Ok, friends, you caught me. I’m kind of phoning it in this morning, but that’s because I’m passed my due date and so uncomfortable I’m not leaving my bed.

I’m dealing with some wicked back pain which is an issue we all have from time to time. To help us all, I’ve collected four great videos from around the web that showcase great solutions for stretching, strengthening, and otherwise relieving pain in our neck, shoulders, lower back, and glutes.

Now if I could just keep my eyes open long enough to do one of these videos…

Tara Stiles Four Minute Solution for Back Pain

Ms. Stiles might look scary (if by “scary”, you mean like a supermodel slash ballerina that only exists in the movies), but her lessons are basic and so good for us! This video is only four minutes long, but packs a big punch (or massaging stretches as the case may be) to all your hurting muscles. That first forward fold where you grab opposite elbows is one of my favorite yoga positions!

Pilates for Lower Back Pain

You know how highly I think of pilates for core strengthening, which includes everything around back, too! This great video includes a handful of yoga stretches, but just wait until you get to “rolling like a ball”. As long as you’re on a relatively soft surface (and, ladies, don’t wear a bra with a metal clasp on the back…) you’ll give yourself a mini-massage up and down your spine. Yum.

Fixing the Lower Back Through Hip Stretches

Until I started doing yoga on a regular basis, I never realized how much tension I hold in my hips. Makes sense for any office drone… You spend so much of the day at a desk with your hip joints in a 90 degree (or shorter if you lean forward towards the computer like I do) angle. You are stretching the back (sometimes too much!), but letting the front of your body get all squished. This video is 10 minutes of “oh yeh, that’s the ticket” to areas of your body you didn’t even realized needed some loving.

Back Strengtheners

Now that you’ve done the other videos and feel all limber and gumby-like, it’s time to focus on some strengthening for your back side. I can do squats and sit-ups until the cows come home, but my shoulder blades are so weak it’s ridiculous. Five pounds weights sometimes wear me out! I’m counting on baby bicep curls to help get these muscles back in order, but if you don’t have access to a newborn, this video hits all the high points when it comes to muscular endurance for the back.

Which video was your favorite? Do you have other tricks you use when it comes to back pain? Short of the Tylenol and a shot of whiskey, of course. 🙂

Namaste, friends!