What are some good exercises for low-back pain?

Answer:
Much of the pain in our bodies comes from imbalances

in our musculature. To help remedy this, we want to bring the lagging muscles up to speed.

Most of a persons low back pain is located in the lumbar region. However, many times it is not a lack of strength in the lumbar that is causing the pain. It is an imbalance of strength in relation to the other smaller muscles that support the spine and attach the lower limbs to the back.

A great way to bring these support muscles up to speed is through variations of core training. Core training has become very popular lately with the rise of yoga and Pilate's type training. However, most of these exercises focus on the abdominal muscles. It is great to work the abdominal, but we want to avoid an imbalance.

I like to perform a cobra stretch on a yoga ball to exercise the smaller muscles of the back. All you need is a yoga ball. Just pick a spot with plenty of room, put your midsection on the ball with your hands and feet on the floor. Now pull your hands and feet off of the floor and try and balance with a slight arch in your back. You can touch the floor with your hands and feet as needed for balance, but try and extend the time that you are not touching. It may only be a couple of seconds at first, but soon you will be balancing for longer.

While you are balancing, and working to maintain you balance, the smaller support muscles of the spine are firing away with slight adjustments in order to keep your back rigid. This will help eliminate the imbalance that may be contributing to your low back pain.

Have your back pain checked by your doctor. As long as there is no structural damage, your back pain can be greatly helped through exercise. Often tight leg muscle (or an imbalance in leg muscles) can cause back pain. Just remember to think in terms of muscular balance. Try this ball exercise and you may feel younger before you know it.