Having lower back pain can be a real pain in the…well, back. It can disrupt your daily life and lead to problems sleeping and even sitting.

Instead of taking harmful medications, there are things you can do at home to help deal with it. Everyone faces lower back pain at some point and luckily there are exercises for lower back pain relief you can start to do.

You don’t need any fancy equipment or need to be part of an expensive health club to be able to help deal with it. If things start to get out of hand, you’ll want to consult a doctor or physiotherapist to see what possible damage might have happened.

But before that, it’s worth looking into some simple exercises you can do to help take some of this pain away.

What Causes Lower Back Pain?

Many causes can lead to a lower pack becoming painful but it generally comes down to mechanical issues and soft tissue damage. There can be some issues such as herniated discs, sciatica, arthritis, or certain issues with the spine. Then, there can also be compression of the nerve roots or improper movements of the spinal joints.

There may be some old lagging injuries that lead to pain, sports injuries, or very correctable things like sitting in chairs that don’t have proper support.

Lifestyle-related causes

If you’re sitting down for a majority of the day, it’s worth looking into a supportive back pillow to help with reducing the pain. You also want to make sure that you get up and move for at least 30-seconds every 20-30 minutes to take the pressure off your lower back.

If you spend a lot of time on your feet, you’ll want to take a good look at your footwear and make sure it’s supportive as possible. You should change your shoes every 250-500 miles even if they still look new. The support would have worn down over this time period and it can cause problems that start in the feet and work their way up to your lower back.

This is also important if you find yourself standing on hard concrete for a majority of the day. If you are a runner, your shoe choice will be paramount as the constant pounding on the ground can lead to possible lower back issues.

When it comes down to it, the usual cause for pain in the lower back is from torn or pulled muscles and ligaments. If you’re experiencing this pain, you might not even care how you got it, you just want to know how to deal with it.

Here are 6 simple exercises for lower back pain relief you can do at home:

1. Lying Knee Touches

You’re going to start lying on your side almost like your posing for a picture. If you’re starting on your left side, you will take your right thumb and push it into the area of your lower back that’s hurting.

You will then extend your knee out and down in front of you so it touches the ground. When it touches the ground, it will kick back behind you and extend it past the midline of your body and then lift your leg up. This three-part movement makes up one repetition.

You will do this ten times and then rest for a few moments. You will then keep your thumb on that sore point and lift the leg up and hold for ten seconds if you can. Afterward, you can then roll over to the other side if you’re suffering from any pain on the opposite side of your low back.



2. Wall Hip Extensions

Standing against a wall you will put your right arm straight out and against it. You will lift your right knee so that your thigh is parallel to the ground and hold it against the wall.

To do this exercise, you will drop your hip slightly down and out to the left and then push it back into the wall. You will do 12-15 reps of this before switching sides so your left arm is against the wall. This is something that you can do every day.

3. Knee Rolls

You will start out lying on your back and it helps to use a pillow under your head. You will hold your hands behind your head with your elbows out like you’re relaxing in the sun. Your knees will be bent up with your feet flat on the floor.

Slowly roll your knees to one side while keeping your feet together. Roll as far to the side as feels comfortable while keeping your shoulders flat on the ground.

When you get to the lowest point you can, hold it for a second before returning to the starting position. You will then lower the knees to the opposite side doing the same motion and that will make up one repetition. Repeat this 8-10 times.

4. Bottom To Heels Stretch

Starting position will be on all fours with your knees under your hips and your hands under your shoulders. Don’t lock out your elbows and keep your head, neck, and back as straight as you can.

You will drop your hips and you butt backwards down towards your heels as far back as feels comfortable. Hold at the lower position for a moment and then return to the starting position. Repeat 8-10 times.

5. Back Extensions

Starting position will have you lay on your stomach with your forearms flat on the ground and your elbows out to your side, and palms flat on the ground. Keep your head looking down at the ground but with your neck straight.

Push your upper body upwards with your hands and make sure to keep your neck straight and your hips on the ground. You’re basically arching your back up and you should feel the stretch through your core and abs.

Make sure you only go to a position that feels comfortable but hold that upward position for 5-10 seconds before returning to the starting position. Don’t forget to breathe throughout the motion, especially when you’re holding it at the top. You can repeat this process for 8-10 rounds.

6. Ab Strengthening

Ab training is one of the most important exercises for lower back pain relief. When we talk about the core, it’s not just about abs and 6-packs but the core muscles are just as involved with the lower back as they are with the abdominals.

If you picture your spine like a pole, your core muscles surround the whole pole like a fist gripping it. So if your abs are weak, your lower back will be weak and this can lead to back pain.

Lie on your back with the pillow under your head the same way you did for the lying knee touches. Your knees will be up and your feet flat on the ground and shoulder-width apart.

Take a breath in and as your breath out, tense the muscles in your abdomen and hold for 5-10 seconds. You want to focus on pulling the ab muscle up towards your chest and you want to keep them flexed like you would if someone would punch you in the stomach.

You will hold it for 5-10 seconds and then relax for a few seconds. Repeat this five times and keep it slow and controlled as this is helping to strengthen your core and ultimately lead to reducing lower back pain.

Don’t let lower back pain ruin your life

Pain in the back, especially the lower back, can be pretty unbearable. It makes simple activities very unpleasant and really can affect the quality of your life.

It can come out of nowhere or might be an aggravating type of pain that doesn’t seem to go away. If it’s becoming unbearable, you’ll want a consultation and examination to see what’s going on.

Before it gets to that point, it’s helpful to become familiar with these exercises for strengthening and lower back pain relief. Remember to start slowly and listen to your body as it will tell you what it needs and what might be too much.

If you stay consistent with exercises like these and strengthening it, it can give you some real relief from the pain.

References:

  1. https://medlineplus.gov/
  2. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/
  3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
  4. https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/

Like what you are reading? Subscribe to our newsletter to make sure you don’t miss new life-advancing articles!

Copyright © 2014-2024 Life Advancer. All rights reserved. For permission to reprint, contact us.

This Post Has One Comment

  1. Sally Smith

    These are very hard to figure out based on wording alone. Some pictures would be nice!

Leave a Reply