Abs and lower back pain

PamelaKuz

Hi, I was wondering if anyone knows of any exercises that are good for strengthening the ab area that's easy on the lower back? I just finished day 4 of the 30 day shred, and my lower back is starting to hurt.. I have injured it in the past and I really don't want to mess it up again. Thanks!

wellbert

Here's something extremely important:

NEVER, EVER bend and twist at the same time.
Bending is fine! Twisting is fine!
Bend + Twist = PAIIIIIIIIIIIN

Personally, I like the ab wheel. Cheap device that's amazing for your abs. It's good for newbies and athletes.

anaoliver63

I also suffer from lower back pain, when doing abs. I started planking first and it has helped my core as well as lower back when i exercise my abs.

ilovedeadlifts

leg raises usually dont bother my back too much
planks
decline situps are iffy, sometimes I can get away with them


squats and deads effectively work your abs and lower back............

PamelaKuz

Thanks everyone! I forgot about plank. The worst ones for me are the ones that work the lower abs. I think they are called reverse crunches. It sucks though because that's my biggest trouble spot.

PamelaKuz

I didn't know squats worked abs & back! Thanks for the info!

leg raises usually dont bother my back too much
planks
decline situps are iffy, sometimes I can get away with them


squats and deads effectively work your abs and lower back............

Mokey41

Plank is by far the best ab exercise in all it's forms IMHO. No worry about stress on back or neck muscles.

PamelaKuz

Thanks! I love doing plank.

Plank is by far the best ab exercise in all it's forms IMHO. No worry about stress on back or neck muscles.

Yogi_Carl

Plank is by far the best ab exercise in all it's forms IMHO. No worry about stress on back or neck muscles.

I agree and you could also try alternating one knee up to the triceps on the same side and back and also to the opposite triceps and back to a good abdominal squeeze.

LaurenAOK

Hanging leg raises are great for your lower abs, they're basically like a reverse crunch except you're not lying on the ground. I'm thinking that will be easier on your back - it is on mine. I have a lot of lower back pain with ab stuff too.

Also - and I'm not sure if this is safe for you to do with a past injury, definitely ask a dr! - hyperextensions can really help strengthen your lower back. I've been doing them and ab exercises have gotten easier for me as a result.

issystclaire

It is not so much a matter of doing certain exercise, but more so of how you do them.

I practice bikram yoga, and there are a few postures which put more strain on the lower back - which I already suffer from pain with. So I sppoke to one of my instructors about it, and she showed me how to do the certain poses differently, so as to take the strain off my lower back.

As I am unfamiliar with the 30 day shred, I cannot comment on what exactly you are doing, but I can give you an example of mine and maybe it will help.

First thing to remember, is any time you do a stretch or move which involves the back or spine, make sure you are not "dumping" your weight on your lower back. This is basically achieved by holding your spine as straight as you can and not "resting" the weight lower down (if that makes sense?) Also, if you are engaging your ab/core muscles, this will help take the strain and weight away from your lower back as well.

One of the poses I do in bikram, require you to stand with your legs apart - one foot behind the other, with your arms raised above your head, hands held in prayer. You then bend all the way down, bend the knee of the leg that is in front, and rest your forehead on your knee, and your hands on the floor in front of you, or if you're more advance, you keep the arms outstrecthed, with hands held in prayer.

So my instructor told me, instead of bending all the way down with my arms over my head, I start to bend, but then walk my hands down my body and leg until I reach the floor. This helps take the strain off my lower back. There are a few others like this, and I do something similar. Also, placing the hands on the upper bum/lower back whilst doing any sort of back bending will also help take the strain off.

I hope this helps you!

kinmad4it

I've got an extremely iffy lower back and am very very dubious about doing dead lifts and/or squats.

I've been doing planks for a few weeks now and I've almost doubled the time I can hold them. Still don't feel confident enough to any of the heavy compound lifts I mentioned earlier.
I've felt no pain at all in my back whilst doing the planks, so I would definitely suggest giving those a try.