Gentle twist will help stretch the back without harming.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM A bad back can be a royal pain in the, well, back. But you can prevent a back injury by maintaining your ideal weight and keeping both your back and ab muscles strong, says Monika Paez, certified personal trainer. Don’t let back pain stop you from doing the things you love. Do some basic strengthening and stretching exercises like the ones below to help alleviate and keep it at bay.
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Personalize Your Routine
While any new exercise or routine can be intimidating when you have an injury or strain, an instructor, trainer, physical therapist or doctor can help personalize exercises to fit your body’s specific needs.
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Before trying any new class, speak with your instructor so they can modify the moves to reduce risk of further injury and maximize the benefits. "It is important to educate yourself about proper posture and be conscious of your posture in everyday tasks," says Sandy Campanella, certified personal trainer.
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Read more: 6 Lower Back Pain Exercises to Ease Your Aching Muscles
One-Minute Stretch
The one-minute stretch will loosen up your back.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM Campanella suggests this easy one-minute stretch to loosen and massage your lower back.
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Lie on your back and draw your knees to your chest. Place your hands on your knees and rotate them in a circle, massaging your lower back against the floor for at least 30 seconds. Reverse the circle for another 30 seconds or until your back feels looser.
Child’s Pose
Chair pose is a relaxation pose for the back.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM Yoga instructor Kristin McGee suggests starting with a basic stretch like Child’s pose to instantly release tension in your back.
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Sit back on your heels and stretch your arms forward, relaxing your forehead to the floor. Feel your lower back, hips and waist lengthening as you tap into your deep breathing. Stay in the pose for eight to 10 breaths.
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Cat-Cow Pose
Commonly used in yoga, Cat-Cow links breath and movement.
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Come out of Child’s Pose into a tabletop on your hands and knees. Breathing in, drop your belly and arch your back with your head and tailbone up toward the ceiling. Breathe out as you round your back like a cat with your head and neck down. Repeat for several breaths, linking your inhalations and exhalations to the movement.
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Read more: The Best Yoga Moves for Your Back
Bird-Dog
Bird-dog helps improve your balance and alleviate back pain.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM McGee finishes the trio of exercises with bird-dog, a move that gets its name from a hunting dog, to build strength in the abs and support your back.
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Staying on your hands and knees in tabletop pose, keep your back completely flat. Stretch the right arm forward and left leg straight back. Hold for a breath, then switch sides. Do five to eight repetitions on each side.
Reclining Pigeon Pose
Reclining Pigeon is a great hip-opening pose, too.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM Alanna Zabel, certified yoga instructor, recommends Reclining Pigeon pose to relieve tension around the lower back, hips and legs caused by stress.
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Lying on your back, hug both knees to your chest. Cross your left foot over your right thigh. Thread your left hand through the gap between your thighs to clasp your right hand behind your thigh. Gently draw the right knee toward your right shoulder while keeping your back flat on the floor.
Assisted Leg Raise
Assisted leg raise can be done solo or with the help of a partner.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM If you have a willing assistant, Paez recommends recruiting them to hold your legs in this pose for a minute to alleviate back pain and tension. No assistant, no problem: A yoga block works too.
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Lie flat on your back on the floor. Raise your legs slightly and rest them on a block, or have your partner hold them up. Stay like this for about one minute.
Gentle Twist
Gentle twist will help stretch the back without harming.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM Campanella suggests doing this gentle twist once in the morning and again in the evening.
Lie flat on your back. Extend your arms out on the floor at shoulder level with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Gently drop your knees to one side while keeping your shoulders and arms glued to the floor. Turn your head in the opposite direction from your legs. Hold for at least 30 seconds, and then repeat on the other side.
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Full Back Stretch
The full back stretch will improve your posture.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM To test your posture, stand up straight and hold your hands out in front of you. Notice whether one hand reaches farther forward than the other in a natural stance. This gentle, scalable stretch can open the length of your back.
Sit cross-legged. Walk your hands forward slowly, keeping hands even with each other. Take a deep breath and let it out. Then walk your hands a little further forward, deepening the stretch, keeping your spine straight. After a few breaths, slowly walk your hands back up. Try going deeper each day you perform this.
Read more: 10 Popular Exercises That Can Hurt Your Back
Core-Strengthening Pelvic Tilts
This exercise will help your back and strengthen your core.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM “The torso is a combination of many muscle groups working together,” says Paez. “When you strengthen your abdominals, it often reduces the strain on the lower back.” Start with this simple pelvic tilt.
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Rotate your hips to press your lower back to the floor in a pelvic tilt. Hold for six to 10 seconds, and then relax. Repeat for three sets of 10.
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Plank Pose
Plank pose will strengthen your core and back.
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Place your wrists under your shoulders with your arms straight and fingers facing forward. Keep your legs and back straight, supporting your weight on your toes. If it’s too difficult at first, lower your knees to the floor while keeping your arms and back straight. Relax your shoulders away from your ears, keeping tension out of your neck and shoulders.
Other Ways to Deal With Chronic Back Pain
If back pain is a recurring problem for you, consider some alternative pain-management strategies. “We all experience and express pain differently. Some people don’t feel pain, but others are highly sensitive to it,” says Darla Forney, registered kinesiotherapist. “Emotions, such as depression or anxiety, can affect chronic pain. For some of us the pain gate doesn’t close, even if the doctor can’t find anything wrong.” Cognitive behavioral therapy, hypnosis, meditation and other techniques can help change the way you experience pain to break a chronic-pain cycle.
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Gentle twist will help stretch the back without harming.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
The one-minute stretch will loosen up your back.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Chair pose is a relaxation pose for the back.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Commonly used in yoga, Cat-Cow links breath and movement.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Bird-dog helps improve your balance and alleviate back pain.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Reclining Pigeon is a great hip-opening pose, too.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Assisted leg raise can be done solo or with the help of a partner.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
The full back stretch will improve your posture.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
This exercise will help your back and strengthen your core.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
Plank pose will strengthen your core and back.
Image Credit: Travis McCoy/LIVESTRONG.COM
