Back pain and core: what to train when your lower back hurts
Your lower back hurts by evening, after sitting and when getting out of bed, an MRI shows “disc bulges”, and you think you cannot train. Disc bulges are present in half of healthy people without any pain. In people who sit, pain is caused by a weak core and inactive glutes in 80% of cases: the spine is supported not by the skeleton but by the muscular corset, and when it is absent, the ligaments and discs take over. Section — training with joint pain.
The core is not the abs
The core is a cylinder around the lower back: deep abdominal muscles in front, spinal extensors in back, the diaphragm on top, and the pelvic floor below. Its job is to keep the spine still while the arms and legs move. Crunches do not teach this; they bend the lower back. The exercises that teach it are those where the lower back does not move while the limbs do. In women after childbirth, the pelvic floor is part of this cylinder, and without it the back cannot stay supported: pelvic floor.
Four exercises from day one
| Exercise | How | How much | What not to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forearm plank | body in a straight line, glutes squeezed, breathing steady | 3×20-40 sec | arching the lower back, holding your breath |
| Dead bug | lying on your back, lower back pressed down, alternately lower an arm and a leg | 3×8 per side | lifting the lower back off the floor |
| Bird dog | on all fours, extend the opposite arm and leg, hold still | 3×8 per side | rocking, arching |
| Glute bridge | lying down, feet on the floor, lift the pelvis while squeezing the glutes | 3×12 | arching the lower back at the top |
Glutes: the muscle that “switched off”
Eight hours in a chair means the glutes do not work at all, and over the years they stop engaging when you stand up, take a step, or bend over. The lower back does their work — hence the pain. Bridges, hip abductions, and stepping onto a step with an emphasis on the glute restore activation. A sign of progress: when getting up from a chair, the backside tightens first, not the back. Walking every day is also about the glutes.
What not to do while it hurts
- Bent-over exercises with weights, deadlifts from the floor
- Crunches and lying leg raises
- Hyperextensions with a large range of motion
- Sitting for longer than 45-60 minutes without a break
- Lifting heavy objects with a rounded back — a child, bags
- Complete bed rest for longer than 2 days
Red flags — see a doctor today
Numbness in the legs, foot weakness, or a leg that “gives way”. Loss of bladder or bowel control. Pain after an injury or fall. Pain at night that wakes you, accompanied by fever or weight loss. Pain radiating down the leg below the knee and getting worse. Everything else should be trained around the pain. The basics of back and posture are covered in posture, back, and core.
Frequently asked questions
Should I wear a brace?
For a day or two during an acute episode — it is okay. Constantly — no, the core unlearns how to support you on its own.
Painkillers and training?
Painkillers are for moving around in daily life, not for training through pain. Training when pain is above 3/10 should be postponed; the four exercises above are almost always okay.
When should I add deadlifts?
When you can hold a plank for a minute without shaking, do a single-leg bridge 12 times, and have had no pain for two weeks. Start deadlifting with the kettlebell from an elevated surface, not from the floor.
- Joints, Weight and Inflammation
- Training with Joint Pain
- Nutrition for Joints
Reviewed by Anastasia Zhukova, Fitness Trainer • Author of a Nutrition and Training System • Creator of an AI Personal Support Platform
A human has reviewed this material against the method and real client practice.