Read this about APT: http://www.anteriorpelvictilthq.com/anterior-pelvic-tilt/, not saying you have it, but it's possible. I had back pain for a long time because I thought I was "standing up straight". Really I was arching my lower back really badly and it caused all the pain. Did the same thing when driving. Once I realized what it was, I was able to correct it and now the pain is not nearly as bad.

Hanging helped a little and so did the traction machine at the sports medicine doctor, aka Chiropractor. Things like that only helped until I got to the root of the problem.

I hope this helps in some way and your back gets better.

EDIT: Also, when you go to get something off the ground, go down to one knee instead of squatting down, that one was straight from the doctor and actually helped a lot.

I would probably look into your standing posture. My whole life I didn't know I was standing all wrong until I got a standing desk and stood incorrectly for a week. My lower back and knees (from locking them) were screaming for weeks afterwards. Now I have to learn how to stand correctly to actually use it (but of course we moved offices and I no longer have a standing desk).

> I have been squatting for 60 seconds twice a day. I should probably try hanging too. Any other ideas ?

Deadlifts are amazing to strengthen the lower back muscles. I used to have lower back pain from mountain biking (which can be typical of the sport), and after I took up weightlifting that pain mostly went away.

Check these out: http://backapp.us

Awesome standup chair with a balance ball that makes you move your back all the time and creates energy, and thus prohibits stiffness in the back and neck. They also have a standing board for a good combo.

You might also try trigger point therapy in the low back & hip area. For what it's worth, I had a painful lower back for ~1 year, and one day I massaged the psoas muscle trigger points, and my back pain _disappeared_. I've been an evangelist for trigger point therapy since.

you might want to try a balance board. i've been meaning to get one myself - they apparently are good for low-back pains.

I've found that balance boards (on top of a tube) require too much concentration to balance. Instead I used a skateboard deck on a cushion[0] at my standing desk. You can adjust difficulty by adjusting the inflation of the cushion.

[0]: http://indoboard.com/cushion

huh, I'd been eying a fluidstance board (put off a bit by the price), but those indoboards are way cheaper. Thanks!