Yoga Lower Back Pain

Lower back pain is one of the most common forms of complaints and if you have herniated disk like mine you might have to live with it for long long years in your life! I tried many different ways to cure it with physical therapy, ostheopati, acupuncture, different types of massage, homeopathy…. over the years. Finally I decided to not fight but learn to live with it by managing my pain though yoga!

Please consult your doctor about your case and apply the following accordingly, if you have a serious back problem.

Here is what I do EVERY morning, as soon as I wake up, before even washing my face!

Lay down your mat, relax and breathe a few times. Then hug your knees, breathe in-out a few times and try to get your nose closer to your knees, breathing in-out a few more times.
Put your head back on floor and put one of your feet back as well. Hug your other knee and breathe in-out a few times. Again, try to bring your nose closer and breathe a few more times here. Make sure your other leg and feet stays on the floor.
Raise your leg up and straighten your knee here and breathe in-out a few times. Stretching your hamstrings (muscles behind your legs) is a crucial point for lower back pain.
Bring your head up, put your hand up behind your calf, breathe in-out a few more times, keeping both legs as straight as possible.
Now, bend your knees and place your ankle on top of your other knee. Clasp your hands around your knee and gently pull it towards you. You will feel the tension in your glutes, the biggest muscle around your hip area.
Bring your knee down towards the floor, by gently pushing it with your hand and always keep both shoulders on the floor, looking to the opposite side to have a deeper stretch. Your other leg on the floor should be straight and relaxed. Breathe in-out minimum 5 times.
Repeat the same poses for the other side
End your session with a child’s pos, sitting back on your heels as below. You can first stretch arms in the front and then bring them back, near your legs-feet. It would be great if someone can help you to have a gentle massage at your back by softly placing one hand on your lower back and other hand in the upper back and elongating your spine while pushing very very gently down.

Yoga for Lower Back Pain Tips

From here, you can switch to cat pose. First, come up to tabletop position, where you are on your knees and hands, making sure your knees are set directly below your hips and your wrists, elbows and shoulders are in line and 90degrees-perpendicular to the floor. Keep your head central in a neutral position, eyes looking at the floor. As you exhale, round your spine toward the ceiling, making sure that you keep your shoulders and knees in position. Release your head toward the floor, not forcing your chin to your chest.

As you inhale, come back to neutral “tabletop” position on your hands and knees and smoothly raise sitting bones and chest up to cow pose. You can allow your belly to sink toward the floor and lift your head to look straight forward. Exhale and come back to neutral “tabletop” position on your hands and knees. You can repeat 5 to 10 times.

That’s it! You can add more like sun salutations if you have some more time, to strengthen your spine in addition to relaxing and stretching more. If not, just keep on doing these steps and if you can stay consistent, you will see the positive results within a week if not earlier!

Please feel free to ask me any questions about these series and contact me if you want to try doing yoga with me. Take a look at my yoga page for more details.

Wishing you happy, healthy and stronger days!