Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsStanding Back ExtensionKnees to ChestSeated Toe TouchStanding Toe TouchPelvic TiltPlank ExercisesAerobic ExerciseNext in Spinal Stenosis GuideWhat Is Spinal Stenosis?
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Standing Back Extension
Knees to Chest
Seated Toe Touch
Standing Toe Touch
Pelvic Tilt
Plank Exercises
Aerobic Exercise
Next in Spinal Stenosis Guide
Exercises for spinal stenosis focus on changing the position of your spine to help take the pressure off thespinal nervesand ease symptoms such as pain and numbness.
It’s believed thatspinal stenosismay get better with a variety of exercises that build core muscle to support your back, improve mobility, and decrease pain.
These exercises can be part of your rehabilitation treatment with aphysical therapist, or you can do them at home.
Before starting any spinal stenosis exercise program, check with your healthcare provider to be sure that the exercises are safe for your specific condition.
A backbend was once thought to be bad for people with spinal stenosis but is now seen as possibly beneficial.
Gently extending your spine backward while standing (also known as a sustainedlumbar extension) allows you to put light pressure on the softlumbar discs. This nudges them away from your spinal canal, giving your lumbar nerves a little more room.
To perform the sustained lumbar extension exercise:
This position may increaseback painor cause leg pain or tingling. That isn’t necessarily a sign that you should stop. However, if these symptoms do not resolve within 60 seconds, stop the exercise and eliminate it from your routine.
fizkes / Getty Images
One of the easiest exercises to do to relieve pain and discomfort from spine compression is the knees-to-chest stretch. Also known as lumbar flexion in lying, this move takes pressure off your lower back.
To start your spinal stenosis lumbar flexion exercise progression, perform the flexion in lying exercise. To do this exercise:
Koldunov / Getty Images
Reaching forward while sitting is known as the seated lumbar flexion stretch. This exercise loosens the lower lumbar spine and surrounding muscles
To perform the seated toe touch:
yacobchuk / Getty Images
Standing toe touches, orstanding lumbar flexion, can increase your range of motion, improving overall mobility that could become limited with spinal stenosis. To do the exercise:
This exercise can be used to help reduce back pain, as well as leg pain or tingling that may come on while you are out for a walk.
Wavebreakmedia Ltd / Getty Images
If you have spinal stenosis,core strengthening exercisescan help improve the way the muscles that support your spine work.
The posteriorpelvic tiltspecifically works your abdominal and hip muscles while flexing your spine.
To do the pelvic tilt:
Importance of Hip StrengtheningAlong with building your core muscles, strengthening the hip area can improve walking and overall mobility. Some moves that can further support this are basicstraight leg raisesand, when you’re ready,advanced hip strengthening exercises.
Importance of Hip Strengthening
Along with building your core muscles, strengthening the hip area can improve walking and overall mobility. Some moves that can further support this are basicstraight leg raisesand, when you’re ready,advanced hip strengthening exercises.
DRAKULA IMAGES / Getty Images
Planks are essential core exercises. In addition to building abdominal and back strength, plank exercises help build stability and balance to support everyday activity.
To perform a basic plank:
Paul Bradbury/Getty Images
Lumbar spinal stenosis is aprogressive conditionthat comes on gradually. With worsening symptoms, you may decrease youraerobic activitylevel.
Work with your healthcare provider to manage your spinal stenosis symptoms so you can start to incorporate aerobic exercise into your routine, such as:
Exercises to Avoid With Spinal StenosisWith spinal stenosis, avoid any activity that causes you pain or makes your disability worse. This includes:Lifting heavy objectsWalking long distancesJumping or other high-impact activitiesRepetitive motions
Exercises to Avoid With Spinal Stenosis
With spinal stenosis, avoid any activity that causes you pain or makes your disability worse. This includes:Lifting heavy objectsWalking long distancesJumping or other high-impact activitiesRepetitive motions
With spinal stenosis, avoid any activity that causes you pain or makes your disability worse. This includes:
Summary
8 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American College of Rheumatology.Spinal stenosis.Tousignant-laflamme Y, Longtin C, Brismée JM.How radiological findings can help or hinder patients' recovery in the rehabilitation management of patients with low back pain: what can clinicians do?J Man Manip Ther. 2017;25(2):63-65. doi:10.1080/10669817.2017.1309345Stewart DM, Gregory DE.The use of intermittent trunk flexion to alleviate low back pain during prolonged standing.J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2016;27:46-51. doi:10.1016/j.jelekin.2016.01.007Chen C, Lin Z, Zhang Y, Chen Z, Tang S.Does the effectiveness of core stability exercises correlate with the severity of spinal stenosis in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis?.Pak J Med Sci. 2017;33(3):631-634. doi:10.12669/pjms.333.12123Calatayud J, Casaña J, Martín F, Jakobsen MD, Colado JC, Andersen LL.Progression of core stability exercises based on the extent of muscle activity.Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017;96(10):694-6. doi:10.1097/PHM.0000000000000713Vanti C, Andreatta S, Borghi S, Guccione AA, Pillastrini P, Bertozzi L.The effectiveness of walking versus exercise on pain and function in chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials.Disabil Rehabil. 2019;41(6):622-632. doi:10.1080/09638288.2017.1410730Pauwels C, Roren A, Gautier A, et al.Home-based cycling program tailored to older people with lumbar spinal stenosis: Barriers and facilitators.Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 2018;61(3):144-150. doi:10.1016/j.rehab.2018.02.005Atlantic Brain and Spine.What Activities Should be Avoided with Cervical Spinal Stenosis.
8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American College of Rheumatology.Spinal stenosis.Tousignant-laflamme Y, Longtin C, Brismée JM.How radiological findings can help or hinder patients' recovery in the rehabilitation management of patients with low back pain: what can clinicians do?J Man Manip Ther. 2017;25(2):63-65. doi:10.1080/10669817.2017.1309345Stewart DM, Gregory DE.The use of intermittent trunk flexion to alleviate low back pain during prolonged standing.J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2016;27:46-51. doi:10.1016/j.jelekin.2016.01.007Chen C, Lin Z, Zhang Y, Chen Z, Tang S.Does the effectiveness of core stability exercises correlate with the severity of spinal stenosis in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis?.Pak J Med Sci. 2017;33(3):631-634. doi:10.12669/pjms.333.12123Calatayud J, Casaña J, Martín F, Jakobsen MD, Colado JC, Andersen LL.Progression of core stability exercises based on the extent of muscle activity.Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017;96(10):694-6. doi:10.1097/PHM.0000000000000713Vanti C, Andreatta S, Borghi S, Guccione AA, Pillastrini P, Bertozzi L.The effectiveness of walking versus exercise on pain and function in chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials.Disabil Rehabil. 2019;41(6):622-632. doi:10.1080/09638288.2017.1410730Pauwels C, Roren A, Gautier A, et al.Home-based cycling program tailored to older people with lumbar spinal stenosis: Barriers and facilitators.Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 2018;61(3):144-150. doi:10.1016/j.rehab.2018.02.005Atlantic Brain and Spine.What Activities Should be Avoided with Cervical Spinal Stenosis.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American College of Rheumatology.Spinal stenosis.Tousignant-laflamme Y, Longtin C, Brismée JM.How radiological findings can help or hinder patients' recovery in the rehabilitation management of patients with low back pain: what can clinicians do?J Man Manip Ther. 2017;25(2):63-65. doi:10.1080/10669817.2017.1309345Stewart DM, Gregory DE.The use of intermittent trunk flexion to alleviate low back pain during prolonged standing.J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2016;27:46-51. doi:10.1016/j.jelekin.2016.01.007Chen C, Lin Z, Zhang Y, Chen Z, Tang S.Does the effectiveness of core stability exercises correlate with the severity of spinal stenosis in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis?.Pak J Med Sci. 2017;33(3):631-634. doi:10.12669/pjms.333.12123Calatayud J, Casaña J, Martín F, Jakobsen MD, Colado JC, Andersen LL.Progression of core stability exercises based on the extent of muscle activity.Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017;96(10):694-6. doi:10.1097/PHM.0000000000000713Vanti C, Andreatta S, Borghi S, Guccione AA, Pillastrini P, Bertozzi L.The effectiveness of walking versus exercise on pain and function in chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials.Disabil Rehabil. 2019;41(6):622-632. doi:10.1080/09638288.2017.1410730Pauwels C, Roren A, Gautier A, et al.Home-based cycling program tailored to older people with lumbar spinal stenosis: Barriers and facilitators.Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 2018;61(3):144-150. doi:10.1016/j.rehab.2018.02.005Atlantic Brain and Spine.What Activities Should be Avoided with Cervical Spinal Stenosis.
American College of Rheumatology.Spinal stenosis.
Tousignant-laflamme Y, Longtin C, Brismée JM.How radiological findings can help or hinder patients' recovery in the rehabilitation management of patients with low back pain: what can clinicians do?J Man Manip Ther. 2017;25(2):63-65. doi:10.1080/10669817.2017.1309345
Stewart DM, Gregory DE.The use of intermittent trunk flexion to alleviate low back pain during prolonged standing.J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2016;27:46-51. doi:10.1016/j.jelekin.2016.01.007
Chen C, Lin Z, Zhang Y, Chen Z, Tang S.Does the effectiveness of core stability exercises correlate with the severity of spinal stenosis in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis?.Pak J Med Sci. 2017;33(3):631-634. doi:10.12669/pjms.333.12123
Calatayud J, Casaña J, Martín F, Jakobsen MD, Colado JC, Andersen LL.Progression of core stability exercises based on the extent of muscle activity.Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017;96(10):694-6. doi:10.1097/PHM.0000000000000713
Vanti C, Andreatta S, Borghi S, Guccione AA, Pillastrini P, Bertozzi L.The effectiveness of walking versus exercise on pain and function in chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials.Disabil Rehabil. 2019;41(6):622-632. doi:10.1080/09638288.2017.1410730
Pauwels C, Roren A, Gautier A, et al.Home-based cycling program tailored to older people with lumbar spinal stenosis: Barriers and facilitators.Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 2018;61(3):144-150. doi:10.1016/j.rehab.2018.02.005
Atlantic Brain and Spine.What Activities Should be Avoided with Cervical Spinal Stenosis.
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
