5-minute yoga to help relieve lower back pain

Picture this: You’re going about your day as usual, heading to work, running errands, or picking up your kids from school. Suddenly you feel a sharp pain that starts from your lower back and extends to your leg, or a dull and severe pain that limits your ability to move. Stops you in your tracks. It forces you to rethink whether you can keep moving throughout the rest of your day. This is the crippling effect that lower back pain can have. And for many people, it’s not a one-time thing. It happens daily.

Although back pain can be severe, the way you treat it doesn’t have to be. For some types of back pain, relief starts with a simple procedure. This is where yoga comes into play. In some cases, gentle stretching exercises can help relieve tension. The key is to never force anything. It’s about moving in a way that feels safe and sustainable.

5-minute yoga for lower back pain

Explore the following stretches and modify each so that your body feels comfortable, whether you’re actively dealing with lower back pain or working to prevent it. You can do these stretching and strengthening exercises in the morning to relieve stiffness, at night to relax your body before bed, or even in bed if getting down to the floor is difficult. If any position causes discomfort or pain, you are allowed to skip it. The goal is not perfection. The goal is relief.

Always consult your doctor when you have back pain and before starting any new exercise routine.

1. Seated Forward Fold

Sit with your legs straight in front of you and your feet slightly apart. For additional support for your lower back, sit on a folded blanket, ottoman, or pillow and keep your knees slightly bent. Pull your chest toward your toes as much as is comfortable, and place your hands on your ankles, shins, or blocks outside your legs Sitting forward fold. Keep your back straight or let your upper back round. Take a few breaths here, then slowly lift.

2. Bridge pose

Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the mat about hip distance apart. Place your arms at your sides with palms facing down. Press into your hands and feet while slowly raising your hips off the mat as far as you feel comfortable Bridge position. Take a breath or two here, then slowly lower your hips back to the mat. If it feels good, repeat it again.

3. Hamstring stretch

Still lying on your back, straighten your right leg and extend your foot toward the ceiling (keeping your knee slightly bent for more lower back support). Grasp the back of your right thigh with your hands or wrap a belt or belt around your thigh and hold on to either end of the belt. Slowly bend and straighten your right knee several times.

4. Figure 4

From the oblique hamstring stretch, place your right ankle on your left knee in a figure 4 formation. Stay here, or lift your left foot off the mat and interlace your toes behind your left thigh in front of your left knee, or wrap a band around your left hamstring and hold on to either end. Take a few breaths here, then slowly lower your left foot back to the mat. Step your right foot next to your left foot.

Repeat the hamstring stretch and figure 4 on the left side.

5. Knees to chest

Still lying on your back, pull your knees toward your chest and wrap your arms around your legs. Take some breaths here.

6. Supine spine development

From knees to chest, lower your knees to your left side, letting your lower leg rest on the mat, ottoman, block, or pillow. Open your arms in Cactus Pose and pull your right shoulder toward the mat in a Supine Spinal Twist. Take a few breaths here, then return to center and repeat on the right side.

Return to center with your feet on the mat and your arms resting at your sides. Take a few deep breaths and see if you have released the tension in your lower back.