This simple exercise is one of the first and most effective shotgun activities that I implement with many of my low back pain patients. I have seen this exercise (and some of its variations) relieve many a patient’s low back stiffness just with a simple movement.
The name of this very common movement is child's pose, and it is nothing new or special. This position passively stretches the low back from the sacrum to the fingertips. The position itself also provides an excellent release (not like actual tissue pulling apart, but the sensation, yea, maybe...) right below the posterior posterior of the rib cage and the top of the pelvis, the lower quadrants.
By taking both hands and putting them to one side (*see video above*) along with a small 'tail wag' of the sacrum, this can help with lumbo-pelvic dissociation, a prominent factor in reducing the brain’s physiological representation of a particular area (in this case the low back) which aids in the process of reducing chronic pain symptoms.
If you feel that your side are constantly tight or restricted, continually smashing your low back and QLs on a foam roller, this could be the exercise for you! Many times, simply moving the tissues in an area that is painful can greatly reduce the subjective feeling of restriction one has.
So I urge you to give this movement a try! I know that many of you will look at this and think that you have tried it before, but if you do it with the correct intention, you will notice its true power. If you haven’t already, please check out my FREE EBook here for a whole bunch of great exercises to target your low back pain!