Lower-back-friendly exercises

Exercises that do not load the lower back, to keep training legs, glutes, back and arms if you have low back pain, a herniated disc or lumbar discomfort.

Lower-back pain tends to show up with exercises that require holding a bent-over torso under load (deadlifts, barbell rows, good mornings) or carrying a bar on your shoulders (squats, standing overhead press). If you have low back pain or a herniated disc, you can often keep training by swapping those exercises for supported versions.

Machines with a back or chest pad (seated machine row, lat pulldown, leg press with the hips firmly supported, leg extension and leg curl) and seated or lying exercises let you train almost every muscle without your lower back having to hold the load.

Below are the exercises in our catalog that do not load the lower back according to our classification. Keeping your abs engaged and avoiding a rounded back is still important. If the pain radiates down your leg or comes with tingling, see a doctor before training.

85 exercises do not load this joint.

Lower body

Quads

• Goblet squat
• Hack squat
• Leg press
• Leg extension
• Walking lunges
• Jump squat
• Box jump

Glutes

• Reverse lunge
• Bulgarian split squat
• Box step-up
• Machine hip thrust
• Barbell hip thrust
• Floor glute bridge
• Cable glute kickback
• Quadruped glute kickback

Hamstrings

• Leg curl (seated or lying)
• Nordic hamstring curl

Abductors

• Hip abduction machine
• Seated banded abduction
• Side-lying leg raise
• Clamshell

Adductors

• Hip adduction machine
• Standing cable adduction

Calves

• Standing calf raise
• Seated calf raise
• Leg press calf raise

Upper body

Chest

• Barbell bench press
• Incline dumbbell press
• Machine chest press
• Push-ups
• Pec deck fly
• Cable crossover

Triceps

• Parallel bar dips
• Cable triceps pushdown
• Overhead triceps extension
• Skull crusher
• Bench dips

Shoulders

• Seated dumbbell shoulder press
• Machine shoulder press
• Dumbbell lateral raise
• Cable lateral raise
• Front raise
• Reverse pec deck
• Face pull

Back

• Pull-ups
• Assisted pull-ups
• Lat pulldown
• Straight-arm cable pulldown
• One-arm dumbbell row
• Seated machine row
• Single-arm cable row

Biceps

• Barbell curl
• Biceps curl (machine or seated dumbbell)
• Hammer curl
• Cable curl

Core

Abs

• Machine crunch
• Standing cable crunch
• Floor crunch
• Reverse crunch
• Dead bug
• Lying leg raise
• Flutter kicks
• Scissor kicks
• Single-leg lowering
• Hollow body hold
• Tabletop crunch
• Toe touch crunch
• Front plank
• Captain's chair leg raise
• Hanging leg raise
• Mountain climbers
• Farmer's carry

Obliques

• Bicycle crunch
• Heel touches
• Side plank
• Pallof press

Cardio

Cardio

• Stationary bike
• Recumbent bike
• Elliptical
• Incline treadmill walk
• Stair climber
• Arm ergometer
• Treadmill running
• Jump rope
• Burpees

If you have an injury, pain or a medical condition, check with a professional before doing this exercise.