Try These Effective Exercises for Back Pain...
In this blog, we’re going to go over three easy and safe ways to help relieve lower back pain and we're going to do this by focusing on exercises that are going to help lengthen and more importantly, strengthen the muscles that help support the lower back. That way, we can get both quick and long-lasting relief.
These exercises are generally safer because we're going to keep the back neutral or straight so there's no awkward bending or twisting motions that may aggravate the lower back.
A note about these exercises, each one works just a little bit differently. They're going to target different muscles. To get the best results, go through them all, use what gives you the most relief.
With that being said, let's get started. Let’s start with an exercise I call the dead bug. This one is going to focus a little bit more on the core muscles and the hip flexors which both support the lower back. To get into position, we're going to lie flat on our back in bed or on the floor. Just have your legs roughly about hip width apart and knees bent 90 degrees. So, your knees are pointing up towards the ceiling. Let's start off by focusing on the hip flexors including the psoas muscle which if you're unfamiliar with them can cause leg pain, groin pain, even a lot of lower back pain. This muscle pulls your knee toward your chest. So, if that's what you're experiencing, give this one a try. You're going to overlap your hands and place them right over your knee. The goal is to push this knee towards your chest but you're going to resist against that movement with your hands so allow your hands to win this battle but the more that you press into your hands the more that you're going to feel the muscles right here on the top of the thigh towards the groin start to activate. Hold this comfortably for about three to 5 seconds and then relax and then repeat this on the other side. I like to do this for about 10 repetitions on both sides but if you want to make it more challenging throw in another set or two.
So, next we're going to go into the next progression of the dead bug which is going to focus a little bit more on our core muscles. So, let's get back into having our legs at hip width apart on your back, knees bend at 90 degrees (a box corner) with feet off the floor. What you want to do is slowly lower one leg down straightening the knee to the point where it's just hovering above the bed or the floor. In this position, you're really going to feel those core muscles start to fire. Try to hold this comfortably for about three to five seconds. Relax and then repeat this on the other side. Again, try to do this for about 10 repetitions, but you can throw in as many repetitions as you'd like.
Next on of the best ways to pretty much strengthen all of the muscles that support the lower back is by doing the pelvic bridge For this one we're just going to lie flat on our back on a floor or in bed let's start off by doing the basic bridge and then I'll show you how to take this one to the next level so let's have our legs roughly about hip with apart, knees bent, feet flat. What you want to do is engage and brace the core muscles. So, imagine somebody trying to poke you in your stomach how you tense up. Hold that position and then also squeeze your glutes. This will help protect the spine. Take your hands, put them off your side for support. What I'd like to do is just gently press my heels into the floor. When you do that, you'll feel the glutes engage a little bit more and then from there, I just raise my hips upward towards the ceiling until my body is in a straight line from my knees to my hips to my shoulders. If you're unable to get into this position because of weakness or pain, like let's say you can only go up a little bit, do the best you can. Hopefully over time you'll gain strength and flexibility. But in this position, you're going to feel the core muscles, lower back muscles, your butt, your legs, everything firing that helps support the lower back. Try to hold this position for about 5 seconds. Relax and then repeat this about 10 times. With each repetition, really focus on trying to build into it just a little bit more. If it feels like you have a little bit more energy, challenge yourself to throw in another set or two.
Exercise 3 is going to focus a little bit more on strengthening the erector spine muscle group which are the muscles that hold us upright so if you get a lot of pain bending forward and then coming back up especially from a standing to seated position definitely check this exercise out. I call it the bird dog hydrant so what we're going to do is start on all fours, hands and knees. So, what you want to do is just keep one foot flat on the floor and then just slide it away from you, pointing your toes away at the same time. The more that you straighten your leg, the more that you should feel a gentle stretch form in your calf muscle that works upward towards the back of your thigh, into the hamstrings around the hips, into the glutes, into the lower back. Keep pressing out until you feel it in the lower back. Once you feel that, hold this position and then slowly raise your foot up like this so your leg is in line with your body. You're going to feel a ton of muscles start to fire but really focus on feeling it in the lower back. If you don't feel it, just raise your leg up a little bit more. I'm sure that you definitely will start to feel that. Try to hold that comfortably for three to five seconds locking in your middle section muscles, abdominals and back. You're going to relax and then you're going to repeat this on the other side. Do this nicely and slowly for about five to 10 repetitions on both sides but if it feels like you have a little bit more energy, challenge yourself, throw in another set or two. So, to take this one to the next level, you can do what is known as the full bird dog. It's very similar but what we're going to focus on doing is raising one leg up and the opposite side's arm straight out ahead of you, again slowly. So, I have my right leg and my left arm. This position is great because not only will it help strengthen but it will also help improve balance because if you have a lot of weakness, you're probably going to struggle to be in this position. So, really try to focus on controlling this movement as much as you can but give that a try for about five to 10 repetitions on both sides.
So, the last movement that we're going to do is called the hydrant and this one is going to focus a little bit more on strengthening the hips especially with the glutes. For this one, instead of taking our foot backward, what we're going to do is keep one knee bent at 90 degrees and just raise it up slightly so it's hovering above the floor sort of like a puppy at a fire hydrant. Now, you know why we call this one the hydrant but keep going up until you feel all the muscles around the lower back and the hip on this side right here start to fire. Hold this comfortably for three to 5 seconds. Relax and then repeat it on the other side but do this one nicely and slowly. Again, for about five to ten repetitions and if it feels like you have some more energy, challenge yourself. Always try to challenge yourself. Go through all of the movements. If you find that one is just helping you out a little bit more at that point, throw more repetitions in. And always remember that you must listen to your body…if your pain is reproduced at any time by these, they may not be right for you without a set of professional eyes watching and adjusting. They should be challenging but not painful. And you have to do them consistently to gain some strength. If you have any comments or questions, please leave them below. I'll get back to you as soon as I can.
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