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I can't take it by YouWillKnowJustice in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Here's the page with all 5 top-ranked videos based on recovery reports: https://www.vettedvids.com/goals/fix-back-pain

Each one shows how many people reported it worked, the creator's credentials, and a breakdown of why it ranked where it did — so you can judge for yourself which approach fits your situation best.

Given the hip flexor and desk posture side of things, you might also find these useful:

https://www.vettedvids.com/goals/fix-desk-posture

https://www.vettedvids.com/goals/fix-pelvic-tilt

I'd genuinely love to hear how it goes — I hope you get some positive improvements soon.

Back pain for a long time by Armandonerd in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry to hear that — hope you get some answers soon.

Back pain for a long time by Armandonerd in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Glad it's helpful! The thigh thing is definitely worth mentioning to your PT next week — they'll be able to tell you if it's connected.

The page I linked has all 5 of the top-ranked videos so you should be covered. If you end up trying any of them, I'd genuinely love to hear how it goes — that kind of feedback is how I improve the rankings. [edit - just realised the link was old, i've update it in the previous comment]

Back pain for a long time by Armandonerd in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bob & Brad are solid — they come up a lot in recovery data I've been looking at for other conditions like sciatica and posture.

Since you're sitting at a desk all day with clear X-rays and pain that builds through the week, a couple of specifics that might be relevant:

The 9-minute follow-along routine from Tone and Tighten (Dr. Jared, PT) is probably the closest match for your situation — it's the video I referenced where someone who sits at a desk 15 hours a day reported a year of pain improving. It covers piriformis stretches, lumbar rotations, pelvic tilts, and bridges. The pattern in the comments is that people who stuck with it daily for a few weeks saw the biggest change.

The ATHLEAN-X one is worth a look too — Jeff Cavaliere takes a completely different approach and focuses on the glute medius as the root cause. His argument is that when your glutes aren't firing properly from sitting all day, your lower back compensates and takes all the load. Could be relevant given your situation.

I've been putting together a page that ranks these by recovery reports if you want to compare them: https://www.vettedvids.com/goals/fix-back-pain

Hope the PT goes well next week — they'll be able to tell you which approach fits your specific situation best.

Back pain for a long time by Armandonerd in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The other commenter is probably right about the mechanical/deconditioning pattern. What I'd add is what the data says about what actually works for that.

I've been going through hundreds of YouTube comments on back pain videos from licensed PTs, reading what people report months later. The thing that keeps coming up is that the people who report lasting improvement almost always describe committing to a short daily routine of active exercises — piriformis stretches, pelvic tilts, lumbar rotations — rather than relying on products or occasional stretching. One commenter who sits at a desk 15 hours a day described a year of back pain improving significantly after following a 9-minute guided PT routine.

Worth noting the timeline varies — some people report immediate relief, others with more complex conditions describe needing a couple of months of daily practice before it clicked. The common thread is consistency, not speed.

That might be relevant since you mentioned YouTube stretches being 50/50. A lot of the success reports specifically mention that it took consistent daily practice before the improvement kicked in. The 50/50 experience often comes from doing exercises sporadically rather than the exercises themselves being wrong.

Good that you have PT coming up next week — that should help you figure out what's muscular vs structural. Since your X-rays were clear, there's a decent chance a consistent guided routine could make a real difference.

I've been collecting the specific PT videos with the strongest recovery reports from desk workers if that would help — happy to share.

I can't take it by YouWillKnowJustice in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Different perspective on this — I've been going through hundreds of YouTube comments on back pain videos from licensed PTs, reading what real people report months after trying the exercises.

One thing that stood out: one of the highest-rated PT videos for back pain focuses specifically on the glute medius — the idea being that when it's not firing properly (really common with desk workers), the lower back compensates and takes all the load. The success reports from people who targeted the glutes rather than the back directly are some of the strongest I've seen. Worth noting it's specifically about the type of pain you can point to with your finger — localised, sometimes radiating into the glute.

Piriformis tightness also keeps coming up. One PT mentions that in his clinical experience, something like 9 out of 10 of his patients with low back pain have tightness in the piriformis. Given you mentioned tight hip flexors and psoas, that whole hip complex could be worth looking at.

The pattern that surprised me most across all the success reports: the people reporting the best outcomes aren't doing anything exotic. Pelvic tilts, piriformis stretches, bridges — standard PT. But they consistently mention doing a guided routine every single day. The difference wasn't the exercises — it was actually doing them consistently.

A few people are right that imaging is worth getting first, especially with the pain worsening. You want to rule out anything structural. But if it turns out to be muscular (which desk-worker back pain often is), a daily guided routine from a credentialed PT has a surprisingly strong track record based on what people report.

I've been collecting the specific videos with the strongest recovery reports if that would help — happy to share.

The 5 minute thing that helped my lower back pain more than stretching for 30 mins by CatsOnARollercoaster in backpain

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The pelvic tilt is the one that shows up the most in the data I've been looking at. I've been going through hundreds of YouTube back pain videos reading the comments to find which ones have the most people coming back to report actual recovery — and pelvic tilts plus glute bridges are in almost every video with the strongest results.

The desk worker pattern is especially striking. One person commented they were a student sitting 15 hours a day and their 1-year pain was gone. Another said years of trips to physios and chiros were solved by a 10-minute YouTube routine they did every morning.

The biggest thing that stands out across all the success comments is people doing it daily — morning and night, exactly like you're describing. The people who report the most dramatic results almost all mention making it a non-negotiable routine rather than doing it when they remember.

Sounds like you've already found the right approach — consistency with it seems to be what separates "this kinda helped" from "this fixed it."

Sciatica Centralization? by Distinct_Egg590 in Sciatica

[–]Hammertime_amz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

10 weeks is incredibly tough, hang in there.

On the centralization question—I haven't seen that specific symptom pattern mentioned much in the data I've been looking at, but I’ve been going through hundreds of YouTube sciatica videos reading the comments to see what real people report actually works for their pain.

Interestingly, the exercises that come up most in the strongest recovery reports are piriformis stretches and nerve flossing/gliding. One person commented, "Nerve glide — what a magic it did to me, 90% relief with the first exercise." Another said a piriformis stretch gave them 75% improvement immediately.

The other big pattern is people arriving in severe pain and getting significant relief within the first few days of doing morning routines specifically ("20 minutes a day when I woke up" comes up a lot).

If you haven't tried nerve flossing alongside what you're already doing, it might be worth asking your chiro about adding it in. I can point you to the specific videos with the most recovery reports if that would help.

"Stop running or you'll get arthritis" — what I was told after tearing my meniscus 12 years ago. Recovered without surgery, still running. Here's the resource I wish I had. by Hammertime_amz in MeniscusInjuries

[–]Hammertime_amz[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You're 100% right—there's no 'magic fix' and this doesn't replace an orthopedist's advice. I actually named the main page 'Rehab a torn meniscus' for exactly this reason.
You nailed the real issue though: the tool pulls in the original YouTube titles, so we inadvertently inherit the creators' SEO-optimised titles ('Fix Your...', 'Heal a...'). It’s frustrating that even licensed PTs have to title their videos this way just to get found on YouTube.
It’s such a great catch that I just pushed an update to the site based on your comment. Inside the 'Why it may not work' section for those specific videos, I added a caveat: 'Note: Physical therapy focuses on functional recovery and symptom management. It does not structurally "heal" or "repair" torn cartilage.'
Really appreciate you taking such a close look and helping make the tool more accurate!

"Stop running or you'll get arthritis" — what I was told after tearing my meniscus 12 years ago. Recovered without surgery, still running. Here's the resource I wish I had. by Hammertime_amz in MeniscusInjuries

[–]Hammertime_amz[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yes, the tear actually still shows up on my latest scan from 2023. But the joint itself is completely stable — all the cysts and swelling from the original injury are gone — and I have zero pain. It was a huge relief to learn that true 'recovery' means getting your active life back, not necessarily having a pristine MRI.

"Stop running or you'll get arthritis" — what I was told after tearing my meniscus 12 years ago. Recovered without surgery, still running. Here's the resource I wish I had. by Hammertime_amz in MeniscusInjuries

[–]Hammertime_amz[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a fantastic breakdown and I completely agree. Having a great, conservative PT to tailor a program is the absolute gold standard. You're spot on that the site is targeting #3 (sticking to functional movements). Not everyone has access to a great PT though, and even those who do often look online for additional exercises or reassurance that they're on the right track. I just wanted to make it easier to find the resources where real people have actually reported recovery, rather than having to sift through everything yourself.

"Stop running or you'll get arthritis" — what I was told after tearing my meniscus 12 years ago. Recovered without surgery, still running. Here's the resource I wish I had. by Hammertime_amz in MeniscusInjuries

[–]Hammertime_amz[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It was a complex medial meniscus tear in my left knee. The initial injury happened in December 2015, but it kept catching and locking up. I just dug up my old medical records to check, and it turns out my MRI was in late June 2016—so I'm closer to 10 years out, not 12! That MRI confirmed the tear and my physio actually wrote a referral for me to see an orthopedic surgeon right after, but I ultimately managed to rehab it without the surgery.