Are you working from home at the moment? If so there is a good chance that you don’t have an ideal set up in your house to sit all day at a computer and laptop. This might increase the chances of you getting a bad back; how you sit all day is crucial to the health of your spine. Below, Tom and I go through why it is important to sit properly and do some exercises to strengthen your back.
Squats
3 x 6
- Feet shoulder width apart
- Squat down up into your thigh is at 45° (half squat)
- Drive back up through the heels
- Reset and repeat
- Watch yourself in a mirror to look for any twists to one side, putting more weight on one side than the other, and looking to make sure you can watch yourself the entire time
Glute Bridges
3 x 8 (with a 2-3 second hold)
- Lying on your back on a matt
- Feet shoulder width apart and a small step forward from the body
- Driving through the heels push your pelvis up into the air
- Hold at the top for 2-3 seconds whilst squeezing the glutes together
- Slowly relax back down and repeat
Single Leg Heel Lifts
3 x 5 on each leg
- Start lying on your back
- Feet out just in front of you with knees bent
- Slowly lift one leg so your knee comes up towards you
- Relax back down and alternate with the opposite leg
- Make sure your lower back doesn’t lift off the floor
Kneeling Superman’s / Bird Dogs
3 x 5 on each side both legs and arms
- Start in a 4-point kneel position (on your hands and knees)
- Slowly and controlled lift one arm at a time
- Work up to a range you are comfortable with
- Slowly lower back down and reset
- Repeat with the opposite arm
- Once this is done do the same with the legs. One at a time
- You should not excessively bend through your back during this movement
- If you are progressing well with this exercise you can start to do legs and arms at the same time working the opposite arm and leg to keep balance
Scapula Setting Wall Press
3 x 8
- Stand slightly away from the wall feet shoulder width apart
- Hands shoulder width apart and in line with your collar bones
- Before you moved get your shoulders set back
- Slowly lower yourself down towards the wall
- And slowly push yourself back up to the start position
Glute and Lower Back Stretch
3 x 3 (30 second holds)
- Lying on your back
- Bend one leg and bring it across your body to the opposite side
- The arm on the same side as that leg you want to lift above your head
- Hold this position for 30 seconds
- Repeat on the other side
Cobra Stretch
3 x 4 (30 second holds)
- Start lying face down
- Push up onto your hands with your legs still flat on the ground
- This will produce a position that looks like a cobra
- Hold this position for 30 seconds
- Only push yourself up to a range you are comfortable with
- You do not need to push yourself all the way to the top if it is uncomfortable
Correct Seated Position
Another thing which will help to improve your back pain is working on improving you seated position to create a better environment for you back. In this video we will describe how to improve your seated position and why this is helpful.
