Lower Back Exercises Guide

Why is it that so many American adults suffer from lower back pain these days? In part, it’s an overall lack of physical activity in our society, and the sedentary lifestyle that all too often accompanies a 40 hour work week. In part it is the fact that so many people either don’t know what to do or aren’t willing to put in the work to alleviate this chronic pain.

The majority of low back pain is both not only treatable, but also preventable. So if you currently suffer from chronic back pain that you can’t attribute to a single event or injury, of if you don’t, and would like to keep it that way, read on.

The simple truth is that the majority of lower back pain is the result of chronic tightness due to a lack of abdominal strength. Unfortunately the seated position in which we spend so much of our time (at work, in the car, on the couch) neither requires nor promotes use of the core muscles (abs and mid to low back). Unless we make a concerted effort to exercise these muscles, the natural tendency is for them to weaken due to lack of use.

If the abdominals are strong and tight they can better support the upper body in an upright position, and as a result can release stress from the low back. The best exercises for lower back pain are therefore those that strength the abdominal and other core muscles.

Balance exercises like the plank are beneficial in strengthening many of the muscles whose weakness is associated with chronic back pain. In fact, an exercise that challenges balance in any position will result in tightening and subsequent strengthening of the core muscles. There are a number of online video trainers that provide step-by-step instructions and demonstrations on how to perform balance-based abdominal exercises for lower back pain.

As a remedy for existing back pain, abdominal strengthening exercises should be combined with a good stretching routine. As you gain strength and flexibility within your core, discomfort in the low back during everyday activities should decrease noticeably.

One of the best lower back exercises you could possibly do is the deadlift. The deadlift is an old-time classic and considered by some to be the simplest test of raw strength – it simply involves bending down at the hips and knees, grabbing a barbell, and picking it up with a straight back.

Now before we get into specifics, let me say that unless you’ve been recommended otherwise, the deadlift is NOT a lower-back rehab exercise. You should only begin a program of deadlifting if your lower-back has the all-clear.

Having said that, regular deadlifting (and this applies to the stiff-leg and Romanian variations of the exercise) is probably the single best lower back exercise you can do to prevent lower back pain and injuries in the future. There are even many well-documented cases of trainees who’ve suffered with chronic lower back pain for years that has cleared right up once the posterior chain of the lower back, hamstrings and glutes has been strengthened through deadlifting.

(Again though, if you have lower back issues – see a health professional!).

Why is the deadlift so effective? Partly because it’s a full-body compound exercise. When you deadlift, you’re working your hamstrings, glutes, lower back, upper back, trapezius and forearms. The growth response from heavy deadlifting can be phenomenal, and it’s probably the number one exercise for growth in the lower back.

How should you include the deadlift in your routine?

As well as being the most effective, the deadlift is one of the most taxing lower back exercises. Regular deadlifts should not usually be performed more than once a week – and possibly even less frequently if your routine is “pull-heavy”; i.e. if you’re already doing cleans, snatches or stiff-leg-deadlifts.

The closer you go to failure, the longer it will take to recover – I like to train my regular deadlifts in the 4-6 rep range, once a week, keeping a couple of reps “in the tank”. This is extremely effective at building strength – I can train this way for months while adding some weight to the bar each week. Personally I also find this rep range optimal for building size in the lower back and hamstrings, although your results may vary. Experiment with rep ranges to find what works for you.