Back Pain Physiotherapy In London
60-minute appointments to understand your back pain, discuss your goals and build a clear plan for recovery.
Back pain can affect everything from sitting and sleeping to work, lifting, exercise and everyday life.
Whether your pain started recently, has been present for months or keeps returning, we can assess the problem and help you understand what to do next.
When Should I Consider Physiotherapy for Back Pain?
- Back Pain affects sitting, walking or sleeping
- Bending or lifting has become painful or difficult
- Symptoms are stopping them exercising or training normally
- Back Pain keeps returning
- Symptoms have continued despite rest or self-management.
- Previous treatment has not produced the progress they expected.
- Pain travels into the buttock or leg.
- They are unsure what activity is safe to continue.
- They want help returning to work, the gym, running or sport.
You do not need to know exactly what is causing your back pain before booking.
That is part of the purpose of the assessment.
Back Problems We Commonly Assess
Back pain can present in different ways.
We commonly see people with:Pain or stiffness around the lower back affecting movement, work or everyday activity.
Episodes that improve and then return when activity, work or training increases.
Symptoms that have continued for longer than expected or have not responded to previous treatments.
Pain that travels into the buttock or leg, sometimes alongside tingling, numbness or weakness.
Symptoms associated with irritation of a spinal nerve, often involving pain travelling into the leg.
Symptoms where a disc problem has been suspected or identified, including people who have already had an MRI.
Symptoms limiting gym training, running, lifting, golf or other physical activity.
What Happens at Your First Back Pain Appointment?
Understand Your Back Pain
We talk through how your back pain started, how it behaves, what you have tried previously and how it is affecting your work, everyday life, exercise or sport.
Assess What Matters
We assess the movement, strength and function relevant to your symptoms and goals. If you have symptoms travelling into the leg, we can also assess relevant neurological findings where appropriate.
Explain What We Find
We explain what the assessment findings suggest and what we think is happening. If there is uncertainty, or we think further investigation or another medical opinion would be useful, we explain that too.
Start Treatment or Rehabilitation
Where appropriate, we can begin treatment or rehabilitation during the same appointment, based on what we have found rather than using a standard approach for every patient.
Build Your Plan
Before you leave, we explain what we recommend next, what you can do between appointments and how we will measure progress towards the things you want to get back to doing.
Do I Need a Scan for Back Pain?
Not necessarily.
Many people with back pain can initially be assessed without an MRI or other scan. Imaging can be useful in some circumstances, but the findings need to be considered alongside your symptoms, medical history, physical assessment, function and any relevant neurological findings.
If you already have an MRI, X-ray or medical report, bring it with you and we can consider it as part of your assessment. If you have not had imaging, you do not need to arrange a scan before booking unless you have already been advised to do so.
If your assessment suggests that further investigation or another medical opinion would be useful, we will explain why and discuss the appropriate next step.
How Do We Treat and Rehabilitate Back Pain?
There is no single treatment that everybody with back pain needs.
What we recommend depends on your assessment, symptoms, physical findings and goals. Your plan may include a combination of the following:Hands-On Treatment Hands-on treatment may be used where appropriate to help manage symptoms or improve useful movement. It is not automatically the whole treatment plan.
Exercise can be used to progressively rebuild movement, strength and physical capacity. The exercises should reflect your starting point and what you eventually need your back and body to tolerate.
Complete rest is not automatically the answer to back pain. We can help you understand what you can continue doing, what may need temporarily modifying and how activity can be built back up.
As symptoms allow, rehabilitation can progress beyond basic exercises to rebuild the strength and physical capacity needed for your everyday life, work, gym training, running or sport.
Treatment Options Where Appropriate
- Laser Therapy
- EMS
- Infrared Cupping
- Vibration Therapy
Our Approach to Back Pain
Understand your symptoms, assess relevant movement and function, and establish the most appropriate diagnosis or clinical explanation.
Where appropriate, address the immediate symptoms and limitations affecting you.
Progress movement, strength and physical capacity based on your individual assessment.
Build towards the work, exercise, training or everyday activities you want to return to.
What If My Back Pain Isn't Improving?
If your progress is not matching what we expected, we do not simply repeat the same treatment indefinitely.
We reassess.
That may involve:- Reviewing how your symptoms and activity have changed
- Retesting relevant movement, strength, neurological or functional findings
- Reconsidering whether our original working diagnosis or clinical explanation still fits
- Adjusting treatment, rehabilitation or activity
- Progressing your programme when appropriate
- Considering further investigation or referral if the clinical picture suggests it is needed
- If the situation changes, the plan should be capable of changing too
Why Choose Fit2Function for Back Pain?
We give you time to explain the problem and give your practitioner time to assess it properly.
Where appropriate, care can progress from symptom management into movement, strength and physical capacity.
Our Covent Garden clinic gives us access to a gym environment when rehabilitation needs to progress beyond basic treatment-room exercises.
If progress is not going as expected, we review the problem and plan rather than simply repeating the same treatment.
Meet Our Multidisciplinary Team Behind Your Recovery
Our Physiotherapy treatments are provided by our fully qualified Physiotherapists and practitioners. They are experienced professionals skilled in evidence-based rehabilitation techniques, ensuring your treatment is safe, effective, and tailored to meet your individual goals.
Back Pain FAQs
Is exercise bad for back pain?
No, when done correctly, exercise is one of the best ways to manage and prevent back pain. We’ll guide you through safe, effective movements that support your recovery.
How to sleep with back pain?
Try sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees, or on your back with a pillow under your knees. A supportive mattress can also help.
How to relieve back pain?
Movement, stretching, heat or cold therapy, manual treatment and targeted exercises can all help. Our team will tailor a plan that suits your specific symptoms and lifestyle.
How long to see an improvement for my back pain?
Many clients feel relief within 1-3 sessions, but lasting improvement often takes a few weeks. Recovery time depends on the cause of your back pain and how long you’ve had the pain.
Is back pain always caused by an injury or posture?
Not always. While posture and injuries are common factors, stress, lack of activity and underlying medical conditions can also contribute. We’ll assess all possible causes on your first appointment at the clinic.