Welcome back to this week’s edition of 2-Minute Tuesdays. Low back issues are one of the most common complaints that plague people throughout society. While the core and the low back themselves may be issues in need of strengthening, there are some things you can do on your own for other areas of your body that may help. Specifically, we will be discussing exercises for your feet and your hips that can provide support for your low back and help take stress off of your low back.
The advice given is not a substitute for the advice provided by any medical professional you have consulted and should not replace doing exercises to strengthen your low back and core muscles if those have been recommended to you. However, these exercises may be appropriate to do in addition to other exercises you are doing in order to make sure that the supporting areas for your low back stay healthy and functioning well.
1) Foot Exercises: Inversion and Eversion
One area to consider strengthening if you are having low back issues is your feet. There are many exercises you can do for your feet, but two that we recommend are foot inversion and foot eversion.
In basic terms, foot inversion is making an arch with your foot while foot eversion is flattening the arch of your foot. For inversion, practice squeezing the muscles of the inside arch of your foot, and for eversion practice squeezing the muscles of the outside part of your foot and lower leg.
Make sure to check out the video associated with this week’s episode of 2-Minute Tuesdays for a visual demonstration of each of these exercises.
Action Step: Doing isometric holds for these foot muscles can be very beneficial for improving their strength. Consider doing three five-second isometric holds for each exercise on each foot.
Related: 4 At-Home Exercises To Strengthen Your Feet
2) Hip Exercises: Flexion and Extension
Another area to consider strengthening if you are having low back issues is your hips. Your hips directly support your low back, so making sure they are strong and functioning well is of the utmost importance if you want your low back functioning well.
Two exercises you can do for your hips are hip flexion and hip extension. For hip flexion, lie face up and lift one leg up in the air to a comfortable position (3-18 inches off of the ground), holding the leg there for a brief period of time while focusing on squeezing the muscles on the front of your hip and thigh, then slowly lower back to the starting position.
For hip extension, lie face down and bend one knee. Lift the leg with the bent knee towards the ceiling by squeezing the involved glute. Hold the position for a brief period of time, and then slowly lower back to the starting position.
Make sure to check out the video associated with this week’s episode of 2-Minute Tuesdays for a visual demonstration of each of these exercises.
Action Step: Consider doing three five-second isometric holds for each exercise on each leg. Make sure there isn’t any pelvic or trunk motion happening during either exercise, which will mean you are probably going to move less than you anticipate.