The Quadratus Lumborum (QL) muscle is next big culprit of annoyance for many people with back pain. It attaches to the sacro-iliac (SI) joint so it has a lot of responsibility. It needs to stay strong enough to keep your hips nicely attached to your back but loose enough that your psoas and low abdominal muscles can also work. Muscles need to play fair and unfortunately the QL likes to hog a lot of the action. When that happens the hips can easily move out of alignment causing muscles and ligaments to also readjust. Some people feel that their SI joint, to either side of the top of the butt-crack, move out of place, causing sharp pain.
The QL is also responsible for hip-hike and side-bending. Side-bending to one side (shortening the QL) can stretch the other side (lengthening the QL). If you are injured, go easy here because you need give your ligaments a chance to go back into place. This can take time. Ligaments can take longer to heal than muscles.
Another, more gentle way to access the QL for some, is simply to breath. The QL starts at the 12th rib and it stabilizes this rib during inspiration -- so breathe in and you might feel your QL lengthen a little. If you reach an arm to the sky as you inhale and imagine the hips staying nice and square, you are stretching the QL on one side.
The QL needs to work when we move, but we need to keep it relaxed enough that it doesn't throw off our core stability.
It’s so important to protect the SI joint. It’s great that you talk about it. My boss, Leeann Carey, is a world-renowned yoga teacher & she says that you can gain SI joint stability through yoga. She has a free yoga video on this subject that you should check out: http://www.planetyoga.com/yoga-blogs/free-yoga-video-si-joint-stability/
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