Back pain, tenseness and soreness is a frequent issue for many women, particularly if you spend a lot of your day sitting around home. Fortunately, if you are hurting because of your back, there are various back exercises for women to alleviate the pain and stop it from occurring in the future. The best thing about these type of back exercises is that they’re easy enough to do at home!
These back exercises for women are useful for treating back issues, but can also be used for women looking to tone their back. Either way, be sure that you do ab exercises as well to ensure that you don’t develop a muscle imbalance in your body. Below are seven best back exercises for women at home:
Exercise #1: Superman Back Exercise
While the name of this exercise has the word “man” in it, it certainly doesn’t mean that women can’t rock this workout! This back exercise is sort of the reverse of the plank. To do the superman, simply lie on your stomach and lift your legs and arms up and straight behind and ahead of you… just like you’re superman flying through the air! It’s rather easy for women to do this back exercise at home.
The superman exercise strengthens your lower back muscles the most but also your upper back. The longer you hold this pose, the stronger your back muscles will grow. Start with 30 seconds and work on holding the pose for longer and longer.
Exercise #2: Crunches
Crunches are great back exercises for women to do at home. It is a common misconception that crunches are only good for strengthening your abs. In actuality, crunches workout both your abs and back muscles. Because crunches target your entire core area, it is one of the best exercises out there. For those with back pain, avoid full sit ups as the movements can be too much for your back and do crunches instead.
To do a crunch, lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Put your hands beside your head and flex your ab muscles to lift your upper back off the floor. Then, release on the floor and repeat. A good tip for this exercise is not to move your arms too much, focus on your abs to lift you. Again, this back exercise is easy enough for women to do at home.
Exercise #3: Knee to Chest Exercise
When you do this back exercise, you may feel like not much is happening but your muscles are quietly working! Sometimes the exercises that work the little muscles that we don’t use all the time won’t provide that tough gym workout sensation, but fear not, your body is working hard.
For this exercise, start on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor with your arms to the side. Once you’re comfortable, bring one knee to your chest while keeping your other foot and back flat on the floor. Hold this pose for about 15 to 30 seconds and then repeat on the other side.
Exercise #4: Bridges
This exercise is exactly what it sounds like, you’re essentially making a bridge with your body! Not only does this exercise workout your lower back, it also targets your glutes.
Start on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Keep your arms by your side on the floor and lift your butt off the ground. Perform this motion several times and rest between sets.
Exercise #5: Trunk Rotation Stretch
Physical exertion is good for your back, but so is stretching. Stretching promotes the flexibility and mobility of your back which is just as important as strength.
To do this stretch, lie on your back and bend one knee at a 90 degree angle. Using your opposite hand, slowly pull your knee down to the floor over your other leg. Make sure that your shoulders stay as close to the floor as possible to get the best stretch. Once you’ve done one side, do the other side.
Exercise #6: Cat-camel Back Stretch
This back exercise is sort of a hybrid between an exercise and a stretch, either way, it will definitely loosen your muscles! This exercise is helpful for spine mobility and strengthening your core.
Begin on all fours and arch your back upwards to the ceiling and hold for a couple seconds. After, arch your back towards the floor and hold for several seconds. The trick with this exercise is to move slowly and incorporate your head into the motion.
Exercise #7: Child’s Pose
This is another stretch which comes from the yoga practice. If you have tightness in your lower back, this stretch will be particularly helpful for relaxation. Also, this pose helps with spine mobility.
Start on all fours and slowly push your hips back to your heels until you make contact or feel too uncomfortable to move farther. To get an even deeper stretch, bring your arms forward in front of you on the floor to elongate your back. Once you do this exercise, you may be wondering where the word child’s pose came from as it is nothing like how a child would sit!
