As I'm writing this, I can feel my lower back crying out in pain. Working on a computer all day, all hunched up, is probably the worst thing you can do to your body, yet many of us are forced to keep doing it over and over again. No wonder there is a lower back pain epidemic going on right now!
The good news is that you can offset at least some of the damage by doing short lower back-focused exercises and stretches (and by looking after your core). I found the circuit below an excellent way to mobilise my joints and alleviate some of the pain that inevitably builds up during a long day in front of my laptop.
Regular physical activity has been shown to reduce the risk of developing lower back pain. A systematic review and meta-analysis concluded that exercise interventions can prevent the onset of low back pain and associated disability.
You'll be performing each exercise for around a minute before moving on to the next one. There are no breaks, as the movements are a mix of bodyweight exercises and stretches, giving you plenty of time to recover. It's not a workout to make you feel out of breath, anyway. The list of moves can be found below:
- Knee lifts
- Knee drops
- Bridge
- Lower body twist
- Cat-cow
- Cobra
- Child's pose
Nice and easy! Need some more lower back workouts? No problem! Try this lower back-strengthening five-minute Pilates workout for a change. You might also want to check out these five PT-approved bodyweight exercises for lower back pain.