Best Exercises to Keep Your Back Strong and Pain-Free
Medically reviewed by Dr. Daniel J. Pak, MD, double board certified anesthesiology and pain medicine physician.
Back pain can occur at any age, and regardless of how young or old you may be, or level of intensity of your pain, chronic or acute back pain can be a hindrance to everyday life, and can be especially difficult when working out. Things like poor posture, muscle strains, degenerative disc disease, arthritis, or even accidents and injuries can contribute to back pain.
Luckily, certain workouts can not only help keep your back strong and pain-free, but they can also prevent and relieve any existing back pain when done properly.
According to Dr. Daniel J. Pak, a pain physician who treats back pain, “regular, targeted back exercises is by far the most effective strategy for treating and more importantly, preventing back pain.” Dr. Pak elaborated that “in many cases, it can help avoid spine surgery. You don’t have to do these with a trainer or therapist. What matters most is doing them regularly—ideally every day.”
Understanding Back Anatomy
The back muscles can be categorized into three layers: superficial extrinsic muscles, intermediate muscles, and intrinsic deep muscles. The superficial muscles, such as the latissimus dorsi and rhomboids, are important for shoulder movement and extension/twisting motions of the spine. The intermediate layer, such as the serratus muscles, also assist with shoulder stabilization and rib movements for breathing. The intrinsic deep muscles, such as the multifidus, are crucial for spinal strength and stability.
All three muscle groups are crucial for spine and back health. Special emphasis is placed on the multifidus muscles given its importance for maintaining spinal stability and supporting good posture.
The weaker your back muscles are, the more likely you are to overextend your body, and you risk running into serious issues such as chronic back pain or even muscle tears and other damage.
Benefits of Strengthening Your Back
Strengthening your back muscles isn’t just important for your overall spine health, it can contribute to some major positive changes in your quality of life as well.
It significantly reduces back pain, a common ailment, by providing crucial support to your spine. Improved posture is another key advantage, as stronger back muscles help maintain proper spinal alignment and posture, avoiding the chronic back pain that can come with slouching.
A robust back enhances overall stability, reducing the risk of injuries during physical activities and daily movements. It contributes to a stronger core, vital for balance and efficient movement.
Furthermore, back exercises can increase flexibility and range of motion, making everyday tasks easier and more comfortable. Investing in back strength is an investment in your long-term physical well-being.
Types of Back Exercises: An Overview
There are four main categories of back exercises: strengthening, stretching, stabilizing your core, and improving your overall posture.
- Strengthening Exercises: Build muscle power to better support your spine and overall structure.
- Stretching Exercises: Increase flexibility and range of motion, easing tension and improving mobility.
- Core Stabilization Exercises: Engage deep torso muscles to create a strong and stable foundation for movement.
- Postural Improvement Exercises: Focus on aligning your body correctly to reduce strain and enhance balance.
Let’s look into the exact exercises for each.
Strengthening Exercises for the Upper Back
One of the keys to keep your back strong and pain free includes improving your back’s overall strength. There are several exercises designed to help improve your upper back strength either at home, or at the gym.
Bent-Over Rows
While these can be a great way to improve your overall back strength, it’s important to ensure you’re performing them correctly, or you risk worsening your pain. Learn how to do bent-over rows to strengthen your spine without causing pain.
Reverse Flys
Reverse flys strengthen your back and shoulder muscles, improving the load-bearing capacity of your spine and strengthening your posture.
Resistance Band Pull-Aparts
These exercises are designed to build strength in your shoulders, biceps, and upper back muscles, and can even improve your posture.
Superman Exercise
The Superman exercise is a great way to stabilize the muscles in your back, both in your upper and lower spine.
Strengthening Exercises for the Lower Back
Don’t forget to pay attention to your lower back as well. Strengthening the muscles along your lower back are vital in keeping your spine healthy and strong.
Deadlifts
While deadlifts can be a great way to improve the strength of your lower back, this exercise in particular can easily cause strain and back injury. Watch closely and make sure your form is correct before attempting this exercise.
Good Mornings
As the name implies, if you tend to start your day off with persistent low back pain, good mornings may be a great way to start off your day, improving your back strength and helping lessen pain over time.
Back Extensions
If your back pain has been linked to weak muscles or issues with your spinal discs, back extensions can be a particularly good exercise for helping to relieve pain, and build strength to keep the pain at bay in the long term.
Bird Dog Exercise
While typically associated with core strength, bird dog exercises can also be great for strengthening the lower part of your spine and can improve spinal stability while relieving pain.
Core Exercises to Support Back Health
The next time you hit the gym to work on your core, consider incorporating a few of these core exercises that can also support your back health and strengthen the muscles along your spine.
Planks and Side Planks
Strengthening your core is a big part of taking care of your overall spine health, and planks and side planks are a great way to build up your core muscles and improve spinal stability.
Bridges
Bridges can be vital in building core and low back strength, improving spinal stability and reducing pain both in the short- and long-term.
Leg Raises
Beyond just engaging your core, leg raises can help build low back strength, especially for those who are dealing with low back pain as a result of strained or weak muscles.
Russian Twists
Although this exercise may seem a little daunting, especially when dealing with back pain, Russian twists are a great way to strengthen your core and back. However, it is vital that you keep your spine from curving or arching, and keep your spine as neutral as possible to avoid additional pain or damage.
Flexibility and Stretching for a Healthy Back
A major part of keeping your back healthy is simply to keep it flexible. By stretching your spine muscles, you’re able to maintain elasticity and strength throughout your back, giving you increased back protection and lessened pain over time.
Cat-Cow Stretch
This stretch is more than just a fun name. The cat-cow stretch can help activate your spine muscles and improve the range of motion of your spine.
Child’s Pose
This simple stretch helps improve spinal range of motion and increases the strength throughout your spine, which can help lessen pain and improve load-bearing capacity over time.
Cobra Stretch
While best for improving low back strength and reducing pain, the cobra stretch can be beneficial for anyone hoping to improve their spinal flexibility and strengthen their back muscles.
Seated Forward Bend
Many associate the seated forward bend with hamstrings, but this stretch is also great for helping strengthen and improve flexibility for your lower back.
Posture-Correcting Exercises
If you’re noticing that bad posture may be a key contributor to your back pain, try these exercises out to improve your back strength and flexibility.
Wall Angels
The next time you find yourself slumping against a wall, try a few wall angels instead to practice better back posture and improve your back strength.
Shoulder Blade Squeezes
While this exercise may seem simple, shoulder blade squeezes are vital in improving the strength of your spinal muscles, and can do wonders for your flexibility.
Chin Tucks
Another simple exercise you can do right at your desk, chin tucks help improve the flexibility of your upper back and can alleviate neck, shoulder, and back pain.
Standing Back Extensions
Standing back extensions can help improve your spinal strength and flexibility, and have been known to help reduce back pain.
Exercises for Desk Workers to Combat Back Pain
If you’re at a job that requires you to spend a lot of time at a desk, you may notice your body hunching as the day drags on. Take a break from work for a moment and try these exercises to strengthen your back right from the comfort of your desk or table.
Seated Cat-Cow Stretch
If you found yourself benefitting from the cat-cow stretch mentioned earlier, you can now give the seated version a try right from the comfort of your desk.
Seated Chair Twist
Like other twisting exercises, keeping the spine neutral is important to help lower the risk of additional pain or damage. When done properly, a seated chair twist can be great for spinal mobility improvements.
Seated Leg Lifts
Another simple way to improve your back pain right from the comfort of your desk, seated leg lifts can help engage your core, improving back strength and helping with posture.
Desk Push-Ups
While getting all the way on the ground at your office may not seem appealing, you can do simple desk push-ups right at your seat, building upper body and back strength while you work.
Exercises for Chronic Back Pain Sufferers
If you’ve been dealing with chronic back pain for a while, the idea of working out with your pain might seem painful, difficult, or even downright impossible. But strengthening your back may be crucial to help improve your pain long-term. Here are some gentle and easy exercises designed for those with back pain.
Modified Bird Dog
If you’re hoping for back pain relief but are struggling with mobility issues due to pain, the modified bird dog is a great exercise for those with limited mobility to slowly get your strength back.
Pelvic Tilts
Gently activating your lower back can help lessen pain and strengthen the muscles over time, and pelvic tilts are a great way to slowly work your back up to more capabilities.
Knee-to-Chest Stretch
If your low back pain is debilitating, trying some knee-to-chest stretches may help alleviate the pain.
Water-Based Exercises
If you have access to a pool or other body of water, simple water-based exercises for low impact can improve spinal function and lessen pain over time.
Pilates for a Strong Back
Spending some time in a Pilates studio may not be a bad idea, especially if your goal is to keep your back strong and pain-free. The next time you hit the studio, try out these key stretches to improve your spine’s flexibility and improve your spinal health.
The Hundred
This stretch is a great way to improve your spinal strength, and can help work out the muscles throughout your back.
Swan Dive
The swan dive stretch can help improve your back’s flexibility, and if done correctly, can also help facilitate pain relief.
Roll-Up
The roll-up helps activate your back muscles, relieving pain and building strength and flexibility.
Yoga for Back Strength and Flexibility
A Pilates studio isn’t the only place you can strengthen your spine. With yoga, you can improve your back muscle strength and improve your overall flexibility, giving your back more elasticity, strength, and mobility.
Downward-Facing Dog
Similar to Pilates, the downward-facing dog can improve your back muscle strength and can help build spinal flexibility.
Extended Triangle Pose
The extended triangle pose helps stretch your back muscles, improving spinal range of motion.
Half Lord of the Fishes
The half Lord of the Fishes pose is a slightly simplified version of the Lord of the Fishes, and this version can help improve back strength and elasticity without worsening pain.
Strengthening the Back Through Weightlifting
If exercises like yoga and Pilates aren’t really your thing, you can also use weight training as a way to improve your back health, especially for your upper back. The next time you hit the weights, try out the following methods to strengthen your back muscles.
Barbell Rows
Weight training can be great for improving back strength, though like any exercise, use caution when doing barbell rows, as they may worsen pain if done incorrectly.
Romanian Deadlifts
When properly performed, Romanian deadlifts can be great for building back strength and improving symptoms of pain. Watch carefully to ensure your form is correct.
Lat Pulldown
This exercise can help improve your back’s elasticity, and strengthening the muscles over time can improve your back’s load-bearing capacity.
The Role of Cardio in Back Health
When thinking about how to improve your spinal health and back strength, cardio may not be your first thought. However, there are several low-impact cardio exercises that can relieve back stress—and help prevent pain from developing in the future.
For example, swimming can provide a full body and back conditioning workout, while walking and cycling can improve posture.
Back Strengthening Routines for Beginners
Whether you’re stepping into a gym for the first time, easing in with home workouts, or haven’t exercised much since high school, there are plenty of low intensity back exercises just for beginners.
For example, trying a bodyweight back exercise routine—or a routine of exercises that just use your body weight to help you move and work out—are a great place to start.
If you’re new to a regular workout routine, remember that progressing slowly is normal, and likely won’t happen overnight. You’ll need to build your strength, endurance, and capabilities over time, making sure to build in plenty of recovery time while your body gets used to the new routine.
Intermediate Back Strengthening Workouts
If you’re not a novice but you aren’t exactly looking to win any athletic competitions anytime soon, you can explore the following intermediate level exercises to improve your spinal health. Weights and resistance bands paired with pilates can give you a great intermediate level back workout, and can help you build consistency with your routine and lengthen the amount of time you’re able to work out.
But as your routine expands and you find yourself working out more frequently, take care to not over exert yourself, as that can exacerbate existing back pain, or create new pain.
Advanced Back Workouts for Athletes
If you’re a high-performing athlete and you need to increase your back strength or relieve pain after tough workouts and competitions, try incorporating complex movements like deadlifts or other high intensity back exercises for peak strength.
Building an advanced back workout routine can help strengthen your back muscles over time, and can help improve the flexibility and load-bearing capacity of your spine to make sure you’re performing your best.
As an athlete, monitoring your growth and being mindful of smart recovery practices becomes crucial. Be wary of muscle imbalances, as rapidly developing back muscles can increase the risk of muscle strain, and do more harm than good in the long run.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Strengthening Your Back
While strengthening your back muscles is vital to keeping your spine healthy, overexertion or exercising poorly can cause injury or increase any existing pain symptoms instead of relieving them.
Poor form while working out can lead to serious back injury and back pain, and overworking your back muscles and neglecting proper recovery routines means your spine won’t fully rest and heal after intense workouts. But even if you’re just starting out as a beginner and don’t plan to do high-intensity, high-impact workouts, you still should plan to incorporate plenty of recovery time into your routine to avoid overexerting your body as it adjusts to the routine.
Additionally, failing to properly engage your core while you work out can actually cause undue stress onto your back, and can injure your spine further rather than relieve pain. And don’t ignore stretching as part of your workout routine, either—making sure your back muscles stay flexible are just as important as keeping them strong.
Creating a Balanced Back-Strengthening Program
When developing a balanced exercise routine, think first about how to combine strength, flexibility, and endurance. Strength and flexibility will help grow your back muscles and keep your spine mobile and healthy, and building up endurance over time will allow you to slowly strengthen your back in healthy increments.
Tailor any exercise program to your own fitness level, tracking your progress and adjusting the intensity as needed. You may find that you need daily low-intensity back workouts to mitigate pain. Or you may find that having a dedicated back day at the gym once a week is all you need to keep pain at bay.
Conclusion
While back pain can be difficult regardless of age or ability, there are plenty of exercise routines out there designed for all skill levels and all abilities that can help relieve the pain or prevent it from happening to begin with. To maintain long-term back strength and manage pain relief, the key is consistency and proper form. If you take care of your back, your back will continue to take care of you.
And, if you find exercise doesn’t help and you require medical intervention, Mainstay Medical is here to walk you through your options. Contact us today to learn more.
