Back Exercises

There are three questions you should always ask relating to back exercises. These are…

Which Back Exercises should you do?

The simplest question first. There are major and minor muscles. The major muscles influence your back and how it moves and functions. These are the muscles you should always target. The minor muscles can be involved and can be stretched for the sake of completeness, or if you find changes are slow.

The major muscles for your lower back are your Hip Flexors, Erector Spinae, Hamstring and Gluteals. If you have sciatica then the Piriformis also fits into this group.

The minor muscles are your Adductors, Tensor Fascia Lata, Quadratus Lumborum and Quadriceps.

The major muscles for your upper back and neck are your Levator Scapulae, Neck Extensors and Flexors, SCM, and Upper Trapezius.

The minor muscles are your Pectorals, Rotator Cuff muscles and the Coraco-Brachialis.

The major muscles are the more common that cause back pain and also inhibit flexibility. Target these and big changes occur. This leads into the second question…

What is the best Back Exercise?

There are always two types of exercise you need to do for your muscles (and joints). You need to stretch and strengthen!

Below there is a link to the actual way to stretch. The best way to stretch is not the procedure but the mechanics of the stretch. There are certain ways to stretch that make dramatic changes in a very short time.

The best way to stretch for both back pain relief and to gain flexibility is to use PNF stretches. PNF stands for proprioceptive neuro-facilitation, hence PNF is easier to say and write.

This type of stretch uses a rebound relaxation of your muscles as well as strengthening the muscle at the same time. Research and studies have shown this to be the most effective way to stretch for back pain relief and to gain flexibility.

So now you know what to stretch and the best way to stretch, next you need to strengthen the muscles.

This is achieved by using certain reflexes that stimulate the nerve and blood supply to the muscles. Fail to stimulate the nerve and blood supply and no matter which exercise you do to gain strength, you will fail to gain the functional strength you need. Strength comes from a combination of the supply to the muscle and the physical exercise you do.

The last question is knowing …

When is the best Time to do Back Exercises?

Timing is everything. The reason is simple enough; you are doing back exercises to remove pain and to improve flexibility. When you stretch you are relaxing the muscle. Using it immediately after you stretch removes the entire reason you are stretching – using the muscle contracts the muscle, stretching relaxes it.

The answer is obvious. If you want to gain change quickly you need to stretch and then relax the muscle. You also need to retrain the muscle so that it relaxes when not in use, but on guard ready to be used when you ask it to. The PNF stretches combined with timing gives you this ability.

Stretching needs to be done 3 times each day (PNF only takes a few seconds to do) – morning, in the day and just prior to bed. The prior to bed being the most important as you stretch the muscle and then relax it – for the entire night. This allows the muscle to gain the biggest change for pain relief and flexibility.

Gaining strength, which only takes a few seconds to stimulate the reflexes, should be done at the same time as you stretch. Physical exercise should be performed 3-4 times each week – in fact, stimulating the nerve and blood supply is all you need to remove back pain. Physical exercise will help to prevent it returning.

I know this may sound hard and time consuming. In fact it isn’t. Just click the link below and I’ll send you a FREE eBook on some techniques you can use right now on quick and simple Back Exercises

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