Why does my back hurt? Is it tight hamstrings, hip mis-alignment, psoas constrictions (pronounced soaz) or ??

Often clients want low back massage to solve low back pain. A more effective approach is massaging the muscles at the point of inception of the pain. Back pain is often caused by the combination of more than one muscular constriction or or structural (bone) mis-alignment.  Low back pain may be due to stress on hamstrings, inner thigh, calf and other muscles in the leg from running, hiking, swimming, cycling or even from sitting in a car or at a computer!

To relieve pain in the lower back, massage therapists will often focus on muscular constriction in areas that may not have an obvious connection to the back. A knowledgeable therapist will assess each clients needs individually and provide a customized solution.

Specifically, constriction and adhesions in the hamstrings, adductor brevis, adductor longus, adductor magnus (inner thigh),  piriformis (feels like center of glut),  tensor fasciae latae (attachment to the iliac attached to the  IT band) as well as IlioTibial tract (IT Band)  are most often the cause of low back pain. The IT track/band, as it is commonly known, attaches to both the hip (Iliac, thus the I in IT band) and a bone in the calf called the tibia(the T in IT band)

The most effective massage will focus on the psoas, piriformis, adductor, outer fasciae latae at the point of insertion to the IT band and the point of attachment to the tibia.  

The aforementioned muscles in the thigh and calf both by, direct attachment and/or providing substantive structural support of muscles, tendons and ligaments in the pelvis are key to providing relief of back pain.

Massage at the point of adductor attachment to the inside of the hip girdle is often described by clients as a sharp burning pain localized just along side and slightly below the "tail one" coccyx (pronounced cock-sis). Release in this area is extremely effective is reducing or eliminating low back pain.