Exercises that use your own body anatomy, and nothing more, are the simplest to do. They offer freedom of time restraints and the need for a gym or exercise equipment. In this video article my colleague Dr. Brett Cardonick demonstrates simple and easy ways to strengthen the back and shoulders.
It is best to do these exercises on the floor, but for demonstration purposes Dr. Brett is using a table.
To begin, place a pillow on the ground and laydown on your belly, with the points of your hips in the middle of the pillow. This will raise your hips slightly up off the ground with a flex at the hips to help stabilize the pelvis. When you do these exercises you don’t want to be rolling or swaying from side to side.
The exercises are done in 3 parts:
- Raising the legs to strengthen the lower back
- Raising the arms to strengthen the mid-back and the shoulders
- Raising the legs and arms in unison to strengthen to entire back from the neck down to the lower back, and even into the buttocks.
Leg raises for lower back strength
Lie down on your belly, hands under your head and relax. Keeping your legs straight, raise your right leg up, then lower it. Now raise your left leg up, then lower it. Repeat for a total of 20 raises, making it 10 raises on each side.
Arm raises for upper back and shoulder strength
For this exercise you want to rest the weight of your head on the floor so you are not mushing your nose or turning your neck. You can use a rolled up towel under your forehead to provide a nice cushion for support. From here, extend your arms out in front of your head, like you are flying. First raise up your right arm and then lower it, then the left arm. Do a total of 20 arm lifts, or 10 on each side.
Combined leg and arm raises for entire back strength
This one strengthens the entire back as you will raise your arms and legs at the same time. Try not to hold your breath. Try 3 or 4 reps of 10 second holds to start and then go longer as you get stronger.
A more advanced version is to lift one arm and one leg, on opposite sides of the body, at the same time.
Do these strengthening exercises every other day to give your muscled a chance to rest and recover. These don’t seem very difficult or stressful, but don’t let their simplicity fool you. They are a good workout.
