Back Awareness Week: Protect and Care for your Back With These Five Exercises

Warm Up

Slouch and extend

Sit tall in your chair, with your feet on the ground. Let everything above your hips slouch. Once slouched, place a finger gently below your sternum (the soft bit just below where your ribs join in the centre of your chest). Lift your ribs up as high as possible and hold. Repeat three times.

Upper body rotation

Sit tall in your chair, with your feet on the ground. Place your right hand on your left shoulder and left hand on your right shoulder. Keeping your hips still, rotate as far as you can without pain to the left and then to the right. Repeat three times. Each time you rotate notice a focal point in the room. The next time you rotate to that side, see if you can notice a point further around.

Ab hold

Using a sturdy chair with no wheels or arms, turn the chair so the backrest is to the side. Sit sideways, slouch and lean back. As you lean back raise your knees and feet until they touch the underside of your desk. Continue to lean back, still slouched, until you feel it in your abs. It’s important to maintain the slouched position to protect your back. If your back starts to hurt, stop immediately, reset, and try again. If it still hurts don’t do any more reps. Repeat 10 times.

 Ab twist

Once you’ve mastered the ab hold, try taking the hold out to the maximum position, then doing a small ab crunch and twist either side. Repeat 10 times. 

For more information visit BackCare.