Back Exercises:
Abdominal Strengthening
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Research has shown that there are two very important muscles involved in low back pain. By “involved” I mean that these muscles either have poor endurance (tire out faster than they should) or there is a problem with the connection between the muscle and the brain (delayed activation).
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Back Exercises and Abdominal Exercises
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Here is the good news; when back exercises and abdominal exercises (specifically lower abdominal exercises) are done properly, these two muscles will resume functioning normally and will help to produce back pain relief.
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These two muscles are called … ready for some medical jargon??
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The transverses abdominus muscle and the lumbar multifidus muscles.
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The Transversus abdominus is the deepest abdominal muscle. It wraps all the way around the front of the body and around to the back. Similar to the action of a corset, this muscle supports the spine by narrowing the waist and drawing in the lower abdomen as it contracts.
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The lumbar multifidi are small little guys found attached to the vertebrae in the low back. These muscles can be thought of as completing the corset effect of the deep abdominal muscle.
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And the best news of all ? There is one exercise that activates both the deep abdominal (transverses) muscle AND the multifidus at the same time. Not only that, you can do this exercise in any position, at any time. If you do the exercise correctly, no one will even know you are doing it.
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Curious?
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Click on the link below for directions: