Keeping your back in it's neutral range is an important concept to understand. Neutral range
is a position in your back where there's less stress on your back. It's important to have
strong muscles in your low back, your stomach muscles, and your legs in order to stabilize
and control your back in this neutral range. The following exercises are designed to teach you how
to find your neutral range and to strengthen your muscles in that neutral range. Start with
two or three exercises and work your way up as you feel comfortable. The goal is to exercise a little
every day and have it feel good. It's going to be important for you to be able to find your neutral
range with your low back. The neutral range is going to be the range that's the least stressful
to your back. You can find your neutral range by doing this: go ahead and arch your back by
pushing your tailbone down into the ground and really arch up. Feel how there's more stress on
your back in this position? Yes. And now try to go the opposite direction, try to flatten your back
out into the table. Okay. That range of motion is the most your back can move in this position. Now
your neutral range is the range of motion that's somewhere in the middle that's the least stressful
for your back. So what I want you to do is arch your back and flatten your back and rock back
and forth until you find that comfortable range. That range is going to be the range that we try to
do all of our activities in and our exercises in because it's going to be the safest for your back.
It's going to be important to get your core muscles working to help decrease the pain in
your back. You're gonna do this while maintaining your mid-range position. So I'd like you to first
find your mid-range by rocking your back, back and forth and find that comfortable range. And
now I'd like you to tighten your stomach muscles by drawing your belly button in towards your
spine. Can you feel the muscles working? Yes I'd like you to also at the same time tighten
your butt muscles. It's important to keep your back in the mid-range while you're doing this.
I would like you to hold the contraction for 10 to 20 seconds and repeat 5 times. There's
certain activities you'll do during the day that will influence your back to move in one direction
or the other. For example, like reaching onto a high shelf to grab something. So what I'd like
you to do is take both hands and reach them over your head and feel how that makes your back arch
more. How does your back feel in this position? It feels worse. If feels worse. In this position,
there's more stress on your low back. So how I would like you to do it is bring your arms back
down. I'd like you to find your neutral range again and then I'd like to you to tighten your
stomach muscles and your buttock muscles and bring your arms overhead again, now keeping your back in
that neutral range. How does that feel? A lot better. Good. This is gonna be the strategy
that you'll use whenever you have to reach up to a high shelf to grab anything, to protect your back.
Practice reaching over your head while maintaining neutral range 5 to 10 times. I'd like to see you
do this two to three times per day. As most people bend over for things, they allow their back to
round too far and that's gonna add stress to their back. For example, if I have you put your hands
on your thighs and reach up toward your knees, can you feel how your back rounds too far? Yes. That's
going to be increasing the stress to your back. So what I'd like you to do is find your mid-range and
then to keep your back in its neutral range, you're gonna get your back muscles working a
little bit. You're gonna do this by pushing your tailbone down into the ground gently, keep your
back in its neutral range and then try to reach up toward your knees again. And how does that feel? A
lot better. A lot better. This exercise is going to work your stomach hard but it's going to also
be safe for your back. I'd like you to practice this five to ten times while maintaining neutral
range. I'd also like you to do this two to three times per day. This is an exercise to help you
resist twisting in your back. Twisting can be very stressful on your back and we do lots of twisting
during the day. For example like when we roll over in bed or when we open heavy doors. So what I'd
like you to do is place your fingertips on your hip bones in the front, then I'd like you to raise
your foot a couple inches off the table and see how your back subtly twists to the side. And set
your foot back down, and now the way I'd like you to do it is find your neutral range, tighten your
stomach muscles and your buttock muscles, and then lift that foot up again and try not to let the
back move. Good. So what I'd like you to do for the exercise is to alternate legs. Lift your right
leg, set it back down and then lift your left leg trying to keep your back in its neutral range.
If this exercise needs to be more challenging for you, I would like you to lift your leg and slowly
straighten the leg out only as far as you can and still keep your back in its neutral range. Repeat
this ten times with each leg. This exercise is going to help prepare you for gardening or for
cleaning when you're down on your hands and knees. So what I'd like you to do first is rock forward
on your hands and knees and feel how your back arches, that's good, into extension. How does
that feel? It feels, it makes my back pain worse. Okay. So what I'd like you to do is find your
neutral range and once you've found that neutral range, I want you to tighten your stomach muscles
and your buttock muscles and rock forward again trying to keep your back in that neutral range.
Good. Feel how your stomach muscles are working very hard here? Yes. Good. Now I'd like you to
rock back to the starting position. Now, from this position I'd like you to rock back on your
heels and feel how as you rock back on your heels your back wants to round too far. Mm-hmm. Okay,
now come forward and now again find your neutral range and then rock back on your heels and engage
your back muscles by sticking your tailbone up in the air a little. Good. Now, how does that feel?
A lot better. And come on back forward. So the way I'd like to see you do the exercise, I'd like
you to rock forward getting your stomach muscles to work and then I'd like you to rock backwards
getting your back muscles to work. Practice rocking forward and then backwards while keeping
your back in the neutral range five to ten times. I'd like to see you do this two to three times
per day. It's very important to have strong core muscles to support and control your back, so this
exercise is designed to really strengthen your leg muscles and your buttock muscles. So to start,
what I'd like to see you do is find your neutral range. As soon as you have your neutral range,
I would like to you to lift your buttocks off of the table. Lift as high as you can, keeping your
back in the neutral range. Try not to go too high because then your back will arch into extension.
Hold this position for five to ten seconds while maintaining neutral range in your back. Then
slowly lower your hips to the floor. Do 10 to 20 repetitions, two to three times per day. Using
good squatting form is very important in trying to protect your back. People bend over and squat
many times a day and if they do this incorrectly it's going to add a lot of stress to their back.
So what I'd like to see you do first is try to find your mid range or your neutral range with
your back and then I'd like you to start to gently squat down and stick your tailbone out backwards
to keep your back in that neutral range as you're reaching down. Very good. Come on back up. So for
the exercise what I'd like you to do is hold the down position for five seconds and then I'd like
to see you do 10 to 20 repetitions. This is gonna help you strengthen up the muscles that are gonna
help you squat correctly. Hold this position for five seconds, keeping your back in the neutral
range then return to the standing position. Do 10 to 20 repetitions three to four times a day.
Keeping the muscles in your legs and hips flexible will help take stress off your low back;
this is a stretch for your buttocks. Try to keep your back in neutral range and bring one knee up
towards your chest; straighten your other leg. You should feel the stretch in your buttocks. Hold the
stretch for 30 to 60 seconds and repeat two to three times per day. To stretch your hamstring
muscle or the back of your thigh loop a towel or strap around the back of the leg that you
would like to stretch. Keep your back in its neutral range and straighten the opposite leg.
Straighten your leg until you feel a stretch in the back of your thigh. Hold the stretch for 30
to 60 seconds and repeat two to three times per day. To stretch the front of your thigh,
stand in front of a table with the chair behind you. Bend your knee and place your
foot on the chair behind you. Make sure that your knee is under your hip and not in front
of it. Flatten your low back and tighten your buttocks until you feel a stretch in the front
of your thigh. Hold the stretch for 30 to 60 seconds and repeat two to three times per day.