6 exercises for lower back pain

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As a certified personal trainer, I have seen many battle with low back pain: clients, friends and family, fellow trainers, and even myself for a time. It can be one of the most difficult things to overcome, but it can be self-managed. 

These exercises are not meant be a magical fix to your back pain—because that doesn’t exist. However, doing things consistently to strengthen and stabilize your core while mobilizing your spine is as close as you can get to magic. So whether you are trying to get ahead of a possible injury or rehab a pre-existing one, consider trying these six exercises.

Breathing

Talk about back to basics. It sounds simple, but so many people get this wrong. Next time you see a baby or toddler take note of how they breathe. You will notice their little bellies rising and falling. This way of breathing is known as diaphragmatic breathing, deep breathing, or belly breathing, which is great. As we age, the more dysfunctional our breathing gets. Somewhere along the way our breathing becomes shallow and lazy. We stop breathing with our diaphragm and abdominal muscles and start breathing with our chest. This is usually around the same time that we develop back and neck pain. Coincidence? Not likely. 

1. Lie on your back with your knees and hips bent to 90 degrees. It might be helpful to start by resting your feet on a chair or couch.
2. Flatten your back so that there is as little space between your low back and the floor as possible; work toward no space between your back and the floor. It is important to maintain this position while practicing the breathing.
3. Begin breathing with the focus on pulling the air deeper into your belly instead of your chest. I like to put one hand on my belly and one on my chest to help me detect where the movement is. Usually the movement starts in the chest and if that's the case for you, don’t worry. Chances are you have been breathing the wrong way for most of your life so take your time and keep practicing. Relax and keep focussing on expanding in the belly.
4. Once you have mastered breathing in this position start to implement it during other movements and then as often as possible. Eventually your natural breathing pattern will shift in a way that is more engaging of your core and more supportive of your back.

Bracing

This move is an instinctive thing; imagine your body’s natural reaction if I punched you in the stomach; your core would tighten up to protect your insides from taking the blow. With this exercise we will be playing on your bodies’ natural reflex to protect itself.

1. Start to really emphasize the expansion at the end of the inhale and completely emptying your lungs (and belly) at the end of the exhale. Think about utilizing as many muscles in your core as possible while you do this. This is bracing and hollowing; opposing movements that will work together to retrain your core to function more efficiently. Although both parts are important, the inhale/expanded position is where the magic happens. That is what we in the biz call bracing, and it is key in protecting your back.  
2. At the end of the inhale pause with your core expanded as hard as you can. Work your way up to a ten second hold in the expanded/braced position.
3. Get good at bracing and start to implement it into day to day life. Practice while you drive to work and when lift your toddler. Eventually your body will start to prefer this way of utilizing the core.  

Cat/Cow

This one might be familiar if you have taken a yoga class. It’s a very simple spine mobilization technique that can be used as part of your warm up or just throughout the day as you start to feel your usual aches and pains. It’s a combination of light stretching, minor muscular contractions, and neuromuscular coordination.

1. Start on all fours. Hands placed straight under your shoulders and knees right underneath the hips.
2. Begin to arch your back, sticking your hips out, and look up toward the ceiling. This should be a slow and deliberate movement.
3. Now start to move the spine in the opposite direction. Tuck the tailbone and chin, rounding through the entire spine.  
4. Repeat about ten times, or as many times as you would like. This exercise is meant to shift between these two positions (mentioned in steps 2 and 3), pushing further with each repetition.

Dead Bug

This one is as peculiar as it sounds. The goal here is to practice the bracing while adding movement. This exercise will train your body to utilize your core in a safer, more effective way while moving. It also should help you translate that bracing to other movements. This movement really challenges coordination so be patient with yourself.  

1. Lie on your back in the same posture as the bracing exercise.
2. Stick your arms and legs straight up toward the ceiling, like a dead bug. Your hands should be directly above your shoulders and feet directly above your hips. Keep in mind that the more bent your knees are, the easier the movement will be. The straighter, the more difficult. I recommend starting with the knees bent almost to a 90 degree angle. (If you can’t hold this position for at least 30 seconds without any movement then don’t go any further with this exercise yet.)   
3. Simultaneously, bring your right leg down to the floor and your left arm to the floor above your head. Bring them back up to the starting position, then repeat with the opposite arm and leg (right arm, left leg).
4. Repeat for three sets of 30 repetitions, or however many you can manage.  

Side Plank

This core exercise targets parts of our core that are terribly underworked in our day-to-day lives but can keep us pain-free and safe, the obliques, quadratus lumborum, and transverse abdominis. (For those looking for more advanced options.)     

1. Lie on your left side with your knees bent to 90 degrees. Your knees should be in line with your hips and shoulders with your feet tucked back behind your knees.
2. Plant your left elbow directly under your shoulder with your left hand in front of you.
3. Keep your core braced and tailbone tucked while you lift your hips off of the ground. Work toward everything being straight and lined up; point your chest and hips forward with a neutral spine and extended hips.
4. Hold this position as long as you can. Then rest and repeat at least three times on each side.

Glute Bridge

No (p)rehab collection is complete without some version of a glute bridge.

They range from novice to advanced, simple to complex, with minor variations which build off of the same basic movement. Although the glute bridge doesn’t directly work the core or back muscles (it more targets the glutes and hips), it can still make a huge difference in developing strong and safe movement through the spin because  the hips are the foundation for the core and spine. This means that the more stable and strong your hips become the less pressure and strain is put on your back.

Here is the most basic version of a glute bridge. (If you're feeling adventurous, give these challenging variations a try.)

1. Lie on your back with your feet planted hip width on the ground about 6 inches from your butt. Keep in mind that your core should be braced and tailbone tucked throughout the movement.  
2. Press through your heels and thrust your hips toward the ceiling. We are trying to achieve what's called full “extension” at the top of the movement so think about getting your hips as high as you can.
3. Bring the hips back down to the ground. You can either touch your hips to the ground and then go back up into the next repetition or rest for a second or two on the ground in between each repetition.
4. Repeat until you have completed between 10 and 20 repetitions, depending on ability level.

Slow and steady is the key here. As soon as you overcomplicate the movement or overexert your core, you could be making things worse. Take your time and stay consistent. For best results go through these exercises daily, but remember these moves will likely not solve all of your problems. And as always, if your pain gets worse, doesn’t change at all, or improves too slowly, consider working with a qualified professional like a personal trainer, physical therapist, or chiropractor.  

Emily Eckley is a NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine) and NCCPT (National Council for Certified Personal Trainers) certified personal trainer.