we age we ,unfortunately, get stiffer and compensate in our swings. It's not uncommon for me to refer my patients to golf specific training after an injury. Also to a good golf teacher that understands back issues. You can get a custom built fitted driver with a $300.00+ shaft but you still need to swing it efficiently . Great thing about this game is that there are many ways to get the numbers on the scorecard. When I was 30 I played a doctor friends father and one of his buddies in a match. Learned one very important thing. Never bet against anyone who hits it 180 down the middle every time , can hit fairway woods consistently close, and who can putt balls trough sand traps . We got waxed by two geriatrics. Recovering from a back problem gives you the excuse to practice chipping and putting. Something we all need. Kurt VR

I called my brother who is a Radiologist and he said about the same thing you have said. He also suggested that I take a lot of Ibuprofen (He told me what the maximum dose is but suggested that I take a little less since I also take coumadin) for a short time to help in reducing the inflammation. With the wet cold weather we are having here in Little Rock I have not missed any golfing opportunities and you are so right on the putting and chipping practice. I am 64 and sadly know that as we age it just takes more time to recover from injury. My brother also suggested that I stay away from a cortisone shot as all ready mentioned about the tissue breakdown. Between the daily walking I do, stretching exercises, hot tub, massage chair, Ibuprofen and not lifting anything heavy for a while (sorry honey, but I can't take the Christmas tree down to the basement until my back gets better and the next time we rake leaves you will have to take the bags up to the street)and backing off my golf game my back feels a little better every day. I still plan on going to my appointment next week even if I feel normal to find out what I should do and more important not to do as far as stretching exercises.I really appreciate all of the responses as a back injury to a die hard golfer is the pits.

If you are on coumadin don't take and NSAID's ( ibuprofen or naproxyn) without consulting your Doctor

My cardiologist has OK'd me taking ibuprofen as needed but with food and not on an empty stomach. I also have my prothrombin time/INR checked on a regular basis to make sure I stay in my theraputic window. As a retired Medical Technologist I know how important it is to stay on top of my INR. I am looking forward to my appointment even though on a pain level of 1 to 10, I would say today I am about a 1 or 2. Actually I would not even say I have any pain. More of a feeling of pressure like someone pushing in on my back with a couple of fingers and my back feeling a little stiff. After walking and stretching the stiffness goes away for a little while but returns later when I am sedate watching TV in the evening. Today and tomorrow the high temperature is going to be in the 60's. After my 2 mile walk, I may try to do a little chipping and putting. Our course is still cart paths only as we had about 2 inches of rain fall last Monday so playing a round is easy to avoid. Ball flight is all air and no roll and some places in the fairways or very soft even if you walk.

Stretching really helps me. My doctor told me I had arthritis ? spelling :-)? in my lower spine. Never heard of this ... Questions for ClubSurgeon : does anyone else have this & how should it be treated ?

I woke up last Thursday with a normal feeling back. Played 9 holes Friday without any issues. I think the combination of ice/heat, walking, stretching, light exercise, ibuprofen, hot tub, massage and time has finally started working. Now if somebody could tell me a good way to keep from slouching in a chair when watching TV that would really be a good preventative.

I don't have any back problems now but I had a lot of "mechanical" back problems back in the 1980s and would get them 4 years ago after an hour at the driving range (in 2005, I went with my dad and over did it and had back pain for about 2 months and also around the time of the 2008 U.S. Open it got so bad I had to quit swinging a golf club for a month or two). The problem in the '80s was I did a lot of weight lifting but didn't do enough lower back exercises (such as hyperextensions). I can attribute my golf back pain to posture and swinging too hard. Part of that was using standard lie clubs and having a flat golf swing to compensate for ill fit. I also had a pull or hook with woods until I changed to a more upright stance (also was able to use a longer shaft on the fairway woods and driver; I went from a 44" driver to a 45 and from a 40.5 to 41" fairway wood to 41.5-42"). I also had to set my irons 1* upright, go to a more compact backswing and break a long standing bad habit of lifting the front foot and over-rotating the hips on the backswing (a Golftec video showed I was rotating about 60*). I found a nice flexibility exercise is to do trunk twisters while keeping the hips stationary on what would be the backswing.

Today my back is much better but I am still looking forward to my appointment next week. I have been going to the gym quite a bit since I hurt my back and here is what I did today which is a typical workout. I start off doing 30 knee bends with a Swedish ball between the wall and my back. Next I walk 1 mile and then do 15 leg lifts from a chair without a seat. You support your body with your arms on the arm rest with your legs hanging straight down and your back is supported by the back of the chair. Then you bring your legs up to your chest and then back down where they are hanging again. Then I walk another mile Time for back stretches. Laying on my back I place my hands under my right knee and pull it back where it is touching my chest. Then I do this with my left knee. I repeat this for about 10 reps. Then I lay on my right side and lift my left leg up. I repeat this about 8 times. Then I roll over and do this with my right leg. Next I lay on my back and bring both feet in and then raise my rear up making a bridge. With my rear up off the floor I will extend my right leg for about 6 seconds and then return it to the floor. Make another bridge and then extend my left leg for 6 seconds. I will do about 8 -10 reps. Then while still laying on back I will cross my right foot behind my left out stretched leg and with my head turned to my left I twist my lower body to the right until my right knee touches the floor and I try to keep my left shoulder blade from coming off the floor. I repeat this with the other side and do about 6- 8 reps. Then I get on my hands and knees and do cat raises where you raise your back like a Halloween cat and then relax it with your head down. I do this about 8 times. Then while I'm still on my hands and knees I do a bird dog stretch where I extend my right arm and left leg. Then repeat with my other arm and leg. The last thing I do is stomach crunches with a metal gizmo that takes the pressure off of your back and with your legs bent you just rock up and down and do the crunches. I do 35 and rest about 30 seconds and then do 35 more. Then I do the machines. I do 12 leg presses with 250 lbs When I finish the leg presses I move my feet down until just my toes are on the foot plate and I do 15 calf raises. Next I do 12 leg extensions with 110 lbs Next I do 12 leg curls for my ham strings -70 lbs Then I do 12 reps for your lats with a pull down bar 90 lbs Next I do 12 curls alternating my right and left arms 50 lbs Next I do a lateral raise with 70 lbs 12 reps Then I do 12 reps for the triceps alternating each arm with 45 lbs. I then finish the work out by standing up against the wall, extend my right foot where the heel is even with the left toe, then move mt left foot out where both feet are parallel and then rotate my upper body like a back swing where I can touch the wall behind me with both hands. I do this 15 times and then twist my upper body like a forward swing and touch the wall behind me with both times for 15 reps. The last thing I do is get in the hot tub and get my back up against a jet blowing water for 10 minutes. Water is about 105 degrees and 10 minutes is maximum time. After I did all of the above today my back felt "normal" for about an hour to a hour an a half and then I could start to feel the tightening sensation and a little dull ache that comes when sitting down or when you are lying on your side on the couch or in bed and get into a semi-fetal position. Standing, walking or lying on your side or back with legs fully extended no dull ache. I also have a massage chair that has a heat option and that makes my back feel great. For those that have been there and done that are any of the exercises I have described "bad" and what other exercises helped your lower back ? I have eliminated bench pressing as I do not want to do any exercise where I may have to "arch" my lower back, at least for now. One more thing. When you have had a back injury and then you recovered from it where your back felt normal, did you start playing golf immediately or did you wait say another week or two ? I think I may be just not giving my back enough time to heal and just re-injure it doing yard work, golf, etc. Thanks for putting up with such a long response.

In regards to benching, you shouldn't be arching your back when doing that. It should be all triceps and pecs. If you're arching your back when benching, you're using too much weight to begin with. You can also do flyes to build the pecs up. The reason the lower back gets sore is the muscles are under-developed in relation to the lats, pecs or anything else. I always do hyper-extension exercises to strengthen the lower back.

Hi Carl

I'm glad to hear your back is improving.  Exercise is the best way to strengthen the muscles around your spine and take the pressure  off.  A lot of your routine is very similar to mine.  A couple of points that I might suggest. 1) Be careful not to over do and set your self back.  2) When doing leg lifts to the chest with one leg extended the back should be supported with a rolled towel or something similar.  3) Ice after exercise is better than heat.  Ice will reduce inflammation, but heat can increase it.  I know the heat feels good when you do it, but after you stop as you said the stiffening returns.  Good luck with your back and consult your trainer on how to do these exercises to get the most out of them without hurting yourself.

Mike B. , PGA Professional

Practiced for 3 hours last Wednesday and played three holes. I definitely over did it. Hitting my driver on the range is very addictive. I hit a few mediocre shots and then hit a good one. Then I try to duplicate the good one three times in a row. Outcome does not matter because if I hit a bad shot the cycle repeats and if I hit three good ones in a row I want to see how many more good ones I can hit. I am a golf range addict for sure. I also love to practice the short game. After the practice did a full work out at the gym. I definitely used an ice pack and it was wonderful. Great advice. Should have not hit any ball Thursday but ended up hitting two bags because for the first time this year our club moved off the mats to real grass and the temp was around 70. More ice that night. Friday played my first full 18 holes and then iced my back watching Arkansas put it on Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl. My back is sore but I have no sharp pain. Looks like my back will be golf free for this coming week due to cold weather and rain headed our way.

Last night I felt like I was 100% ready to play today. Back was in great shape. My dog hurt her leg over the week end and had trouble going up and down the stairs. I picked her up to carry her (55 lb Lab) and strained my back, again for the umpteenth time. How soon do I forget. Looks like I will be out for a couple of more weeks.

Carl.  I had back problems years ago. 30+. I saw many doctors, maybe 8-10. Pain pills, rest, back support devices, massage therapy, and more.  None worked.  However, I did discover Dynamic Rehabilitation when I lived in Detroit. They have some unique equipment designed by the inventor of Nautilus equipment.

The exercise performed in the equipment takes less than 5 minutes.  After 8 weeks the pain was gone and I have never had another problem with my back.  While there, I met "Big" Cat Williams.  If you don't recognize his  name, he was instrumental in the start of the long drive contests. He had suffered for years and due to this modality he was able to compete.

Find a good physical trainer, one experienced in Kinesiology.  You need to strengthen the lower  back muscles. They support your lower spine, which in turns aligns your upper body. Don't do surgery, don't use pain killer, don't use heat, instead use crushed ice in a bag when pain persists.

Try lying on the floor, face down.  Push yourself up keeping your hips on the floor, starting with resting on your forearms. Do this slowly and over some time you'll be able to straighten your arms. This alone will stretch the lower back muscles and at the same time strengthen those muscles and get them to activate when you need to bend over, or make a full swing.

Surgery is only effective for a small majority of cases. Less than 1%. Don't even consider surgery. Cortisone is a temporary fix. I have had cortisone in for a thumb injury years ago. I still have the same pain in my thumb.  When pain persists I use ice. It reduces pain and calms the nerve endings.

Best advice I can give you.  Do the right exercise, the correct way, with someone who knows how to treat back pain.  Doctors aren't the best for back pain. They treat pain, they don't stop the pain. There answer is rest, pain medicine, and come back in 4 weeks.  Believe me. I have been there. On. I forgot, I have a inversion table. I lie on the table for a few minutes a day. Great gentle stretch. Get on a good exercise program.  Also, a good massage therapist can help with reliving pain and help with flexibility.

No. I am not a doctor. But, I have visited enough doctors to know that they don't have all of the answers.  The always start with x-rays, MRI's, and Cat scans. It only spells money. All of their ideas and advice will only frustrate you and drain your wallet. You'll even try another doctor. It won't be any different. Don't waste your time.

Exercise!

Happy Holidays Carl

carl STAY AWAY FROM THE NEEDLE!!!!!!!!! im no doctor but like the others i have seen enough doctors because of my lower back (construction worker last 15 years) see a chiropractor agood one will do everything he can to keep you away from the needle or knife. adjustments,, stretching, light exercise and hot and cold therapy will normally get you back on the links....p.s. backs are weird once you strain them it never ever really goes away........... madgolfer

Carl, been there done that mine started last Jan did the cortisone shots and therapy some have permanent relief i did not and at present I am home recovering from surgery called a Laminotomy. First thing u need is an MRI not an xray only then will the Dr know if shots and therapy will work or if u will need surgery. For me the Dr said live with it or have the surgery so i did the surgery and felt better as soon as i woke up...Good Luck