Lower back pain is common to many people. Some experience it as soon as they wake up due to bad posture, not resting well, or not moving much during the night. However, others arrive at the end of the day with a significant overload in the lumbar area. In this article, we provide you with some simple. And effective solutions to reduce lower back pain, exercise for lower back pain.
What causes lower back pain?
The lower back is a part of the body where many people often experience pain or discomfort. Spending several hours standing or sitting is a determining factor. But nutrition, emotions, lack of exercise or inadequate exercise, digestive and intestinal disorders, etc., also affect. They are, in fact, located between it and the dorsal area.
Symptoms of lower back pain
Typically, this type of problem “simply” manifests itself with pain in the sacrum area. In this case, it can be a problem related to the sacroiliac joint. And I talked about it in the article on lateral back pain.
Lower back pain has some typical situations in which it occurs, and they are:
- staying seated for a long time, especially on surfaces too hard or too soft
- getting up after sitting, with reduction as you walk
- in the morning as soon as you wake up, again with a reduction after a few minutes
However, these are not the only times this type of pain can occur.
It is not uncommon for the lower back to give problems:
- during physical activity, perhaps in the flexion position of the spine
- after physical or sporting activity
- standing for a long time
Why the lower back can hurt: the causes
When it comes to pain in the lower back, right in the sacrum area. It is difficult for the very famous discographies or herniated discs to cause it . Among other things, in the article on lumbar pain, I have repeatedly stressed how discographies. And herniated discs are NOT necessarily the cause of the pain. As they are also present in people without any symptom, with the same percentages!
In my experience, this type of pain can be due to:
- to inflammation of one or both sacroiliac joints,
- the I irritation of connective tissue and muscle bands placed over the sacrum
In most cases, these two situations are linked to “muscle imbalances.” As often happens in various parts of the human body.
In this case, as you can see from the image, the more easily involved muscles are
- the buttock and its “little brother,” called the piriformis, the lumbar muscles (great back and long muscles)
Working on this type of symptom, I always notice great satisfaction in releasing the psoas muscle, even if it does not attach directly to the sacrum. Surely a woman with uterine prolapse can be more prone to this type of problem. Other areas that can reflect in the “lower back” area are certainly the prostate and intestine. In some rare cases, inflammation of both sacroiliac joints, accompanied by hip pains and nocturnal pains, maybe a sign of a rheumatic condition called spondylitis. Don’t panic about reading about these “links” to organs or about spondylitis. They are a minority of cases. The advice is to talk to your doctor first, and then to follow the advice and exercises that we will see shortly: you can think of some assessment if, despite working on the muscles, the symptoms persist without variations.
Diagnosis: Exercise For Lower Back
The classic “academic” path would first envisage the doctor’s visit, then any investigations, and then the appropriate treatment. In fact, when you have “new” and persistent pain, this is the first thing to do. The tests that are normally done are radiography and magnetic resonance.
But you have to keep in mind two things:
- X-rays and MRI scans, as we mentioned earlier, show significant problems even in people without any pain
- any “abnormalities” (note the quotes) may not be related to the pain in that area
In short, examinations are often done to exclude particular and infrequent problems, such as spondylolisthesis (sliding forward of a vertebra). Especially if your pain is not recent, a good tip is to try the exercises that we will see shortly for a period of time of at least a couple of weeks.
If the situation is resolved, there will be no need for anything else: if it persists, you will talk to your doctor, and he will evaluate what to do. Having performed an effective muscle re-education for some time, but without result, is also beneficial data if one of those “visceral connections” is suspected to which I mentioned in the previous paragraph.
6 Effective exercise for lower back pain
Regular practice of these exercises can strengthen our back and alleviate or avoid possible pain caused by poor postural hygiene. The lower back, or lumbar region, is one of the most sensitive areas of the body and can be compromised by damage to the hamstring muscles, weakness of the abdominals, injuries, and herniated discs. While good posture and regular exercise practice can help strengthen it, many people do not take care of it and develop pains that reduce their quality of life. Most of the time, the tension in this area is caused by physical exertion, a poorly executed movement, or sitting in front of the computer for too long.
Thus, it is imperative to avoid leading a sedentary life and moderate physical activity and heavy work throughout the day. Fortunately, it is also possible to practice some special exercises to strengthen this area’s muscles and increase their resistance. Below we will share the 6 best exercise for lower back pain in detail so that you can start practicing them in comfort at home or in the office.
Discover them with us!
Exercise for the lower back to strengthen
1. Opposite arm and leg standing on the knees
This simple exercise for lower back pain reduces tension in the lower back and strengthens the abdominal muscles simultaneously.
- Stand on four points of support, with your palms on the ground and your knees flexed.
- Raise and extend your right arm and left leg until they are parallel to the ground.
- Maintain the posture for about 4 seconds and return to the starting position.
- Repeat the exercise with the opposite arm and leg.
- Do 3 sets of 10 reps on each side.
2. Opposite arm and leg standing on the belly
This activity is similar to the previous one, with the only difference that you will have to keep the belly resting on the floor instead of the knees on this occasion.
- Lie face down on an exercise mat, with your arms extended above your head and your palms on the floor
- Raise your right arm and left leg to a comfortable height
- Hold the position for a few seconds and slowly return to the starting position
- Repeat the exercise for the lower back with opposite leg and arm and do 10 repetitions on each side
- Do 3 or 4 sets for each session
3. Raise your legs: exercise for lower back
Raise your legs not only. It strengthens the thighs and buttocks, but it does work even abdominal and lumbar areas.
- Lie faceup, flex your right leg and lift your left leg in a gentle motion.
- Grab the raised leg with both hands from behind the knee and try to hold the position for at least 30 seconds.
- Switch sides and repeat the same action.
- Complete 3 sets for each leg.
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4. Exercise for lower back: Bridge
Lifting the pelvis, or the exercise also called the bridge, works the lumbar and abdominal area muscles. The key to good results is to contract the abdomen every time the movement is performed.
- Lie face-up on the mat, flex your knees, and rest your feet on the floor.
- Keep your hands on the sides of your body and your back straight. Lift your buttocks off the floor and raise your hips.
- Hold this position for 10 seconds, rest, and repeat the exercise 10 more times.
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5. Flexion of the pelvis
While this exercise is designed to tone the pelvis, it has also positively affected lower back pain.
- Place the left foot in front of the other, with the knee bent forward as you extend the right leg.
- Bend your torso forward so that your left knee makes contact with the armpit and return to the starting position.
- Do the same movement with each leg alternately until you have completed 10 repetitions.
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6. Lumbar and obliques
The goal of these movements is to strengthen and firm the lumbar and oblique muscles of the waist.
- For the lower back muscles, lie on the ground with your arms forward and lift your torso at least 8 times
- Rest and repeat the exercise three more times
- For obliques, lie on your side, hook your feet to the sofa and lift your body to the side
- Do 3 sets of 10 reps on each side
Remedies to relieve lower back pain
1. Jets of hot water
The lower back is a part of the body that loves heat and is affected by cold, humidity, and a sedentary lifestyle.
This remedy is based on hydrotherapy, i.e., the therapeutic benefits of water at different temperatures, in this case, obviously hot water. How you do it?
- We will apply the warm water jet by moving it from side to side and gradually increasing the temperature until it becomes hot.
- The process will take 3 to 4 minutes, and we should be seated.
- The ideal would be that the jet was applied to us by another person, with us comfortably seated on a plastic stool, for example.
2. Alternating temperatures: Exercise For Lower Back
For this remedy, we will still use water, but this time at alternating temperatures. The alternation of cold and hot water will allow us to improve circulation and soothe inflammation and pain. We will need to have hot and cold (not very cold) water on hand and two medium-sized towels. How you do it?
- Wet the towel with hot water, squeeze it and apply it to the lower back of the person with lower back pain. The person will need to be lying on their stomach.
- Let’s leave it for half a minute to a minute.
- Afterward, we repeat the process with cold water.
- Let’s do it at least five times for each temperature and always finish the hot water process.
- Dry the lumbar area well and cover it properly.
3. Massage with sesame and arnica oil
A good massage can always help us relieve back pain. Furthermore, the lumbar area is one of the few areas we can reach with our hands. To make them, we can use sesame oil, which will increase the heat in the area, mixed with arnica (in the form of oil, cream, or gel), which has high anti-inflammatory power. How you do it?
- We will do a first gentle massage to bring warmth and prepare the area without exerting too much pressure.
- Next, we will focus on more pressure on the two sides of the column with vertical movements.
- We will give large pinches in the waist to loosen the hips, grabbing the area with the hands and dragging it a little to separate the tissues and give it more flexibility.
4. Cabbage wrap
This remedy is an option that we can make at home and for which we only need a few green leaves of raw cabbage. Cabbage has anti-inflammatory properties that allow us to apply it to any part of the body that we want to relieve (on the belly during menstrual colic, on the knees, etc.). How you do it?
- We will take 4 or 6 cabbage leaves, the greenest we can find.
- We will put a saucepan with water on the fire and, once it comes to a boil, we will immerse the leaves for a few seconds (no more than ten).
- So we will then place them on a wooden surface and pound them a little to release the juice.
- We will apply them on the lower back when they are still warm, and we will cover them first with a cloth and then with a dry towel.
- We will leave it to act for about 15 minutes.
Conclusion: Exercise For Lower Back
The pain in the lower back is a problem solved in most cases. Thanks to the information and to exercise for the lower back that you saw in this article. In some cases, the sacrum area is a “reflex” area of other problems, as well as the whole lumbar spine. Before worrying about unlikely problems. I renew the advice to start taking care of your muscles: this will be enough to solve the problem in most cases.
To take better care of your muscles, you now have everything you need: you can start with the exercises you found in the article, or try my guide “Back pain step by step
