When the QL Bites Back: A Men’s Guide to Sudden Lower Back Pain (Quadratus Lumborum Spasm)
- Sergio Alexander Norton
- Jan 8
- 3 min read
Yesterday my body reminded me, quite brutally, that one bad sitting position is sometimes all it takes. I was fine. Then suddenly I wasn’t.
A deep, gripping fire pain kicked off on the right side of my lower back, wrapped around the hip, flirted with the belly, and sent a bit of electrical nonsense down the leg and into the feet. Not subtle. Not polite. Proper stop-you-in-your-tracks pain.
Turns out: classic Quadratus Lumborum (QL) spasm; a common but often misunderstood cause of lower back pain.
What the hell is the QL? *(If you’ve ever Googled “deep lower back pain”, “back pain wrapping around the hip”, or “lower back pain with leg tingling”, this muscle is often the culprit.) The QL is a deep muscle that runs from your pelvis to your lower ribs. It stabilises you when you sit, walk, breathe, lift, twist, basically when you’re being a functional adult.
When it locks up, the pain can feel confusing:
Deep back pain.
Hip or flank pain.
Sensations into the belly (even though nothing’s wrong there)
Shooting or pulling pain that can refer toward the groin (and no, groin pain doesn’t automatically mean a hernia)
Tingling down the leg or into the foot.
That combo often freaks people out. Even myself, fair enough.
Men often worry it’s something serious — a disc, a hernia, something internal exploding — especially when the pain starts behaving unpredictably.
Why it hits men hard?
Men are very good at sitting: no jocking -
Sitting badly.
Ignoring early warning signs.
Holding tension like it’s a personality trait.
Long sitting, awkward posture, stress, bracing the body without real movement, QL loves all of that.
What actually helped (at home)
*(Simple, effective ways to calm a QL spasm at home, no gadgets, no Rambo. No heroics. No aggressive stretching. Just calming things down.
Ice, not heat, in the acute phase.
Gentle walking instead of sitting still.
Supported positions (pillows between knees or under the waist)
Slow breathing, especially into the side ribs.
Letting the nervous system stand down.
Within 20–30 minutes the pain eased. The next day: tender, a bit odd, but clearly improving.
What not to do!
Don’t force stretches when it’s angry.
Don’t dig into it with tools or elbows.
Don’t panic and assume the worst.
Most QL spasms are protective, not dangerous.
When to get checked.
Always listen to your body. Get medical advice if you notice:
Worsening numbness or weakness.
Changes in bladder or bowel control.
Fever, nausea, or unexplained symptoms.
The takeaway
This kind of pain is just feedback.
Your body saying: mate, get up f.cking move - that position wasn’t it.
Looking after your back is essential to staying functional, grounded, and strong enough to keep doing life. And yes, sometimes the fix starts with how you sit.
Want support beyond self-care?
If lower back pain keeps coming back, it’s often not about stretching harder — it’s about helping the nervous system feel safe enough to let go. At Moorgate Massage, I work with professional men who carry stress, tension, and responsibility in their bodies, often without
realising it. Treatment is practical, grounded, and focused on getting you moving and breathing properly again. If this post hit close to home, you don’t need to push through it alone. You can book a session or simply get in touch and talk it through.
Stay Tuned.
S. A. Norton
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