physiotherapy For Low Back Pain and Mid Back Pain in West Lothian

Physiotherapy for Low Back Pain and Mid Back Pain in West Lothian

Low Back Pain in West Lothian – There really is only one choice – Leading Edge Therapies, we understand that back pain — whether in the low back pain or mid-back pain — can affect every part of your daily life. As one of the highest Google-rated physiotherapy clinics in West Lothian, and top 5 Star rated clinical massage clinics, our goal is to help clients in Bathgate, Livingston, Falkirk, Polmont, and Harthill recover through evidence-based physiotherapy exercises designed to restore movement, reduce pain, and prevent recurrence.

Understanding Low and Mid Back Pain

Back pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal issues in the UK, affecting nearly 80% of adults at some point in their lives (NHS, 2023). The lower back (lumbar region) supports much of your body weight and is highly prone to strain and stiffness. Meanwhile, mid-back pain (thoracic region) often develops due to poor posture, desk work, or muscular imbalances.

Physiotherapy is widely recognised as a first-line treatment for back pain. According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE, 2020), staying active and following a structured exercise plan supervised by a physiotherapist is one of the most effective ways to recover and prevent chronic pain.

How Physiotherapy at Leading Edge Therapies Helps

At Leading Edge Therapies, our qualified physiotherapists perform a full assessment to identify the root cause of your pain — whether it’s muscular tightness, joint stiffness, postural issues, or nerve irritation. We then create a personalised exercise programme tailored to your specific condition and goals.

Our back-pain rehabilitation plans typically include:

Mobility and flexibility exercises to loosen tight muscles and improve spinal movement.
Core strengthening exercises to stabilise your spine and support posture.
Postural retraining to correct movement habits that contribute to pain.
Manual therapy and soft tissue release to reduce muscle tension.
Education and ergonomic advice to help prevent flare-ups.

Key Physiotherapy Exercises for Low Back Pain

1. Pelvic Tilts – Strengthens the deep abdominal muscles and helps realign the pelvis.

2. Cat-Camel Stretch – Improves spinal flexibility and reduces stiffness.

3. Bridge Exercise – Builds strength in the glutes and core to stabilise the lower spine.
slowly. Repeat 10–15 times.

Key Physiotherapy Exercises for Mid Back Pain

1. Thoracic Extensions – Helps relieve tightness from prolonged sitting.

2. Seated Rotation Stretch – Improves spinal rotation and reduces stiffness.

3. Scapular Retractions – Strengthens the upper-back muscles to support posture.

Why Choose Leading Edge Therapies?

Our West Lothian physiotherapists combine clinical expertise with a personalised, caring approach. We don’t just focus on treating symptoms — we help you understand your body, improve mobility, and regain confidence in movement.

Clients in Bathgate, Livingston, Falkirk, Polmont, and Harthill trust us because:

We offer individually tailored rehabilitation plans.
We use evidence-based physiotherapy techniques.
We are one of the top-rated physiotherapy clinics on Google in West Lothian.
Our therapists provide hands-on support and clear exercise guidance.

If you’re struggling with persistent low or mid back pain, book an appointment with Leading Edge Therapies today. Let our expert physiotherapists help you move freely, live pain-free, and get back to doing what you love.

References

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Low Back Pain and Sciatica in Over 16s: Assessment and Management (NG59). 2020.
NHS UK. Back Pain – Overview. Updated 2023. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/back-pain/
American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Low Back Pain Clinical Practice Guidelines. 2021.

Physiotherapy Bathgate

Have your ‘where to go for back pain/sports injuries/joint pain’ searches led you around different places – spiralling costs, varying levels of results?

See why we are the Number 1 choice for Physiotherapy Bathgate and Physiotherapy West Lothian. Combining Physiotherapy and Physio-led Clinical Massage, you get the expert knowledge of Physiotherapy and the Hands-on treatment that’s so often not given.

ACL Injuries & Knee Injuries – Non Contact Injuries

ACL Injuries & Knee Injuries – A survey from the US found that nearly three quarters of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are non-contact injuries, and female athletes sustain a twofold to eightfold greater rate of non-contact ACL injuries than their male counterparts

Study of Lower Extremity Kinematics in Dancers

Thus, a strategy to prevent ACL injury is desirable. A research study from University of Nevada investigated the uniqueness of dance experience and movement instruction on lower extremity kinematics and muscle activation during a landing task for dancers.

27 female subjects (age 18–25) in 2 groups: dancers (n = 12) and non-dancer recreational athletes (n = 15) were recruited. Subjects performed drop landings after watching an instructional video without verbal instructions, followed by repeat assessment after watching the same videos with specific verbal instructions.

Gluteus Maximus Engagement and Genu Valgus

Lower extremity biomechanics during drop landing were analysed. Surface electromyography (EMG) was used to measure the activation of gluteus maximus and medius during the deceleration phase of landings. Peak knee and hip frontal plane angles during landing were acquired using a 3-D motion capture system.

Results

Authors’ Interpretation

The authors suggested that experienced dancers demonstrate safer landing strategies compared to recreational athletes.

Dance training experience may provide protection against high-risk movement patterns, and thus, movement-based ACL injury prevention program may be modeled after dance training.

However, providing movement instruction was shown in the short term to disrupt the landing mechanics in those with no dance training experience, so it would be important for people to undergo a longer training instruction before attempting to practice landing tasks when exercising.

Comment by Dr Joseph Muscolino DC

On the assumption that knee joint genu valgus (genu valgum) increases the likelihood of ACL injuries, then any exercise that increases the strength and engagement of hip joint abductors (such as upper gluteus maximum, gluteus medius, gluteus medius, TFL, and sartorius) should theoretically help decrease genu valgus, and by extension ACL injuries.

This is because genu valgus results from excessive adduction of the thigh at the hip joint, resulting in the femur angling inward. This would likely then necessitate the leg/tibia then angling outward (abducting) given the need for a stance of the feet that is approximately shoulder width apart. Thus adduction of the femur might result in abduction of the tibia, therefore genu valgum.

For this reason, strengthening hip joint abductors and training them to engage in the proper temporal pattern might be an important step toward preventing genu valgus, and therefore preventing knee joint injuries, including perhaps ACL injuries.

Similarly, if the hip joint adductors are tight (overly facilitated, locked short), manual and movement therapy to loosen their baseline tone should also be helpful toward improving the posture of the hip joint in the frontal plane, and thereby possibly helping potential knee joint injuries including ACL injuries.

This blog post article was created in collaboration with www.terrarosa.com.au.

physiotherapy For Low Back Pain and Mid Back Pain in West Lothian