“Daily activities that you’ve grown accustomed to, like sitting at a desk or in a car for a long commute, can lead to chronic muscle shortening and tension, which can then lead to a decreased lumbar (a.k.a lower spine) range of motion,” says chiropractor Kevin Lees, DC, manager of auditing and quality at The Joint Chiropractic in Phoenix. That loss of range of motion in the lower back (or any joint) can increase your risk of injury over time, even from doing something as simple as reaching down to pick up a paper clip. “[Things rarely] fall in a place where [they] can easily be picked up—you have to bend, twist, and torque the back to reach for it,” says Rahul Shah, M.D., a New Jersey-based, board-certified orthopedic spine and neck surgeon. “That combination of bending, twisting, and torquing is dangerous, as the muscles can easily be pushed to their limits and injuries can ensue.” In more severe cases, degenerative joint disease may even result from losing range of motion. “When a joint loses range of motion, it can start losing its water content, causing the health of the joint to break down,” Lees says. As a result, the chance that you get tears in the fibers of your disks, something that happens with osteoarthritis, can increase.
How to Stretch Your Lower Back Correctly
There aren’t any set-in-stone guidelines for how often to stretch your back muscles, but you should at least give it a good stretch before any vigorous or prolonged activity, Dr. Shah suggests. It’s not a bad idea to take frequent back-stretching or mobility breaks throughout the day, especially if you spend most of your day seated. While performing stretches for your lower back, try to relax, be gentle, and breathe deeply as much as possible. Otherwise, if your body is fighting against the movements, you won’t achieve as effective a stretch where you need it most, Lees says. Also important: Never stretch past your comfort level, and remember that pain doesn’t equal gain. This isn’t the Presidential Fitness Test, and you have nothing to prove or win. Everybody’s body is different and everyone has a different starting point and end limit. If you feel pain doing any of these stretches, back off by decreasing your range of motion or applying less force. And if you have a bad back, check with a professional to make sure that any stretches you do aren’t going to make your back pain worse, Dr. Shah says.
5 Basic Lower Back Stretches
So what stretches are best for the lower back? Here are five moves from Lees that either specifically target the lower back muscles or target surrounding muscle groups (like the glutes and quads) that, when tight or tender, can sneakily contribute lower back pain. While you can certainly do these one after another and even repeat them from top to bottom, you can also pick one or two stretches to do whenever your back needs some TLC. RELATED: 5 Easy, Everyday Hip Stretches for Anyone Who Sits All Day Lie face up on the floor with both knees bent, feet flat on the floor and hip-width apart. Lift both knees up into tabletop (shins should be parallel to the ceiling). Cross right ankle over left knee (so left thigh and bent right leg resemble a “4”). Reach and wrap hands behind left thigh and slowly bring left knee toward chest. You should feel a deep stretch in the right butt cheek. Hold for 15 seconds. Release and switch sides, repeating three times.
