I often work with people who tweaked their backs over the weekend and want to give it a week or two to see if it improves before making any kind of medical decision. So it's my job to keep them safely training. We can't know for certain which exercises will help alleviate back pain – it's a highly individual affliction – but we can choose safe starting points and evaluate as we go. The most common back complaints are:
If any of complaints 1-3 describe your situation, we can usually get around the pain by choosing exercises that avoid that movement and by being cautious in general. If complaint 4 describes your situation, but you still want to train, you can do exercises that avoid any range of motion around the spine and avoid loading it at all.
When your back limits you, continuing to meet your goals shouldn't be all that difficult. Squatting and deadlifting variations are the most stressful on the back, so those lifts and associated goals (such as vertical jump) will suffer the most. Luckily, most sports and physiques aren't made or broken on just those lifts. So we train with the following goals:
Sled drags provide a crazy quad pump and can do wonders for conditioning and leg growth, especially in those with back pain. Bonus: They're also one of the most knee-friendly exercises.
There are more cheap sleds on the market than ever, so it's hardly an excuse any more if your gym doesn't provide one. There are nylon sleds safe for gym floors and durable metal sleds costing $100 that you can drag up and down the street. A sled and some Craigslist weight plates are a worthwhile investment.
Lunges are a great choice because they take the weight off the spine. However, it's important to remember that because the arms are connected to the upper body, spinal loading still occurs – it's not absent just because a bar isn't perched on the shoulders. So you still have to be careful and brace the core hard to keep spinal range of motion to a minimum.
Pull throughs are great because they use the anteroposterior force vector without loading the spine. When pull throughs are done properly – forcing the hamstrings to do almost all of the work without arching the back – they're a fantastically safe hamstring builder.
Note: Romanian deadlifts are great for the hip hinge and for the hamstrings, but they place too much strain on an aching back.
If your back is acting up, going super heavy on barbell hip thrusts isn't going to work. Heavy weight will cause you to arch your lower back as the first part of the movement, and that's when back pain shows up.
Moderately heavy weights are tolerated if good form is stressed, and that includes squeezing the glutes and hamstrings hard out towards the toes.
This movement is mercifully kind to the back if executed with a neutral spine.
Most upper body exercises are compatible with back pain as spinal loading and spinal range of motion aren't a big concern with upper body exercises. Chances are, your bad back won't limit your ability to do bench-pressing, chin-ups, biceps curls, or triceps push-downs. Just follow these guidelines.
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