A Swim, a Rant, and a Whole Lot of Sway Backs

Back pain is one of those things almost everyone has dealt with at some point.

It shows up as tightness, stiffness, or that constant low-grade ache that never fully goes away. More often than not, it gets blamed on posture. Too much sitting, not enough movement, a “weak core.” And while those things aren’t wrong, they’re also not the full picture.

Back pain isn’t just about how much you move. It’s about how well your body is working together while you do it. More specifically, the relationship between your ribcage and your pelvis. If those two aren’t connected and communicating well, your lower back ends up doing more than its fair share of the work.

I was reminded of this today in a place you might not expect. The pool.

There’s something about being back in the water. No phone. No noise. Just you, the water, and your thoughts doing their thing somewhere between lengths. And apparently for me, a full-on postural analysis of every other human in the pool. Classic Sarah.

I was doing side kick today, nice and controlled, one arm extended, the other at my side. It’s one of those drills that forces you to slow down and actually feel what your body is doing. And as I looked around, every single person had a sway back. Lower back arched, ribs flared, pelvis tipped forward. The exact same posture I hear about all day long from clients dealing with back pain.

In the gym world, back pain is often blamed on posture. Too much sitting, too much arching, not enough core. And more specifically, a lack of control between the ribcage and pelvis. Because your “core” isn’t just your abs. It’s your ability to connect your ribcage to your pelvis and control that relationship. When that connection is lost, the lower back picks up the slack. Hello discomfort. Hello tension. Hello “my back always feels tight.”

In the swimming world, we would say you just need to get your eyes down and look at the bottom of the pool. And in theory, that works, as long as the core is functioning the way it should. Swimming is one of the most commonly recommended activities for people with back pain. Low impact, supported, it feels good. And it can be amazing. But today, what I saw was this. People get into the water and completely let go of their structure. They relax. They float. They arch. Because the water makes it easy to do that.

When you’re in the water, or on land for that matter, think about gently pulling your pelvis toward your ribcage and flattening your lower back slightly toward the water. Not forcing it, not bracing like crazy, just creating a long, stable line through your body. It’s quiet. Subtle. But it changes everything.

The part that stuck with me the most today had nothing to do with anyone else in the pool. It was the realization of how different this all felt being back in the water myself. I’ve spent the last 15 years on deck. Watching, coaching, cueing, correcting. I can spot a dropped elbow, a mistimed breath, or a lazy kick from across the pool. But being back in the water, I wasn’t just seeing it. I was feeling it.

I could feel the instability. The pull into that arch. How easy it is to “relax” into poor positioning when the water supports you. And suddenly, all the things I’ve said on deck for years landed differently; because there’s a big difference between observing something and experiencing it.

From the outside, it’s easy to say “engage your core,” “flatten your back,” “stay aligned.” But from the inside, you realize how subtle it is, how easy it is to miss, and how much awareness it actually takes. It gave me a completely different appreciation for what I’ve been asking people to do all these years. And that’s the real takeaway. Sometimes the shift isn’t in the exercise, or the program, or even the body. It’s in the perspective.

Also, if you’ve ever wondered what goes on in my brain while I swim… this is it.