Forget back pain — 7 best Pilates exercises to boost flexibility and strengthen your lower back

Try these 7 moves, Pilates lovers

Pilates offers exercisers plenty of benefits — a regular practice could build strength and muscular endurance, improve posture, flexibility and balance and increase coordination, to name a few perks.

We turned to the Pilates pro Robin Kendall, Pilates instructor at East of Eden, for seven of the best Pilates exercises to de-stiffen your spine, strengthen your back, reduce pain and improve posture.

So if you’re suffering from sore and tight muscles, these low-impact Pilates exercises are accessible for all levels and could help release tension and improve back mobility. Grab one of the best yoga mats for recovery and read on.

According to Kendall, our bodies should be moving in all planes of motion: forward-and-back (sagittal), side-to-side (coronal) and rotational (transverse). With the rise in sedentary living, many people tend to move in the sagittal plane and neglect other ways of moving. Therefore, the best Pilates exercises work in every plane.

Over time, moving in one plane could mean recruiting and overusing various muscle groups while neglecting others, leading to muscular imbalances and injury. If your spine is already inflexible or stiff, or you want to prevent spine problems, add these seven stretches to your arsenal to strengthen and stretch your back muscles and encourage flexibility.

Kendall advises, "Get the best out of these exercises by using Pilates breath which connects into and engages your deeper stabilizer core muscles." That includes the abdominals, psoas (located in the lower lumbar spine region, extending through the pelvis to the femur), multifidus (muscles attached to the spine), transverse abdominis (deepest core muscles that wrap around your waist) and pelvic floor muscles.

Targeting these areas provides "360-degree spinal support and stability," Kendall adds. "The Pilates breath is a lateral breath, a deep inhale through the nose into the sides and back of the ribcage and an exhale out through the mouth — as if blowing out candles on a birthday cake."

During each breath, focus on pulling the front abdominal wall back toward your spine, the pelvic floor muscles up and back toward the spine and the waist in.

The move stretches the back extensors and increases the spinal range of motion.

To lengthen and mobilize the spine in side flexion. Your weight should be evenly placed through both feet, and the pelvis doesn't move.

To lengthen and mobilize the spine in rotation. Initiate the move from the abdominals and obliques and keep both shoulders relaxed with shoulder blades on the mat.

To lengthen and mobilize the spine in extension. Keep your abdominals engaged and pelvis still, engaging your glutes and back muscles.

To lengthen and mobilize the spine through articulation. Keep your hips level and legs parallel.

To lengthen and mobilize the spine in forward flexion. Keep your head aligned with your spine when lifting into flexion, and rest the weight of your head in your hands.

To stretch the lower back and aid relaxation.

Kendall recommends performing these exercises several times per day to give your spine some love.

Research has shown that Pilates has the potential to build strength and aid injury rehabilitation, making it suitable for beginners and advanced exercisers. But for those who don't enjoy consistent stretching, we love these 6 stretches for beginners that boost flexibility in your hamstrings, calves and ankles to ease you in.

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Sam Hopes is a level III fitness trainer, level II reiki practitioner, and resident fitness writer at Future PLC, the publisher of Tom's Guide. Having trained to work with mind and body, Sam is a big advocate of using mindfulness techniques in sport and fitness, and their impact on performance. She's also passionate about the fundamentals of training and building sustainable training methods. When she's writing up her experiences with the latest fitness tech, you’ll find her writing about nutrition, sleep, recovery, and workouts.

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