Low back pain can be very disabling, but it can be prevented and relieved with exercise.
Low back pain will affect 60% of the population at some point in their lives . It is one of the most common types of back pain, probably due to our bipedal rather than quadrupedal lifestyle.
In approximately 5-10% of people with low back pain, it becomes chronic causing chronic disability, with serious impacts on the ability to move and exert normal effort for people with this condition. Unfortunately, in more than 80% of cases, low back pain does not have an attributable cause .
Fortunately, regular exercise, especially that aimed at improving the health of the lower back, is a good remedy for this type of back pain, being able to prevent and relieve it in most cases of lumbar ailments of unknown cause.
9 lumbar stretches for good back health
In this article we will discuss some of the simplest and most effective lumbar stretches that you can do from home. A large part of them originate in yoga , the health practice of Indian origin that is based on flexibility, relaxation, breathing and meditation. The practice of yoga is related to better levels of physical health in general.
If you need visual help, at the end of the article we will leave a video explaining some of the stretches that we discuss in this article. In the article itself we will also leave the English name of the stretches, so that you will be able to find more support material to start practicing these simple stretches.
- It may interest you: “Hypopressive abdominals: what they are and 5 basic exercises”
1. Knee-to-chest stretch
The knee to chest stretch is pretty simple. It requires us to start from a comfortable position, horizontal and face up. From this position, we bend both knees keeping our feet on the ground, always looking for a comfortable position.
From this position, we will raise one of the two legs keeping the knee flexed . We will take the thigh just below the knees, with one or both hands, to stretch it towards our chest. Depending on our level of flexibility, we will go more or less far, even being able to make contact between the chest and the knee.
We keep the knee as close to the chest as possible, after which we wait about 10-15 seconds before gently letting it go. We repeat the process on both sides.
2. Double knee to chest stretch
This stretch starts from the same starting position as the simple knee-to-chest stretch. The only difference is that instead of grabbing one of the two knees, we grab the thigh below the knees of both legs.
Maintaining this posture for about 20 seconds will stretch our lower back, relieving mild lower back pain that we may experience.
3. Child’s pose / prayer pose
The child’s pose, also known as the prayer pose (child / prayer stretch) is a great stretch for both the lower back and the upper part of it, also relieving the pain that we may have in the shoulders.
Sitting on our legs Japanese style, we slowly raise both arms above our head. We will bend our backs forward until our hands reach the ground, as far away from us as possible without hurting ourselves . The feeling is to stretch your arms as far as possible, keeping your head low and relaxed, with your chin close to your chest.
We repeat this stretch as many times as necessary to relieve our back pain. It is a very simple, low-intensity exercise that can be used as a warm-up, cool-down, or as an exercise in any part of our daily routine.
- We recommend: “12 exercises to lose belly easily”
4. Piriformis Stretch
The condition of our buttocks is also involved in back pain, so stretching the piriformis muscle (in English, piriformis), which is quite hidden inside the buttock, can greatly relieve lower back pain.
To perform this stretch, we must start by performing the aforementioned knee-to-chest stretch, but with a difference. When our knee has risen as much as possible towards our abdomen, we will also take the ankle of the flexed leg from the front, with the hand opposite the raised leg. That is, if we raise the right leg, we will take our raised ankle (in front) with the left hand .
Once caught, we will stretch the ankle slightly towards our head so that it also approaches our abdomen, using both hands (one on the thigh and the other on the ankle). We will notice how our gluteus stretches and if we keep our back straight, it will also stretch, producing relief.
5. Seated lumbar twist
The seated lumbar torsion (in English, seated spinal twist) allows us to release tension from the back very easily. To perform this stretch, we place ourselves on the floor in a sitting position, with our legs bent in front of us. Then we will stretch one of them, letting it rest on the ground completely straight, while the other remains flexed up.
The foot of the bent leg must be placed outside the thigh of the horizontal leg . We support the arm of the bent leg on the ground, behind us, to have adequate support. The arm opposite the bent leg will rest on the outside of this leg, with the hand near the ankle.
Once we have assumed this posture, we will open our chest, pushing the flexed leg at the same time that we rotate our trunk slightly, in the opposite direction to the push. The result of this stretching is a stronger and more elastic back, which will prevent lower back pain.
It is important that we keep our back and neck straight while performing this stretch.
6. Pelvic tilt
This exercise is ideal for relieving back pain. We lie down, in a position similar to the one we adopt when we are going to perform the knee-to-chest stretch. The name of this exercise (pelvic tilt, pelvic tilt in English) perfectly describes what we will do next.
The objective of the exercise is, by means of the pelvic movement (we move the pelvis upwards) while keeping the upper back static against the ground, to reduce the space that remains between the natural curve of the back and the ground . Very simple to perform and very effective in relieving mild lower back pain.
7. Cat Stretch
The posture or stretch of the cat (cat stretch) can also be started by sitting in the Japanese way. We must get “on all fours”, or rather, leaning on our hands, which will be placed at the height of our shoulders, while resting on our shins.
From this position similar to that of crawling babies, we will push our back up, arching it like cats do when they get upset . We will lower our back to its normal position, and we repeat it as many times as we see necessary. It is advisable to accompany these movements with breathing, exhaling when we go up and inhaling when lowering our back.
8. Cow and Cat Stretch
This stretch is a variant of the cat stretch. The only difference is that instead of returning to a neutral position after arching our back, we will keep lowering it until it makes a sharp concave curve , the reverse of the cat stretch, which is convex.
It is very important that during the cow part (when we lower our back) in this stretch, that we lift our head so that it is upright, as if we were being pulled from the top of our head by a thread from above.
9. Lumbar Extension
The lumbar extension (also known as the prone press up) is a very effective stretch when it comes to preventing back pain, but especially when it comes to relieving lower back pain.
As with the cow stretch, we’re looking for a concave back curve (meaning the movement goes from our back toward our navel). The difference with the cow stretch is that the legs in this case remain stretched horizontally behind us.
To perform this stretch we will place ourselves face down on the floor, leaning on our hands as if we were going to perform a typical chest push-up. Instead of lifting our whole body, as we would do in the case of push-ups, we seek to lift our trunk and head as much as possible, while keeping our hips on the ground.
This stretch is very effective, but it is not recommended for people with certain hip or spine conditions . Above all, be cautious, listen to your body, and if you have doubts about whether you can do these stretches, consult a professional.
Here we leave you a little help video so that you can better orient yourself when doing these stretches correctly.
Bibliographic references
- Humbría Mendiola, A, L Carmona, José L Peña Sagredo, and AM Ortiz. “Populational Impact of Low Back Pain in Spain: Results of the EPISER Study.” Spanish Journal of Rheumatology.
- Gordon, R., & Bloxham, S. (2016). A Systematic Review of the Effects of Exercise and Physical Activity on Non-Specific Chronic Low Back Pain. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 4(2), 22. doi:10.3390/healthcare4020022.
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.