Flexibility and Strength Exercises Can Help Relieve Back Pain
If you have ever had a serious backache, you understand just how important your back is - even for things you think don’t involve the back so much. For instance, squeezing a tennis ball involves a lot more than your hand; the latissimus dorsi and other back muscles come into play during this motion.
The latissimus dorsi or “lats” for short, are the large muscles on one’s side - in men these produce the “triangle shape” when well defined. Try squeezing a tennis ball as an exercise - do you feel it? You will experience a tensing of these muscles on the same side of your body as the arm used to squeeze the ball. If you have back pain, you can’t miss this.
Any sport will require strong back muscles, for speed and coordination, for balance and movement and for providing a strong ‘pillar’ for all the limbs to move off of.
Following are a few simple exercises which you can use to improve the strength and flexibility of these important muscles. You will get the most benefit out of these exercises when they are done on a firm (not hard, just firm) surface. A hard surface will cause unnecessary discomfort on bony parts while doing these exercises.
Knee to Chest
Lie on your back and clasp your hands behind one thigh. Pull slowly toward the chest, keeping the other leg flat on the ground. Vary the action by flexing the ankle - first pointing the toe, then pulling it back toward the knee - at the same time as you stretch the leg. Hold each position for 5 seconds, then switch legs and repeat. Do 10 reps.
Rotations
Lie back, knees raised and together, feet flat on the floor. With your arms extended and near the body, and your palms flat on the floor, lift the feet off the ground slightly and rotate your trunk by moving the knee. Move the knees slightly left, then right. Alternate the action by crossing your arms over your chest, then repeat.
As you continue to practice this exercise, you will build flexibility and develop a wider range of motion. Eventually, you’ll be able to touch your knee to the floor.
Pelvic Press
While lying on your back, knees raised and feet on the floor, push the small of your back into the floor - you should feel your lower abdomen tense. Do this exercise with your feet together, then apart. Hold each press for about five seconds while continuing to breathe normally.
Pelvic Lift
Again, lie on your back with feet flat on the ground, knees raised. Cross your arms over your chest and legs and knees together. Raise your buttocks slightly off the floor and hold this position for five seconds. Lower them slowly back to the floor, count to two and repeat. Breathe slowly and normally while doing this exercise.
Dog Stretches
Starting position for this exercise is on all fours with your head raised - look forward to achieve proper posture for this exercise. As you lower your arms, arch your back and hold this position for two seconds before returning to your starting position. Extend one leg, parallel to the floor (or as close to parallel as possible). Hold this position for three seconds, then return to starting position again. This exercise can cause hip, leg or back pain in some - if it does this for you, stop this exercise immediately.
Repeat this exercise with the other leg. You can mix it up by extending your leg with toe pointed, then flex your ankle in a perpendicular direction to the leg; hold this position for two seconds, then repeat. You should do ten reps of this exercise for each leg.
If you feel any pain while doing these exercises, stop immediately. While some mild discomfort is normal, pain is not, and you should talk to your doctor if this occurs.
