Lower Back Pain: 7 Exercises You Can Do at Home

The short answer

For the large majority of lower back pain — the "non-specific" kind with no serious underlying cause — the single most effective thing you can do at home is keep moving gently. Bed rest, once the standard advice, is now known to slow recovery. The routine below is close to what I give patients in an online consultation: a short sequence of low-load exercises that calm the pain, restore movement, and rebuild the support around the spine.

Do them slowly, only within a range that does not sharply hurt, once or twice a day. None of these should provoke pain shooting down your leg. If they do, stop and read the red-flag section at the end.

Why movement beats rest

Around 8 in 10 adults have an episode of lower back pain at some point in life, and for most of them no scan is needed and no serious cause is found. The reassuring part: most acute episodes ease substantially within a few weeks. What helps that timeline is gentle loading — movement tells the tissues they are safe to work, keeps the joints mobile, and stops the deep stabilising muscles from switching off. What delays it is fear, guarding, and staying still.

So the goal of this routine is not to "stretch the pain away" in one session. It is to give your back a small, safe dose of the right movement every day, and let the trend improve week on week.

The 7-exercise home routine

Move through them in this order — it goes from gentlest to most demanding. If you are in an acute flare, do just the first three for the first few days, then add the rest as pain settles.

1. Knee-to-chest (single, then double)

Why

gently opens the lower back and eases muscle guarding.

How

Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat. Bring one knee towards your chest, hold with both hands for 5 seconds, lower slowly. Repeat with the other leg. If comfortable, progress to both knees together.

Dose

5 each leg, twice a day. Slow and gentle — no forcing.

2. Pelvic tilts

Why

re-teaches the small movement control that pain switches off.

How

On your back, knees bent. Flatten your lower back into the floor by gently tilting your pelvis (as if pulling your belly button down), hold 3–4 seconds, then relax. The movement is small.

Dose

10 reps, twice a day.

3. Cat-cow

Why

restores segment-by-segment mobility through the whole spine.

How

On hands and knees. Slowly round your back up towards the ceiling (cat), then let it gently drop and lift your chest (cow). Move with your breath, staying in a comfortable range.

Dose

8–10 slow cycles, once or twice a day.

4. Glute bridges

Why

the glutes take load off the lower back — waking them up is one of the highest-value things you can do.

How

On your back, knees bent, feet flat. Squeeze your buttocks and lift your hips until your body is a straight line from shoulders to knees. Hold 5 seconds, lower slowly. Do not arch past a straight line.

Dose

3 sets of 10, once a day.

5. Bird-dog

Why

trains the deep core and back to stabilise while a limb moves — exactly what real life demands.

How

On hands and knees, tighten your core. Extend one arm forward and the opposite leg back until both are level with your body, keeping your hips still and level. Hold 3–5 seconds, return, and switch sides.

Dose

8 each side, once a day.

6. Prone press-up (only if it feels good)

Why

many people with lower back pain feel better with gentle extension. This is not for everyone — use it only if it eases, not worsens, your symptoms.

How

Lie on your front, hands under your shoulders. Gently press your upper body up, keeping your hips on the floor, as far as is comfortable. Lower slowly.

Dose

8–10 gentle reps. Skip this one if it sends pain into the leg.

7. A daily walk

Why

underrated and evidence-backed. Regular walking loads the back in a natural, rhythmic way and is one of the most reliable ways to recover.

How

Start with what you can manage without a flare — even 10 minutes — and build up gradually over the weeks.

The mistakes I see most

• Resting completely. A day or two of relative rest in a bad flare is fine; a week in bed makes it worse.
• Chasing a big stretch. Aggressive stretching into pain often aggravates a sensitive back. Gentle and frequent beats hard and occasional.
• Only stretching, never strengthening. Mobility eases today’s pain; strength (bridges, bird-dog) prevents the next episode.
• Stopping the moment it feels better. Most re-injuries happen because people quit at week two. Keep going for at least 6 weeks.
• Ignoring the desk setup. If eight hours of sitting caused it, the exercises alone will not hold — fix the chair, screen height, and take movement breaks.

How long until it improves?

Most people notice their morning stiffness shortening and everyday movements (getting out of a chair, bending to shoes) easing within one to two weeks of consistent daily practice. Full settling of an acute episode commonly takes up to six weeks. Recovery is rarely a straight line — expect a good day followed by a slightly worse one, and track the weekly trend rather than the hour-to-hour.

When to stop and see a professional

This routine is for ordinary, non-specific lower back pain. Book a consultation — or seek urgent care — rather than pushing on if you have any of these:

• Pain that radiates below the knee, or numbness, pins-and-needles, or weakness in the leg or foot.
• Any change in bladder or bowel control, or numbness around the saddle/groin area — this needs same-day medical attention.
• Pain after a significant fall or accident.
• Fever, unexplained weight loss, or a history of cancer alongside the back pain.
• Pain that is constant, severe, and unrelieved by any position or rest, including at night.

Short of those flags, a physiotherapist can tailor this general routine to your specific back — which exercises to prioritise, which to skip, and how to progress — which is exactly what an online consultation is for. You describe your pain, I watch you move over video, and you get a plan built around your body rather than a generic list.

The one-line version

Move gently and often, favour strength over stretching, keep walking, give it six weeks — and get it assessed if the pain travels down your leg or brings numbness or weakness with it.