Low back pain, sometimes called lumbago or spondylosis, is one of the most common chronic pain in adults. You’ll likely feel it every time you bend over or stand up, and it may never seem to go away completely.
Perhaps you think that the best thing is to rest, that with time it can be cured. However, most doctors recommend that sufferers of this condition become more active and move their back and related muscles as part of better treatment for relief.
Movement and low back pain
Movement can help relieve back pain, but only if done correctly. Avoid workouts that put too much stress and strain on your back.
So which exercises should you choose? That depends in part on how bad your pain is and what’s causing it. Therefore, you should always get your doctor’s recommendation before engaging in any strenuous exertion if you suffer from lower back pain.
With your doctor’s approval, adding these moves to your exercise routine can rid you of nagging daily pain, leading to better overall health. Exercise is often a great treatment for back pain, but some activities offer few health benefits.
Avoid toe touches
Touching the toes from an upright position can aggravate the clinical picture and other conditions by overloading the ligaments and spinal discs. Another cause for concern is the way toe taps while standing up can overstretch the hamstrings and lower back muscles.
When is low back pain too much?
Mild discomfort and soreness can be expected every time you start a new workout. As your health returns and your muscles get stronger, the pain and discomfort should go away. But when an exercise routine causes moderate or severe pain symptoms that last more than 15 minutes, you should end the exercise and discuss it with your doctor.
Partial sit-ups to relieve lower back pain
One of the classic workouts to strengthen the body is the partial contraction of the abdomen. Crunches strengthen both the lower back and other related muscles, making it an ideal exercise for people with spondylosis.
Process
- Lie down and keep your feet flat on the floor with your knees bent.
- With your hands behind your head or with your arms crossed around your chest, lift your shoulders off the ground. Make sure to keep your stomach muscles tense.
- Exhale as you lift your shoulders. Avoid leading with your elbows (or lifting your neck off the ground with your arms).
- Hold for a second. Then lower back to the ground in a controlled manner.
- Repeat between 8 and 12 repetitions. Remember to do it the right way, which avoids excessive stress on the spine. Keep your feet, tailbone, and lower back flat on the ground throughout the exercise.
Are abs worth it?
Skip the sit-ups, sit -ups are a fitness standard, but they’re not as good at strengthening your body as you might think.
Although most people view sit-ups as an activity that strengthens the core, you actually use more of your hip muscles when doing this exercise.
Not only are they a poor choice for core strength, but crunches create pressure on spinal discs, which can lead to injury by increasing lower back pain instead of decreasing it. To maintain good health and improve lower back pain, try more suitable workouts like the ones described below.
Hamstring stretches. Low back pain relief
Hamstring stretches relieve the back of the leg, where some of the muscles that support the work of the lower spine are located. This is a stretch that is best done with the use of a towel or fitness band.
Process
- First, lie on your back with one knee bent.
- Next, run a towel under the ball of the foot on the unbent leg.
- Pull back on the towel slowly, straightening your knee. You should feel a gentle stretch along the back of your leg.
- Hold the stretch for at least 15-30 seconds.
- For each leg, repeat 5 times.
Lying on your back and lifting both legs together can make back pain worse.
Avoid leg lifts
From time to time, leg lifts are suggested as useful treatments for low back pain. That’s because they help strengthen the abdominal muscles, which play an important role in the integrity of the back. Unfortunately, lying on your back and lifting both legs together can give you back pain and could lead to injury.
modified leg raises
- First, lie on your back. Leave one leg extended and bend the other leg at the knee.
- Next, slowly raise your straight leg about six inches off the ground and briefly hold it in this position.
- Finally, slowly lower your leg.
- Repeat 10 times with your left leg, then switch to your right leg.
Sit leaning against the wall
If you suffer from lower back pain, try sitting with your back to the wall as if you were resting by lying on the sofa.
Process
- Stand with your back to the wall about 10 to 12 inches away.
- Gently lean in until your spine is flat against the wall.
- Slide down the wall slowly until your knees are slightly bent. Continue pressing your lower back against the wall.
- Hold this position for a count of 10, then gently slide up the wall. Repeat 8 to 12 times.
pressed back extensions
Another treatment for back pain symptoms is upward extension.
Process
- Lie face down. Place your hands directly under your
- Push your hands down. You should feel your shoulders begin to lift off the ground.
- If you can do it comfortably, place your elbows on the ground directly below your shoulders. Then spend several seconds holding this position.
bird dog
The “bird dog” as it is commonly known, is a great exercise to stabilize the lower back.
It is an exercise routine to relieve lower back pain. The “bird dog” is the best for learning to keep the lower back stabilized, in the part of the movements of arms and legs.
Process
- To start, get on your knees.
- Tighten your abdominal muscles.
- Raise and extend one leg behind you while keeping your hips level.
- Hold that position for a full five seconds.
- Now switch to the other leg.
- For each leg, repeat 8 to 12 times. If you are not a beginner, try to lengthen the time you hold your leg and arm.
- For each repetition, try to lift and extend the opposite arm in front of you.
- Don’t let your lower back muscles sag.
- Stay in position. Don’t raise your arms or legs higher than you can maintain the position of your lower back.
knee to chest
This is another way to move your legs as a treatment for low back pain symptoms.
Process
- Lie on your back. Put your feet on the ground and bend your knees.
- Bring your right knee towards your chest. Keep your left foot flat on the ground.
- Hold for 15-30 seconds. In the meantime, make sure to keep your lower back flat on the floor.
- Next, lower your right knee. Repeat the routine with the left leg.
- For each leg, perform the knee-to-chest exercise two to four times.
Pelvic tilts to relieve lower back pain
Before back pain causes you to writhe on the floor with the usual symptoms, try lying on your back to tilt your pelvis.
This is ideal for the pelvis, it allows you to gain strength, causing the same effect on the core muscles throughout the entire spine. Make sure that your abdomen can support what corresponds to it, in this way the lower back pain will have one less possible cause.
Process
- Lie down with your back on the floor and your knees bent. Keep your feet flat on the ground.
- Pull in your abdomen. Imagine that your navel is being pulled in towards your spine, this helps support your core. As you do this, you will notice your hips rocking back as your back and spine are pressed into the ground.
- Hold this movement for 10 seconds, allowing your breath to flow smoothly.
- Repeat pelvic tilts 8 to 12 times.
Let us know in the comments what you think of these exercises to relieve lower back pain. Tell us about your experience doing them.