Exercise is a fundamental pillar of spine maintenance, helping to build muscle and core strength to provide the necessary support.
People who lack back and core strength are much more susceptible to spinal conditions and diseases which can result in pain, discomfort, a lack of mobility, and other symptoms.
In this article, we will focus on six low-impact exercises that are perfect for building core strength and maintaining a healthy spine.
Why Maintaining A Healthy Spine is Important
Many people can overlook the importance of a healthy spine. However, the benefits of maintaining spinal health cannot be understated.
Your spine supports your entire body, enables movement, and protects the spinal cord which connects the brain to the nervous system.
Should the spinal cord become damaged, then your coordination, movement, and bodily control can be impacted.
This could result in life-changing consequences, such as losing the ability to walk.
6 Low-Impact Exercises for a Healthy Spine and Core Strength
Exercising doesn’t always need fancy equipment or even require a lot of time.
By focusing on just 6 key, low-impact exercises you can gradually strengthen your back muscles and core to boost your spine health, increasing the chance of avoiding potential back issues in the future.
1. Forearm Plank
This is an exercise technique that targets the core but also works on the entire body.
For beginners, this position may be difficult to hold for more than a minute or two but will become easier as your strength improves.
Technique:
- Place your forearms in a parallel position on the floor, hands facing in front of you, and with your elbows below your shoulders.
- Stretch your legs out behind you so your body is in a straight line, with your toes on the floor for balance.
- When holding the plank, squeeze the core of your body, including the glutes and quads.
- Ensure your hips do not drop but your pelvis has a slight tilt, with your buttocks pointing upwards.
- Straighten your head and neck and focus your eyes on your hands while holding the position.
- Aim to hold the plank for a minute, increasing this time by 10-second increments whenever you feel comfortable.
2. Side Plank
A largely underappreciated exercise by many. The side plank targets the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, obliques, hip abductors, and the often underused muscles that lay deep in the back.
Technique:
- Place your right hand on the floor, directly below your left shoulder, and stretch out your legs so your body is in a straight line, with one leg on top of the other.
- Lift your left arm upwards and turn your head to face your hand that is in the air.
- Hold this position for 30 seconds, and then repeat with your left hand on the floor.
- Aim to do this 2-3 times on each side. Increasing this number when you feel ready.
3. Tabletop Leg Press
This is an effective exercise to engage a person’s core muscles to improve their overall strength and stability.
Technique:
- Lie on your back with your face facing upwards and your knees being in a 90-degree angle (tabletop position). Make sure your knees are tucked in enough so that they are directly above your hips.
- Press your lower back into the ground by engaging your abs.
- Put your hands on top of your quads and press downwards while attempting to perform a slight crunch by tucking your knees towards your stomach. If done correctly, your body should not move but you should feel an intense contraction internally.
- Hold this position for 10 seconds, then repeat.
4. Glute Bridges
The glutes are key to building core strength. However, with some exercises, it is easy to overextend your back when trying to engage them.
Therefore, when performing a bridge, be careful to only lift your hips enough to engage your glutes and nothing else.
Technique:
- Lie on your back with your feet planted flat on the floor, leaving a gap between them that is as wide as your hips. While doing this, your arms should be down your sides.
- Push upwards on your heels to lift your hips while engaging your glutes and abs. Lift your hips just a few inches off the floor so you create a straight line between your shoulders and knees.
- Hold this position for just a second.
- Lower your hips slowly to the starting position and repeat as many times as you deem sufficient.
5. Forward Lunges
A forward lunge is an easy and well-known exercise that targets the abs and glutes in a not over-exerting way.
Technique:
- Begin in a standing position with a gap between your feet that is as wide as your shoulders.
- Place your hands on your hips or behind your head. However, you prefer.
- Step forward a couple of feet with your right foot, ensuring you plant your foot firmly. This should result in both knees forming a 45-degree angle, with your right knee directly above the ankle.
- When doing this, make sure your body is straight with your shoulders above your hips.
- Push back on your right foot to return to the starting position and then repeat with your left foot.
6. Reverse Lunges
For some people, forward lunges apply too much pressure to the knees and can result in some pain. Reverse lunges are the perfect alternative.
Technique:
- Start in a standing position with your feet about a shoulder’s width apart.
- Place your hands on your hips or behind your head.
- Take a step back with your right foot, placing the ball of the foot on the floor but your heel lifted off the ground.
- Like a forward lunge, this should result in both knees forming a 45-degree angle and your body straight.
- Push on the heel of your left foot to return to the standing position.
- Repeat the exercise by taking a step back with your left foot
- Poor Spinal Health: Potential Consequences
Poor spinal health can result in potentially serious conditions such as spinal stenosis and in severe cases, a person may require surgery.
A laminectomy removes part of the vertebrae to create more space in the spinal canal.
This is typically followed by spinal fusion to fuse the affected vertebrae to create a solid and stable base.
Mechanical spinal devices are a modern spinal stenosis surgery and are a replacement for spinal fusion, making them effective for other conditions such as scoliosis.
These devices allow a person to retain full movement in their back, allowing them to bend and twist easily unlike spinal fusion. This is why many doctors consider these advanced implants to be the future of spinal surgery.
Thank you for reading. To improve your core strength and general health further, you may want to combine the above exercises with yoga which is proven to boost spinal health and flexibility.
