Learning new lower back exercises can help you improve your workout routine and increase the amount of variety you have available to you for your workouts. While many different lower back exercises can be helpful for a variety of problems, including injury prevention, improving flexibility, strengthening core muscles, and relieving pain from limited mobility, I have found five lower back exercises to be incredibly effective that I feel should be part of every fitness program.
1. Resistance band deadlift
The resistance band deadlift is a fantastic exercise for strengthening the muscles of your lower back. As a strength exercise, it’s similar to but much safer than carrying heavy loads. If you’ve ever tried to pick up a load from the floor, you’ll know that it can be hard on the spine. The resistance band deadlift is a great alternative as it forces your body to contract and strengthen muscles that support your lower back.
Here is how you do a resistance band deadlift:
- Start by standing on a resistance band with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your knees and hips to lower your torso until it’s parallel to the floor.
- Grasp the band with both hands, keeping your arms straight.
- From this position, drive your heels into the floor and stand up, extending your hips and knees.
- Reverse the motion to return to the starting position.
Resistance band deadlifts are a great exercise to work on lower back strength which helps support your spine. You can even see the muscles of your lower back working as you perform this exercise, which is a significant advantage over other exercises like squats and deadlifts.
2. Superman with resistance band
Superman with resistance band exercise to work on building lower back muscles. This will strengthen your back, add muscular support, and increase your posture with balance and stability. The resistance band forces your lower back muscles to work harder than normal, when you’re pulling your legs in towards your torso.
To do this exercise:
- Lie facing down on the floor, and loop the band around your ankles.
- Keeping your legs straight, slowly raise them as high as you can.
- Pause for a count of two, and then slowly lower them back down.
- Repeat for 12-15 repetitions.
The Superman with resistance band is a great exercise to build lower back muscles, especially when you have poor posture or you’re slouchy. You will be able to counter this by pulling your head up and not allowing your spine to round as you perform the exercise. This is an excellent way to strengthen and stabilize your core, which is why it’s so popular with many different athletes.
3. Resistance band good morning
Resistance band good mornings are a great way to train your posterior chain (lower back) muscles. It’s an elementary movement that you can perform without any equipment, which makes it the perfect candidate for an addition to the warm up portion of your workout. Resistance bands can be a great way to provide the resistance that you need to build strength, as well as flexibility and stability to your core.
Here is how you do resistance band good morning the right way:
- Start by standing on the band with your feet hip-width apart.
- Place the band around your shoulders, holding it with your hands in front of you.
- Keeping your back straight, bend forward at the hips, lowering your torso until it is parallel with the ground.
- Return to the starting position by contracting your glutes and hamstrings.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
If you are looking for a simple movement exercise that can build stability and strength for your back and core, resistance band good mornings are just what you need. It will enhance performance in each of the big movements because it specifically targets the muscles that stabilize the hip, pelvis, and spine.
4. Resistance band sumo deadlift
The resistance band sumo deadlift is one you should incorporate regularly if your goal is strengthening the muscles of your lower back. By using the stretch resistance provided by the bands, you will be able to get in great shape and build up your strength significantly without putting too much stress or pressure on your body.
To do resistance band sumo deadlift:
- Start by standing on the center of a resistance band, feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your knees and hips to lower your body into a sumo squat position, making sure to keep your back straight and core engaged.
- Grasp the band with both hands in an overhand grip, palms facing down.
- Keeping your back straight, drive through your heels to stand up, extending your hips and knees to full extension.
- Reverse the motion to return to the starting position.
If you’re looking for a great exercise to strengthen the muscles of your lower back, abs, leg, upper body and core while keeping your body safe, then the resistance band sumo deadlift may be the exercise for you. This exercise can easily be performed by almost anyone and only takes a few simple adjustments to ensure proper form for optimum results. When incorporated regularly into your workout regimen, you should be able to see improvement in the strength of your lower back, abs and legs.
5. Resistance band Romanian deadlift
Resistance band Romanian deadlift is another variation of the Romanian deadlift which focuses on building up strength on your lower back muscles. These muscles are often overlooked and not trained often. If you have suffered an injury to your lower back then these exercises might be a good starting point.
Beyond it being a great hamstring exercise, it can be considered a full body strengthener as well. It is called “Romanian” because of the slight knee bend during the lift.
Here is how you do the exercise:
- Start by standing on a resistance band with your feet shoulder width apart.
- Bend your knees slightly and hinge at your hips to lower your torso until it is parallel to the floor.
- Keep your back flat and your shoulders down and back.
- Extend your hips to return to the starting position.
Resistance band Romanian deadlifts are another variation of the Romanian deadlift which focuses on building up strength on your lower back muscles. If this is not your primary focus then it may be better suited as an assistance exercise to a primary hamstring movement.
Conclusion
Exercises with resistance bands are a great way to get an effective workout. They can also be done virtually anywhere, so long as you have a resistance band and something sturdy to anchor them to. While there are many different exercises that you can do with a resistance band, the five lower back exercises above will help your lower back become stronger and alleviate pain problems associated with the lower back area.