Best Stretches for a Stiff Lower Back

Once you’ve mastered the best stretches for your upper back (not to mention your shoulders and hamstrings ), you may need something for your lower back, too. Here are some stretches that will help your lower back feel great or that you can add to your full-body stretching routine .

Before we get into my favorite stretches, I want to say a few words about what it means to have a tight back. Lower back pain or stiffness is indeed common, but it usually responds well to almost any type of exercise. Stretching is good, but so is strengthening, and movement in general (like walking, yoga, or whatever you like to do to stay at least a little active). Here I have more information about how doctors and scientists currently understand back pain and how to manage it – read on if you’re concerned about back stiffness or discomfort. And now about stretch marks.

cat/cow

Look, it’s a classic for a reason. This is also dual purpose as I also included it in my article on upper back stretches . As you perform this stretch, focus on the area you are trying to stretch. In this case, it’s your lower back, so make sure you round and stretch your lower back by tilting your pelvis rather than transferring all the movement to your upper back and shoulders.

To make a cat/cow:

1. Get on all fours on the floor with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. You should feel stable here. If you have hard floors, use a yoga mat or pillow under your knees.

2. Cat : You want to look like one of those Halloween cats who is scared and arches his back towards the sky like a rainbow. Brace your abs as if you were doing a crunch, and try to feel the stretch in your lower back (and maybe your upper back, but that’s not our goal). It’s okay if you don’t feel much tension, just try to exaggerate the position.

3. Cow : This is the opposite of the cat position. Keep your arms and legs stable under you (like vertical columns) and relax your stomach and lower it towards the floor.

4. Walk between the cat and the cow several times. Take your time, taking one or two breaths in each position.

Side by Side Child’s Pose

This exercise forces the lower back to move from side to side.

1. Get into child’s pose. This is the one where you are on your knees, your butt is close to your heels, you are stretched forward, your face is close to the floor. You can spread your knees out to the sides if this helps you get into a more comfortable position. You may feel a stretch in your lower back just by holding this position. Reach forward as far as you can.

2. Move your hands to the left. You will feel a stretch on your right side. Stay here for a couple of breaths.

3. Move your arms to the right side for a reverse stretch.

4. You can switch between these positions as much as you need.

Jefferson Curl

This is both a weighted stretch and a strengthening exercise. This may seem a little strange if you remember all those tips about not “getting up on your back,” but this movement is safe for most people as long as you don’t put too much stress on it. (The severity, of course, depends on your strength level. There are extremely strong people who lift the Jefferson bar. But you don’t have to do it, at least not today.)

To perform a Jefferson curl:

1. Stand on a step, stable bench, or box to make sure you can bend over without your hands touching the floor. If you use a kettlebell, hold it in your hands.

2. Bend your torso towards the ground. You will eventually end up in a position where your toes are touching but with your back rounded.

3. Allow your body weight (and/or the weight you are holding) to pull you toward the ground.

4. Stand up slowly, straightening your torso. This is similar to the movement that is sometimes described in yoga classes as standing up “vertebra by vertebra.”

5. Repeat several times.

As you get better at this exercise, you will be able to stretch deeper, which means you lower your arms a little lower. You will also become stronger, which means you can start adding weight or increasing the weight you use. People who have been doing Jefferson curls for a while can do them while standing on a training box and holding a kettlebell. But you can use a chair or step around the house and whatever weight (or lack thereof) you have on hand.

Cobra pose (sort of)

Yoga proponents may say I’m describing it incorrectly, but no one would know what I meant if I said “lying back extension,” so I use the word “cobra.” Just don’t worry about getting it into the perfect cobra pose, or, for that matter, trying to tell the difference between a cobra and an upward-facing dog . The point is that you allow your back to relax into a position that bends it in the opposite direction of the Jefferson flexion described above.

1. Lie on your stomach with your feet flat on the floor and your arms at your sides, as if you were about to do a push-up.

2. Keep your feet and hips on the floor, but lift your arms up to lift your shoulders off the floor. You can place your arms in front of your shoulders if this is more comfortable than holding them underneath you.

3. Relax your back, allowing your belly to sink toward the ground, similar to cow pose.

4. After completing this stretch, return your upper body to the floor. You can either repeat this stretch straight away or alternate it with child’s pose (with or without side-to-side movements).

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