5 Yoga Poses for Your Lower Back

There are many yoga poses that care for your lower back, relax it, and help you avoid the pains of modern life. If you're interested in knowing what these are, keep reading!

The back, in general, and the lumbar vertebrae, in particular, tend to suffer a lot due to the daily activities we do. Spending a lot of time sat down has consequences and at the end of the day, we feel that our bodies “remind us” that we’ve not stretched or thought about it all day. The good news is that there are different yoga poses that can help your lower back.

You can do these poses in your home or at any time during the day. For example, at lunch. Below, we’ll tell you all about the poses that specialists recommend to maintain lower back health.

Which yoga poses are good for the lower back?

Yoga that cares for your lower back bases its poses on a series of exercises – poses or asanas – that you can do at any moment during the day. Many people decide, for example, to do them in the morning when they get up, or at night, before they go to bed. But, you can also do them at both times.

Maybe you’ve thought that a yoga pose is too difficult or only for people who have reached a certain level of expertise. However, in reality, you can start with the basics, and as time goes by, you can make them a little more complicated. Among the best yoga poses for the lower back, we can find the following:

1. Cat pose: for your lower back

Let’s start with one of the most famous yoga poses, marjaryasana in Sanskrit. This will help you to relax your entire spinal column, as well as your neck and your ribcage.

To do this pose, similar to the poses we mention in other articles, you’ll need a mat, towel, or blanket to make sure you’re comfortable. First of all, support yourself on the palms of your hands, knees, and the bridges of your feet. Your back should be straight and parallel with the floor whilst you look forward.

As you inhale through your nose, drop your head between your arms and look at your stomach. Your back should curve upwards. As you exhale, lift your head and try to look at the ceiling, as your back curves downwards.

2. Wind-relieving pose

With the original name of Pavanamuktasana, this pose aims to alleviate tension in the lower back and hips. This posture helps mobility, flexibility, and relaxation.

For this pose, start by lying on your back with your legs outstretched and your arms by your side. Once in position, bend your knees and raise them as high as you can toward your chest.

Then, cross your right leg over your left to support your right ankle over your left. Next, put your hands under your right leg to hold it well and hold this for a few seconds. It’s important that your lower back is off the floor and that your free leg stays parallel to the floor.

3. Bridge pose: for your lower back

In the same starting position as the one above – lying face-up on your mat – you can do another of the best yoga asanas for your lower back. Here, we’re talking about setu bandhasana . With your arms at either side of your body, bend your knees to support the heels of your feet on the ground, as close as you can to your glutes!

After this, raise your pelvis as high as you can, as if you’re trying to reach the sky, and form a straight line between your chest and knees. Don’t allow your shoulder blades or your head to lift from the floor.  You can get a ball – like a medicine ball – and fit it to your waist to help you hold this pose for longer.

4. Child’s pose

Balasana – the pose shown in this article’s header photo – is one of the best options in yoga for your lower back because it relaxes the whole back. To start, sit on the mat and rest your thighs on your heels, so you’re essentially sat on your knees.

Secondly, bring your arms up to the ceiling and slowly bring your torso down until your arms touch the floor – and if it’s possible until your nose and chin do too! Hold this pose for as long as you can.

5. Cobra pose

Lastly, this pose can help relax the entire spinal column and help us to stretch. Start on the mat face down, with your legs outstretched; once there, stick your elbows to your body and put the palms of your hands on the floor as close as possible to the body.

From this position, bring your chest up and look to the sky, The idea here is that your back slightly curves and so stretches completely; keep the bottom of your stomach stuck to the ground.

Use yoga to care for your lower back

There are many other yoga poses that are good for your lower back that you can do. Examples of these would be the downward dog, plow pose, or the forward bend. However, specialists don’t recommend these for beginners.

Regardless, it’s still important that you start this discipline even if you don’t practice it regularly. Over time, you’ll notice that your lower back pain reduces and that you find it easier to do the poses at the same time!