8 INDISPENSABLE glutes and core exercises for lower back pain

8 INDISPENSABLE glutes and core exercises for lower back pain

For today’s video post, I’ve put together some of my most favorite glutes and core exercises for lower back pain, so you can strengthen both your glutes and your deep core muscles at the saaaaame tiiiime :).

PS: If you haven’t already, you should get inside the 5-Day Back Pain challenge asap. And if you want to learn more about how this challenge can help you with chronic pain, click here for more info

So why do you need to strengthen your glutes and core? Well, If you CONSTANTLY stretch your hip flexors (the front of your hips) because you feel pressure in your low back, and you have no idea why the relief is very temporary, well let me say that 99% of the time, the problem is NOT in your hip flexors.

Guess what is the primary job for the hip flexors (which are 7 muscles btw)? it’s to FLEX! that’s what they do. While they often get overused, as they try to compensate for weak muscles in the region, when we notice extreme tightness in the hips, we definitely need to look elsewhere for the issue.

This is where I suggest you read this book: Pain Free to help you restore posture. Posture is one of the main contributor for tightness, and joint pain. When you have a solid posture, and you maintain it (after restoring it), you help keep the right tightness in all the muscles. The book explains in detail how to realign your posture to reduce chronic pain. While simly focusing on posture may not fix ALL of your chronic pain, especially if it’s related to something more than just posture, but we can all agree that most of us spend the majority of our days in relatively bad posture, and that definitely doesn’t help. I have always noticed great relief after a good postural therapy session, and I believe that can benefit anyone who has a desk job, drives, or spends more than 2 hours sitting/day.

Once you start paying attention to your posture, you can then work more on strengthening…

Few reasons why you may want to strengthen the core and glutes togehter, instead of individually:

1. The glutes, hamstrings, and core LOVE to train together. You strengthen the “relationship” between the muscles as opposite to isolating them all the time.
2. You condition these muscles to always work together. So next time you want to go for a jog, or lift something heavy off the floor, you are automatically tighting up your core and your glutes, and giving your low back a break.
3. When your glutes are fired-up, you’re very less likely to involve your hip flexors, and work more of your weak stabilizer muscles.
4. Two birds, one stone!

What You need:

Yourself. Most of the exercises are bodyweight. I do use a loop band just to add some resistance. It’s totally optional.

Some of the exercises include a stability ball, but again, it’s totally optional. You can totally substitute the ball with weights in the 1st exercise, or a chair/floor in the last exercise.

8 INDISPENSABLE glutes and core exercises for lower back pain

Glutes and Core Exercises Breakdown:

1. Deadlift: It’s SO important to keep your core engaged, and your back straight as your hip hinge through the deadlift exercise. I like to either hold a stability ball, or some weights to keep me stable. As you push through the exercise, tighten your glutes as you get back up.
2. The superman: Legs should stay straight the whole time. This exercise strengthens the glutes, low back and your core. So make sure everything is nice and tight.
3. Swimmers: One of my favorite exercises. By engaging your arms, you will work all of your upper body, your core, your glutes, all the way down to your hamstrings. I usually finish my core exercsies with this movement.
4. The bridge exercise: Keep your core very tight here. The moment you stop tightening up your core and glutes, the low back starts compensating. I like to add a loop band here to ensure my glutes are activated
5. The toe taps: This exercise works the glute max really nicely, and engages your low abs as well. I use the loop band as well, but you don’t have to.
6. The backward lunge: My favorite leg exercise. It works the glutes directly, and of course challenges your core. If you have issues with stability, and you have knee pain, the backward lunge is a great alternative to the forward lunge, and the squat exercise.
7. One legged bridge exercise: This is an advanced variation of the bridge exercise. Make sure you keep a straight line from your upper back to your foot. Again, if you start dropping your hips, and fatiguing, your low back will kick in. So, it’s always safer to just take a break if you need to, and proceed with the exercise. There is no point in finishing any exercise with bad form, that can lead to injury.
8. Glute extensions on stability ball: One of my favorite exercises as well. The ball challenges your core like crazy, and you also isolate the glute muscles as you lift them up. You don’t have to lift your legs up too high. This doesn’t have to be a big exercise. The important thing is to tighten your glutes as you lift up. This is also a great glute builder, if you’re looking to tone up your glutes as well

I hope you enjoyed this post! Again, if you have been struggling with back pain for years and NOTHING has worked so far…I invite you insite the 5-day back pain challenge. Sign up below, and get started right away!

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