5 Best At Home Exercises For Lower Back Pain

Don’t put up with low back pain and Sciatica. Below are the 5 best at home exercises for lower back pain. These will help you to treat your low back pain yourself safely.

Lower Pack Pain is Everywhere

80% of the population experiences low back pain in their lifetimes and 84% of those having a recurrence within the same year,

Goes to show that this is a huge problem, but a problem that can be helped.

Exercises for Lower Back Pain

As with most other pain and injury, treatment and exercises combined lead to optimal results. Below are five of the best exercises for you to rehabilitate your low back pain at home.

1. Bridge

Level One (Beginner) – How to do it:

1. Start by lying on your back on the floor or bed with your knees bent.
2. Squeeze your buttocks together and lift buttocks off the floor until your body is aligned.
3. Hold for 5 seconds, then lower down.
4. Repeat 10 times twice.

Level Two (Advanced) – How to do it:

For the next level up if the above is too easy.

1. Start by lying on your back on the floor or bed with your knees bent.
2. Keep one leg straight out in the air and perform with one leg.
3. Hold for 5 seconds, then lower down.
4. 10 reps each side, 2 sets.

2. Glute Sling Stretch:

Our favorite stretch!

How to do it

1. Start on your hands and knees then bring one knee between your hands.
2. Stretch the other leg out behind you and across to the other side.
3. Now slowly walk out over your knee with your hands until you feel a good stretch.
4. Hold for 1 minute each side.

Tip – If that is too much of a stretch then go down onto your elbows first.

3. Bird-dog: 

How to do it

1. In four point kneeling slowly raise one arm and leg on opposite sides,
2. Make sure to keep your back straight (imagine your dinner is sitting on your hips – it is all about control).
3. Lower down in a controlled manner
4. Repeat, 10 times each side twice.

Beginners: Start by raising one leg only.

4. Hip Flexor Stretch:

This is important to unload the Low back and pelvis:

How to do it

1. Start by positioning in a lunge position. Feel the stretch in your hamstrings and glute.
2. Raise and stretch your arms over your head reaching for the roof
3. Hold for 1 minute.

Tip

To get a good stretch “tuck your bum in” or draw the bones at the front of your pelvis up towards the roof.

You should feel it in the front of your hip or top of your thigh.

5. McGill Curlup

How to do it

1. Place your hands down on the floor underneath the natural arch in your lower back (Don’t flatten your back.)
2. Only lift your head and shoulders off the ground – unlike crunches, there should be no movement of your lumbar spine. Your hands are there to make sure your back is not curling off your hands or crushing them.
3. Begin with 20 at a time, and build up.

Once you have good spine control then you can take your hands onto your thighs and slide them to the top of your knees to do the curl-up.

It doesn’t feel like you are going far but with repetition, it can get your abs firing well.

Conclusion

The key to all of these exercises is to maintain control and don’t rush them. 

Do these exercises twice daily for 6weeks and notice the difference (but don’t stop there!)

Also check out our Lower Back Rehab Guide

And if you want more and harder exercises to strengthen up your low back: Get into some QL strengthening!

Please Share, like and comment to let me know how you go.