Looking for advice on lower back pain

[beq45]

I'm 27 and have been experiencing lower back back off and on for the last 5-6 months. I used to do martial arts and my lower back took a lot of beating from the constant twisting and getting Judo thrown, along with lifting weights 4-5 days a week. Now my back often gets aggravated from doing exercises like squats and deadlifts to the point where I'll be in such bad pain that it wakes me up at night. I stopped doing some of these exercises, but still get pain at random times. It's not constant pain, but flares up once or twice a week on average and lasts for days and often comes with tingling. I set up an appointment with a sports medicine specialist today who specializes in joint and muscular issues and knows his stuff about back issues. My concern is I don't want to be wasting the doctor's time because I'm not in constant pain and am reconsidering going in for an appointment.

[nomorepanic]

See a physio and get some exercise on how to improve things. That is what I did.

[keta]

Hi
i suffer from lower back pain too, I had it now for over 3 years but this year my back got so bad that the pain would wake me up at night and I spent all night trying to get comfortable. I got referred to physio by my GP and after long winded process through NHS here in UK I got MRI scan done. Guess what they found nothing bit of a tear & wear but no degenerative disc which the doctor was expecting to see.
I think mine is combination of anxiety and muscle tension around my lower back area . My job doesn’t help as I Have computer desk job. Anyway started to go to Pilates classes to strengthen my core muscle and I have to say the pain has improved quite a bit so maybe worth trying.
I think if I was you I get your doctor to check it out just to rule out any injuries you might have done to your spine while doing judo to be on a safe side. But hopefully it’s nothing maybe just inflamed or tensed muscle .