Low Back Pain Self-Assessment
7 questions that can help you think differently about what's contributing to your back pain.
Low back pain is rarely as simple as finding one painful spot. Strength, stability, movement, recovery, inflammation, and your nervous system can all be pieces of the bigger picture. Answer these seven questions to identify areas worth exploring — then see how an Align coach can help you take a closer look.
Do you experience pain on one side of your low back or buttock?
Where your pain shows up — and whether it favors one side — is one of the first clues a coach uses to start narrowing down what might be going on.
During your Free Pain Diagnostic, a coach can ask more about exactly where you feel it and use that as a starting point for a closer look.
Does your low back pain get worse after sitting or standing for a long time?
The positions that aggravate your pain — like sitting or standing for long stretches — can point toward which movement patterns may be under the most stress.
A coach can look at your posture and movement in the positions that bother you most and start identifying what's contributing to that pattern.
Do you experience low back pain when getting up from a chair or climbing stairs?
Pain during everyday movements like standing up or climbing stairs is a sign of how your body is handling load through your low back and hips.
During your Free Pain Diagnostic, a coach can watch how you move through motions like these and look for patterns in mobility, stability, or compensation.
Do you experience low back pain when walking, running, or standing on one leg?
How your pain shows up during weight-bearing activity — walking, running, balancing on one leg — is another piece of the pattern a coach can use to understand what's going on.
A coach can observe your gait, balance, and single-leg control during your Free Pain Diagnostic to see how that connects to what you're feeling.
Do you regularly eat ultra-processed foods, drink alcohol, or struggle to stay hydrated?
Diet, alcohol, and hydration all influence how much inflammation your body is carrying — which can shape how much pain you feel and how well you recover.
Your coach can talk with you about recovery and lifestyle factors that may be influencing your overall pain experience.
Are you getting at least 30 minutes of easy aerobic movement, like walking or biking, three times a week?
Low-intensity aerobic movement supports circulation, tissue recovery, and your nervous system's ability to regulate pain — but more isn't automatically better.
More movement isn't automatically better. Your coach can help determine what type and amount of movement is appropriate for where your body is right now.
Are poor sleep, stress, anxiety, or fear of movement making it harder for you to feel better?
Sleep, stress, anxiety, and fear of movement are closely tied to how your nervous system processes pain — they can help your body settle down, or keep it on high alert.
Your coach can talk with you about sleep, stress, fear around movement, and other factors that may be making it harder for your body and nervous system to settle down.
You know where it hurts. Now let's look at why.
Your answers tell us something important about when you experience pain and some of the factors that may be affecting it. But symptoms alone can't tell you what's happening when your body moves.
That's where an experienced coach can take this assessment further.
Your Free Pain Diagnostic
During a Free Pain Diagnostic, an Align coach can listen to your pain story, observe how your body moves, and look for patterns in mobility, stability, and movement that you can't easily assess on your own.
Your answers give us a starting point. The Pain Diagnostic helps us look at the bigger picture.
Schedule My Free Pain DiagnosticThis assessment is educational and isn't a substitute for medical advice.
If you’re in Redding or Anderson and dealing with low back pain, you don’t have to navigate it alone.
At Align, we help people improve back health through a coaching-led approach — many members come to us after struggling with recurring back pain from traditional workouts, desk jobs, or past injuries. Our goal is to help you build strength safely, move better, and reduce pain over time.
One hour. Free. No Pressure to join.