Hi david;

To answer your question remember I am not a doctor, in my country giving medical advice when you are not is against the law.
I can only tell you what happened to me. What caused my current disability was that I was a lifter and then I stopped.
I went from a mean,lean 166 to 180. In other words I became soft. The damage that occured to my back can never be repaired and I suffer continuously with it.
When it happened I laid in bed unable to move for more than a month.

So I think that getting out of excellent shape put much strain on my lower back until it went.
Keeping in athletic shape (not cosmetic shape) is one thing I wished I had done.
The less you weigh the less your abdominals have to support and therefore the less strain on your lower back.

Working your abdominals is one of the toughest areas for men.
They are an unattached group of muscles and therefore difficult to tone.
I do what my back will allow and that is not much. You are not alone it is quite common in our sedentary world.