A lot of doctors now urge lower back pain sufferers to become active. Medical practitioners also move their backs as well as related muscles as a better treatment for pain relief in this area of their bodies. According to researchers, exercise also increases blood flow to the lower back area. This may reduce stiffness in addition to speeding up the healing process.
Movement can assist with relieving back pain, however only the correct kind of movement will help you achieve this goal. Avoid workout regimes that put too much stress as well as strain on your back. The exercises that you choose partly depends on how intense your pain is in addition to what causes it. This means that you should always get the recommendation of your doctor before performing any heavy exertion for lower back pain.
How do you know if your back is actually weak?
An often-quoted misconception is that if a “flare up” (heightened burning or muscular fatigue) is felt in the lower back during a glute or leg exercise, this is an indication that the back is “weak”. More often than not, the cause of the problem is not weakness but inefficient glute activation, incorrect execution of the movement pattern or, worst case scenario, the presence of some other pathology.
The body is exceptionally efficient. If it is not possible to get in touch with the glutes as well as we would like, the body will “steal” the work from the closest available muscle group. The common culprits in this case are typically the hamstrings or the muscles of the lower back, thus giving us the often misunderstood “flare up”.
Exercises to give you a super glute workout
Bridges
Bridges exercise a person’s gluteus maximus. (This is the large muscle of the buttocks.) Individuals involve this muscle when they perform movements with their hips, in particular when they bend into a squat. The gluteus maximus muscles is one of the most vital muscles in the body. This means that keeping it strong can assist with supporting the lower back.
How to perform a bridge:
- Lie supine on the ground. Bend your knees. Put your feet flat on the floor. Make sure that they are hip-width apart.
- Press your feet into the floor. Ensure that your arms remain by your sides.
- Raise your buttocks off the ground until your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.
- Squeeze your buttocks with your shoulders remaining on the floor.
- Lower your buttocks to the ground. Rest for a few seconds.
- Repeat this movement 15 times. After this, rest for one minute.
- Perform three sets of 15 repetitions.
Knee-to-chest stretch
Performing this stretch can assist with elongating the lower back and so relieve tension as well as pain.
How to perform the knee-to-chest stretch:
- Lie supine on the floor.
- Bend your knees. Keep both feet flat on the floor.
- Utilise both hands in order to pull one of your knees in towards your chest.
- Hold your knee against your chest for five seconds. Keep your abdominals tight and press your spine into the floor.
- Return to your starting position.
- Repeat with your opposite leg.
- Repeat with each leg between two and three times, twice a day.
Lower back rotational stretch
This stretch can assist you with relieving tension in your lower back as well as your trunk. It also gently works the core muscles in order to assist with improving stability.
How to perform the lower back rotational stretch:
- Lie supine on the floor with your knees bent and your feet flat on the ground.
- Keep your shoulders firmly on the floor. Gently roll both of your bent knees over to one side.
- Hold this position for between five and 10 seconds.
- Return to your starting position.
- Gently roll your bent knees over to the opposite side. Hold and then return to your starting position.
- Repeat between two and three times on each side. Do this twice a day.
Doing exercises which work your core muscles can assist with preventing injury, increasing stability as well as improving flexibility. People who suffer from lower-back pain should also pay attention to their general posture in addition to how they carry heavy objects in order to identify movements which may be responsible for causing this pain.
Anyone who experiences lower back pain that is severe, or which does not go away with gentle stretches and exercise, should make an appointment with a doctor. If any of the back exercises which we’ve described in this article make pain worse, it is vital to stop doing them straight away and consult a doctor.
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