Beyond Weak McHenry Back Muscles: How Exercise Reverses Unseen Spine Muscle Damage
If you're dealing with chronic back pain from spinal disc problems, the source of your pain may not be what you think—it's rarely just the discs. Your back muscles, particularly the erector spinae running along your spine, can weaken over time as fat gradually replaces healthy muscle tissue. This process diminishes your spine's natural support system and adds to ongoing McHenry back pain.
THE HIDDEN PROBLEM: FATTY MUSCLE INFILTRATION
When you have intervertebral disc disease, your paraspinal muscles undergo changes that go beyond basic weakness—they really change at a cellular level. Research demonstrates that "fatty infiltration of the erector spinae at the upper lumbar spine could be a breakthrough for low back pain" (1). This creates a vicious cycle: disc problems lead to muscle changes, which reduce spinal support, potentially worsening disc health over time.
The connection between degenerating discs and fat-infiltrated muscles works both ways, with each condition potentially triggering or worsening the other. As pointed out by Jiang et al. (2), there happens to be a critical interaction between lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and fat infiltration of paraspinal muscles, where these conditions affect each other in ways that can prolong back pain and dysfunction.
EXERCISE: YOUR PATH TO MUSCLE RECOVERY
So what's the upside? With the right exercise program, you can reverse these changes. A recent randomized controlled trial discovered that combined motor control training and isolated extensor strengthening gave superior outcomes compared to general exercise tactics for enhancing "lumbar paraspinal muscle health" in chronic low back pain patients (3).
This approach emphasizes retraining how your deep stabilizing muscles function together while specifically strengthening the erector spinae muscles that have been compromised. Unlike general exercise programs, these targeted interventions get to the root of the problem by replacing fatty tissue with healthy, functional muscle.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR RECOVERY
Working with your McHenry chiropractor at OrthoIllinois Chiropractic to create an exercise program that incorporates both motor control training and specific strengthening exercises can help reverse the muscle changes associated with your disc problems. As Rosenstein et al. (2025) demonstrated, this comprehensive approach addresses both the mechanical and neuromuscular parts of your condition, opening the door to real recovery rather than quick fixes.
Remember, healing won't happen overnight, but with evidence-based exercises, you can transform deteriorated muscles into strong, pain-free tissue.
CONTACT OrthoIllinois Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. John Murray on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he shares the effectiveness of the gentle protocols of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management alongside exercise.
