Lower Back Exercises: Help Ease The Pain
Lower back exercises can be a great addition to your exercise routine. Not only can they help strengthen your back, lower back exercises can help to resolve any pain you may be having in the area as well. And as we all know, back pain can be a serious hindrance to everyday comfort.
Lower back pain is becoming an increasingly common problem. This can often be caused by the muscles in the back just not being strong enough to support our weight, and can be aggravated when we lift things incorrectly. All too often we pick up heavy objects using the muscles in our back rather than our legs, which puts excess pressure on our back and can lead to pain and injury.
There are a number of lower back exercises that you can add to your routine to really help improve the strength of your back muscles, thus making it easier and more comfortable to move about on a daily basis. Indeed, lower back exercises can often be more effective than pain medication if you do the right ones! Here are just a few of them to get you started:
PELVIC TILT
Lie on your back, arms straight down by your sides, knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Tighten your abs, slightly lift your buttocks and flatten the small of your back (lumbar region) against the floor. This will tip your pelvis upwards. Hold for 5 seconds, gently release and repeat 5-15 times.
BACK TWIST
Lie on your back with your arms stretched out to the side of you. Bend your knees and bring them up towards your chest at a 90 degree angle; keep them in that position and slowly lower your knees towards the floor on your right. Keep your knees together and get them as close to the floor as you can without causing pain. Bring them back up to your chest and repeat on the left side. Repeat about 5 times on each side.
THE BRIDGE
Lie on your back, knees bent at 90 degrees with feet flat on the floor. Tighten your abs and raise your buttocks off the ground; there should be a straight line between your shoulders and knees. Hold for 5 seconds, lower and repeat 5 times. This exercise helps to strengthen your core muscles (i.e. abs) as well as your back.
DORSAL RAISE
Lie face down on the floor, forehead resting on your hands. Push up with your arms and raise your head about 4-6 inches off the floor, looking down the whole time. Hold for 2-3 seconds, gently return to the floor and repeat 6-8 times. Once your back muscles have strengthened you can increase the intensity of the exercise by lifting both your head and elbows off the floor rather than resting on your arms.
As you can see, there are a number of exercises you can do to improve muscle strength, increase flexibility and help prevent pain. There are a huge amount of exercises out there, so have a look around and see what works best for you. Always remember to warm up gently before doing a lower back exercise, for example by walking or marching on the spot for 5 minutes. This warms up the muscles, and warm muscles are more flexible and less likely to tear during exercise.
Losing weight can also help reduce the stress on your back, so try bringing some cardio into your routine as well. You should start slowly and aim to build up to exercising for about 20-40 minutes three to five days per week, making sure to incorporate lower back exercises into your regime.
You should soon start seeing results. As your muscle strength increases you’ll soon notice that simple tasks such as lifting an object becomes much easier, and moving around in general will become much more comfortable. You should notice a decrease in back pain, and flare-ups will be far less common, if they happen at all. Lower back exercises can be a great help with muscle pain, even though we often think that exercising when we’re in pain will make things worse! But improving your muscle strength and flexibility can go a long way in seeing you pain-free.
As with anything, if you intend to start a new exercise or diet regime it’s always advisable to consult your doctor for a quick once-over first. They can give you any specific advice that you may need and can refer you to a back specialist if necessary, or can advise on specific exercises to suit your requirements.
But, if you start by trying out the lower back exercises listed above, taking it slow and steady, you should soon see a marked improvement in your flexibility, movement and muscle strength. If you’re one of the thousands of people who suffer from back pain, why not give one of these exercises a try? You never know, you might be surprised at the results!