Thread: Strengthening the Lower Back

regular deadlifts

Yeah regular deads are excellent. I stopped doing SLD's all together and replaced them with regular deads.

As far as SLD's when going down be sure to keep a slight bend in your legs and keep your back straight.

Plank variations are good. Good mornings are good. Reverse hyperextensions are one of my favorite; these tear up your glutes and hammies a lot too.

Do you have a vid of reverse hypers?

Bending the knees helps target the hams, straight legged would risk hyperextending the knee, so keep some bend.

I find Good Mornings (GMs) better for direct back targetting, as well as old fashioned heavy deadlifts. Careful with the GMs, 45 degree angle or so should be plenty until you feel safe going beyond, especially if you ever work up to heavy weights (low reps). I have gone up to 345 with these, and have had no problems, just get used to the movement before you push yourself.

Deadlifts for sure. slight bend in the knee during sld as mentioned is good also. I like doing them on a platform keeping constant tension as well.

Others have posted strengthening hamstrings also benefits lower back.

With so much emphasis on lower back you may want to make sure to balance out with sufficient ab/oblique work.

Originally Posted by Mudge

Bending the knees helps target the hams, straight legged would risk hyperextending the knee, so keep some bend.

I find Good Mornings (GMs) better for direct back targetting, as well as old fashioned heavy deadlifts. Careful with the GMs, 45 degree angle or so should be plenty until you feel safe going beyond, especially if you ever work up to heavy weights (low reps). I have gone up to 345 with these, and have had no problems, just get used to the movement before you push yourself.

To add to this, bending a little more at your knees during RDLs (Like 20 degrees or so) is supposed to increase glute activation.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

With so much emphasis on lower back you may want to make sure to balance out with sufficient ab/oblique work.

Hmm, good point. What could I do besides crunches?

Originally Posted by CowPimp

Plank variations are good. Good mornings are good. Reverse hyperextensions are one of my favorite; these tear up your glutes and hammies a lot too.

I do weighted hyperextensions, and I can only feel it in my erectors. My hams aren't even the least bit fatigued after 3 or 4 sets.

For some reason I am in love with Sumo Deadlifts. Hits the hams pretty good.

Originally Posted by mike456

Do you have a vid of reverse hypers?

For some reason I always fucking forget what these look like and they arent easy to look up on google.


Oh and Mudge, 345 on GMs? Holy fucking shit.

Originally Posted by huesoloco

For some reason I am in love with Sumo Deadlifts. Hits the hams pretty good.

My favorite way to do deadlifts.

I wish my gym had a glute-ham set-up. I'd be all over that. Maybe I can use to lat pull down station though.

Reverse hypers:

http://www.moleculegirl.com/reverse_hypers.htm

CP- thanks so much for posting that, I really need to strengthen my lower back, it also works the glutes right?

I am trying to figure out some bootleg way I could do this exercise effectively(I have no hyperextension machine, anyway you could do these with something you could find in a house), any suggestionS?

Originally Posted by Spud

Hmm, good point. What could I do besides crunches?

Most of the standard ab work applies. My ab work usually varies around standing pole twists, swiss ball crunches, flat bench leg raises, roman chairs, cable crunches, vertical bench crunches, seated leg tucks & machine crunches.

I alternate exercises for each ab workout and choose 2 lower & 2 upper targeting exercises.

Originally Posted by Spud

I do weighted hyperextensions, and I can only feel it in my erectors. My hams aren't even the least bit fatigued after 3 or 4 sets.

I haven't seen anyone bend the knees when doing hypers, which therefore removes the hamstrings very efficiently. You basically are doing a glute movement, with a little bit of lower back thrown in. Very little ham recruitment here.

Originally Posted by AKIRA

Oh and Mudge, 345 on GMs? Holy fucking shit.

I've heard of 600 pound work.