How to Build a Strong Back

A strong back can make your life easier by reducing pain and injury, allowing you to take part in more activities, and easing tension. A combination of general exercise, good posture and strengthening exercises is the best way to make your back strong and healthy over the long run. A sore back can really slow you down in your day-to-day life, so use caution when lifting weights or doing strenuous exercises and your back will start getting stronger in as little as a few months.

Instructions

  1. Get Active

    • 1

      Lift weights multiple times per week. This is one of the best practices that you can do to develop a strong back. You want to lift weights that focus on both your upper and lower body to get a balanced workout, but make sure that you do plenty of exercises that work the muscles in your back. These include the bench press, lateral pull-down, dumbbell fly, lateral dumbbell raise, bent-arm dumbbell pullover, overhead press, and deadlift.

    • 2

      Perform cardio exercise each week. The Centers for Disease Control recommends between 150 and 300 minutes of moderate to vigorous-intensity activity for adults looking to maintain or lose weight. Choose an activity that helps to strengthen your back and core such as jogging or running, swimming, or playing sports like basketball and tennis. Certain aerobics-style classes, such as hip-hop dance and kickboxing, are also options to give your core a good workout.

    • 3

      Attend a yoga class once a week. Yoga is a type of exercise that can help strengthen your back using your own body weight as resistance. It also increases strength in the rest of your core, makes your back and other muscle groups more flexible, and provides mind-body benefits that can lower stress and tension in the muscles of your back.

    Posture and Helpful Exercises

    • 4

      Use correct posture whether you are sitting or standing. While sitting, keep both feet flat on the floor as much as possible and sit with your back straight. Stand with your shoulders back and your head held high. Posture is an important tool in keeping your back strong and healthy over the course of your lifetime.

    • 5

      Exercise your back while sitting at your desk. Make sure that you are sitting up straight, and place your elbows at your sides at a 90-degree angle with the palms of your hands facing the floor. Push your shoulders together and down as far as you can manage. Make your hands and arms do a waxing motion by moving them around in circles. Your elbows should be right next to your sides while you do this for 20 seconds. Repeat this exercise four times and at least two to four times per week.

    • 6

      Do as many pushups as you can three to four times per week, until your muscles start to experience failure. To start, get in position on all fours. Place your hands directly underneath your shoulders with your palms facing downwards. Stretch your legs out behind you so that your toes are flexed and your weight is resting on the balls of your feet. Push your body weight up, extending your arms, and keeping your back straight. Slowly move back down to starting position without resting your chest or stomach on the floor. Repeat.