Why Your Lower Back Hurts During Squats A Simple Fix

The Real Reason Your Lower Back Hurts During Squats

Your lower back hurts during squats because you are likely over-arching your spine. This is called lumbar hyperextension. It is often caused by the common cue to keep your chest up. The fix is to learn how to brace your core properly by keeping your ribs stacked over your pelvis.

Many people search online for 'why does my lower back hurt during squats reddit' and find complex answers about mobility, core weakness, or butt wink. While those can be factors, the most common and easily fixed issue we see is a poor bracing strategy. Lifters try so hard to keep their chest up and avoid rounding their back that they create an excessive arch instead. This puts direct pressure on the lumbar vertebrae. This constant hyperextension creates dangerous shear forces, where vertebrae slide over one another, irritating nerves and connective tissues.

This method works for most people with form-related back discomfort. It does not apply to those with diagnosed injuries like disc herniations. If you have sharp or radiating pain, see a medical professional. For everyone else struggling with that familiar ache at the bottom of a squat, this simple adjustment can make a huge difference. Here's why this works.

Why The "Chest Up" Cue Is Causing Your Pain

The intention behind the "chest up" cue is good. It is meant to prevent your upper back from rounding forward. But the execution is often poor. When most people hear "chest up" they lift their sternum by arching their lower back. This disconnects the rib cage from the pelvis and leaves the lumbar spine unsupported and vulnerable.

A stable spine is a neutral spine. Imagine your torso as a solid, uncrushable cylinder. When you brace correctly, you create 360-degree intra-abdominal pressure inside that cylinder to protect it from collapsing under load. When you hyperextend your lower back, you break the cylinder in the middle. All the force from the barbell gets focused on that one weak point. Even a 5-10 degree arch can significantly increase shear force on your spinal discs, leading to irritation and pain over time.

The goal is not to have a perfectly vertical torso. The goal is to maintain the same torso angle throughout the entire lift. Your back angle will depend on your body proportions (femur and torso length). Someone with long legs and a short torso will lean forward more than someone with short legs and a long torso. Both are correct as long as the spine remains neutral and braced. Focusing on "ribs down" instead of "chest up" is the key to achieving this stability. Here's exactly how to do it.

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The 3-Step Method to Squat Without Pain

This method requires you to lower the weight significantly. You must rebuild the movement pattern from the ground up. Your ego might take a hit, but your back will thank you. Focus on perfect execution of every single rep.

Step 1. Master the Ribs Down Brace

Before you even touch a barbell, you need to learn how to brace. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place one hand on your stomach and the other on your lower ribs. Take a deep breath in, then exhale fully. As you exhale, feel your ribs pull down toward your pelvis. Your lower back should flatten slightly against the floor. Now, hold this rib position. Take a 360-degree breath into your stomach, sides, and lower back without letting your ribs flare up. You should feel pressure build. Hold this brace for 10-15 seconds. This is the feeling you need to replicate during your squat. A common mistake here is to simply suck your stomach in towards your spine. This is called 'hollowing' and it's not bracing. Bracing is an outward push in all directions-front, sides, and back-against a tight abdominal wall.

Step 2. Practice with a Goblet Squat

Next, you will groove the pattern with a counterbalance. Grab a light dumbbell or kettlebell, around 10-20 lbs (5-10 kg). Hold it vertically against your chest with both hands. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Before you descend, perform the ribs down brace you just practiced. Initiate the squat by breaking at your hips and knees at the same time. The weight in front of you will make it easier to stay balanced without arching your back. Go as low as you can while maintaining a neutral spine. Perform 3 sets of 8-10 reps, focusing on the brace throughout.

Step 3. Re-learn the Barbell Squat with Tempo

Now it is time to return to the barbell. Use an empty bar or no more than 50% of your previous working weight. The key here is tempo. You will use a 3-1-1-0 tempo for every rep. This means you take 3 full seconds to lower yourself, pause for 1 second at the bottom, take 1 second to stand up, and have 0 pause at the top before starting the next rep. This slow, controlled movement forces you to stay tight and removes the temptation to bounce out of the bottom, where form often breaks down. This slow eccentric (lowering) phase is where you build motor control and muscle. Resisting gravity for 3 full seconds forces your quads and glutes to do the work, preventing you from dive-bombing and losing tension at the bottom. Focus intensely on keeping your ribs down and your core braced from start to finish.

Manually tracking your tempo and weight for each set can be tedious. It's easy to forget your numbers. Using an app like Mofilo to log your lifts automatically calculates your total volume and tracks your progress, so you can focus purely on form.

The Self-Diagnosis Checklist: Pinpoint Your Exact Squat Fault

The best way to fix your form is to see it. Set up your phone to record a set of squats from a 45-degree side angle. Review the footage and compare it against these common faults. This objective feedback is more valuable than any feeling you have during the set.

Fault #1: The Over-Arch (Excessive Anterior Pelvic Tilt)

What It Looks Like: From the side, you'll see a significant, C-shaped curve in your lower back throughout the entire lift. Your butt sticks out far behind you, and your chest is puffed out excessively, pointing towards the ceiling. This arch often gets worse as you descend into the squat. It looks less like an athletic movement and more like you are trying to show off your glutes.

Why It Happens: This is the direct result of misinterpreting the 'chest up' cue. In an effort to keep the torso upright, you're hinging at the lumbar spine instead of bracing your entire core as a single unit. It's a stability problem disguised as a posture problem. Your body hasn't learned how to create stiffness without creating an arch.

The Fix: The 'ribs down' brace from Step 1 is the direct antidote. When you pull your ribs down, you pull your pelvis back into a neutral position, stacking it under your ribcage. This creates the stable cylinder we talked about and removes the pressure point from your lower back. Practice this brace relentlessly until it becomes your automatic default before every single rep.

Fault #2: The 'Good Morning' Squat (Hips Rise First)

What It Looks Like: As you start to drive up from the bottom of the squat, your hips shoot up much faster than your shoulders and the barbell. Your chest pitches forward, and for a moment, your back becomes almost parallel to the floor. You then have to finish the lift by extending your back, like a Good Morning exercise. This puts tremendous shear force on the lumbar spine.

Why It Happens: This is often a sign of weak quadriceps relative to your posterior chain (glutes and hamstrings). Your body defaults to the stronger muscle group to move the weight. It can also be caused by a weak brace at the point of reversal (the 'hole'), or simply trying to lift more than 90% of your 1-rep max, where form is likely to break down.

The Fix: The tempo squats from Step 3 are perfect for fixing this. The slow 3-second descent builds strength and control in your quads through the full range of motion. The 1-second pause at the bottom eliminates the bounce reflex and forces you to initiate the upward drive with your legs and core together, not just your hips. This retrains the correct, synchronized motor pattern.

What to Expect When You Fix Your Form

Be prepared to feel humbled. You will be using much less weight than you are used to for at least 2-4 weeks. Be prepared to deload by 40-50% of your previous working weight. This is a necessary part of rebuilding your squat pattern correctly. Do not rush the process. The goal is not to lift heavy right away but to perform every rep without pain.

Good progress in the first month is defined by feeling zero lower back discomfort during or after your sets. You should feel your glutes, quads, and core working much harder than before. Your control over the weight should improve dramatically. After 4-6 weeks of consistent, pain-free practice with the tempo squats, you can begin to slowly increase the weight. A good starting point is adding 5 lbs or 2.5 kg to the bar each week, as long as your form remains perfect.

This approach fixes the most common cause of squat-related back pain. However, it cannot fix underlying mobility restrictions. If you find you still cannot reach depth without your form breaking down, you may need to address hip or ankle mobility separately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is butt wink causing my lower back pain?

Butt wink, or posterior pelvic tilt at the bottom of a squat, can contribute to back pain but is often a symptom of other issues. It can be caused by poor bracing, mobility limitations, or an incorrect stance. Fixing your brace with the "ribs down" cue often reduces butt wink significantly because a stable core prevents the pelvis from moving as freely.

Should I wear a lifting belt for squats?

A lifting belt is a tool to help you brace more effectively, not a solution for bad form. It works by giving your core something to push against, increasing intra-abdominal pressure. Learn to brace properly without a belt first. Once your form is solid and you are lifting over 85% of your max, a belt can help you lift heavier and safer.

What if I have tight hips or ankles?

Poor mobility in the hips or ankles can force your lower back to compensate, leading to pain. If you cannot squat to depth with a neutral spine even after fixing your brace, you may need to add mobility work. Simple drills like ankle rocks and hip flexor stretches can make a big difference over time.

What is the best squat stance for lower back pain?

There is no single 'best' stance; it's highly individual and depends on your hip anatomy. A good starting point is shoulder-width with your toes pointed out slightly (15-30 degrees). However, if you have back pain, the priority is your brace, not your stance. A perfect stance with a bad brace will still cause pain. A decent stance with a perfect brace is much safer. Experiment with slightly wider or narrower stances once you've mastered the ribs-down technique and see what allows you to hit depth comfortably without compromising your neutral spine.

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