Get Rid of Low Back Pain: Total Body Strength Training Shown to be the Most Effective

Use a total body strength training program to prevent low back pain. Whether your low back pain is due to sitting at a desk all day, bad posture, or an injury, research shows that training the whole body is more effective than aerobic training or a strengthening program that focuses on the abdominal and low back area.

”Core” training is incorrectly thought to be the best method for decreasing low back pain and improving quality of life. In fact, a new study found that recreationally active men had significant decreases in pain and disability after a 12-week total body training program. Participants trained four times a week and included the following exercises: leg press, leg extension, leg curl, bench press, incline bench press, lat pulldown, low cable row, shoulder press, arm curl, triceps pushdown, ab crunches, Swiss ball crunches, and prone superman.

Volunteers improved strength and researchers found a clear correlation between strength development and the decrease in lower back pain and immobility. They highlight the effectiveness of a periodized total body training program, and point to the tendency of low back rehabilitation programs to focus strictly on the “core” muscles or use muscular endurance protocols rather than progressive strength training that varies weight and rep schemes.

Plus, this program uses free weight exercises in addition to body weight and machine exercises in order to promote neural adaptations that help alleviate back discomfort, while promoting functional strength throughout the body.