While the term “throwing out your back” is used a lot, it’s not a medical diagnosis, says Neel Anand, MD, an orthopedic spine surgeon and co-medical director of spine trauma surgery at Cedars-Sinai Spine Center in Los Angeles.
“The underlying cause may be a muscle strain, irritated spinal joint, disc problem, or another condition,” he says.
A lot of pain associated with throwing out your back has an underlying cause, ranging from arthritis to misalignment, says Brandon Erickson, MD, director of orthopedics for Northwell in Tarrytown, New York. “The body can compensate for that for a long time,” he says.
Dr. Erickson says it’s possible to throw out your back from an acute injury, like stretching too far or herniating a disc. “But there’s often strain that’s slowly growing over time and, at some point, the issue becomes significant,” he says.
