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When someone experiences back pain, it is tempting to quit moving. Yet, staying physically active is one of the most important steps anyone can take to help reduce pain by strengthening skeletal and core muscles and improving blood flow. The key is to know which exercises are best and worst for back pain. While exercise is essential, it should be gentle and improve physical functioning.
Exercises for General Back Pain
Quality exercises for back pain, no matter where the pain is occurring, have several goals. They are designed to strengthen muscles in the body’s trunk, improve physical functioning, and improve blood flow.
Exercise also promotes mental wellness by releasing brain chemicals called beta-endorphins, natural mood-enhancing hormones that may reduce feelings of pain.
Best Exercises for General Back Pain
Safe exercises for a bad back are low-impact but focused on the whole back, aiming to promote back health while minimizing the risk of injury.
- Walking outside or on an elliptical
- Recumbent bike riding
- Swimming
- Yoga offers many poses to relax and strengthen the back muscles, such as the lotus, cat, and triangle poses.
- Water aerobics is best if the routine includes marching and walking steps while in the water.
- Pilates involves many moves that improve the flexibility and strength of back muscles and strengthen core muscles
- Knees-to-chest stretch: lie on your back with bent knees; keep the spine flat; bring one knee to the chest with both hands; hold for 5 seconds, then lower the leg and repeat with the other knee.
- Cat stretch: on hands and knees, slowly arch the back while bringing the head down; slowly release the arched back and bring the head up.
- Shoulder blade squeezes: sit on a stool or chair with the back straight; pull the shoulder blades together, hold for five seconds, and relax.
Worst Exercises for General Back Pain
The worst exercises for back pain can increase the risk of further damage to the spine or supporting muscles, tendons, or ligaments.
- Jogging or running – any ground-pounding movements
- Sit-ups place stress on spinal discs and ligaments
- Toe touches place stress on spinal discs and ligaments
- Squats place stress on spinal discs
- Jumping or pounding exercises – running, jogging, jumping rope, etc.
Exercises Specific to Low Back Pain
Most people will experience low back pain at some point in their lives. The following are some of the best exercises for lower back pain.
Best Exercises for Lower Back Pain
- Walking outside or on an elliptical
- Yoga has many poses that target lower back pain, such as the bridge pose, cat-cow, and child’s pose.
- Tai Chi movement poses improve posture and balance while strengthening the core muscles.
- Pilates includes many exercises for back pain, and some can target the lower back; for example, the “mobility ” exercise focuses on mobilizing the hip and back muscles.
- Hamstring stretch: lie on your back and bend your knees, loop a towel around one foot, and straighten the leg; hold for 30 seconds and repeat with the other leg; can also be adapted to a standing or sitting exercise
- Planks are an isometric core exercise; hold a push-up position with the back aligned from head to heels.
- Lower back rotational stretch: lie on your back with bent knees, roll the bent knees to one side, hold for 10 seconds, then return to the starting position and roll them to the other side.
Worst Exercises for Lower Back Pain
The worst exercises for lower back pain put too much pressure on the spine.
- Leg presses: place pressure on the lower back
- Weightlifting, including deadlifting, overhead presses, squats, and bent-over rows
- Jumping exercises
- Barbell rows
- High-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts
- Burpees, which involve going from a squat into a plank and back, stress the lower back spinal discs
- Sit-ups
Keep Moving
The best exercises mentioned are movements that may reduce back pain, promote healing, and reduce the risk of future back issues. There is overlap between the best and worst exercises for general back pain and lower back pain specifically. For example, Pilates for back pain involves exercises for the entire back or targeted areas, such as the lower back. Sit-ups are not a good exercise for anyone experiencing general or low back pain.
Each person is unique, but the worst exercises for back pain can add to back pain and cause more spinal disc, muscle, and ligament damage when they are already injured or weak. Back pain-friendly exercises are gentle, focused, and designed to avoid further damage.
People who exercise regularly may be tempted to put too much pressure or “push through” the pain. The goal of back-focused exercises is to slowly strengthen the back without causing additional spinal damage or strain. The key advice for people with back pain is to keep moving, but in the right way.