1. Cat-Cow
Target: Spinal mobility and breaking up stiffness in the lower back.
- Repetitions: 8 slow, controlled cycles.
How to do it:
- The Setup: Get on your hands and knees. Place your hands directly under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
- The Cow (Inhale): Drop your belly toward the floor while gently lifting your chest and tailbone. Don’t force your neck back—keep the movement smooth.
- The Cat (Exhale): Push the floor away, rounding your spine up toward the ceiling. Tuck your tailbone completely underneath you and bring your chin toward your chest.
Move segmentally. Imagine a wave moving from your tailbone all the way up to your neck, moving one single vertebra at a time.
2. Glute Bridge
- Target: Waking up the glutes so they can support your pelvis and take the pressure off your lower back.
- Repetitions: 12 controlled reps.
- The Setup: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, about hip-width apart.
- The Pelvic Tilt: Before you even lift your hips, flatten your lower back completely into the floor. This “tucks” your pelvis and ensures your lower back won’t pinch.
- The Lift: Drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes to lift your hips until your body forms a straight line from knees to shoulders.
- The Lower: Hold for one second at the top, then slowly lower down, resetting your flat back before the next rep.
💡 If you feel this in your lower back instead of your glutes, you are lifting too high. Keep your ribs pulled down and focus entirely on squeezing your butt cheeks.
3. Neutral Pelvic Hold (with Hamstring Activation)
- Target: Engaging the hamstrings to pull the pelvis back into a neutral position, instantly decompressing a tight lower back.
- Duration: Hold for 4–5 deep breaths (repeat 3 times).
How to do it:
- The Setup: Lie on your back and place your heels/calves on a chair, bench, or foam roller so your hips and knees are bent at a strict 90-degree angle (as seen in the third panel).
- The Neutral Flatten: Gently exhale and let your lower back flatten completely into the floor. Your tailbone should just barely hover a millimeter off the mat, but your middle/lower back must stay glued down.
- The Activation: Without actually lifting your hips high into a bridge, dig your heels down and pull back slightly into the chair. You should feel the back of your thighs (your hamstrings) turn on.
- The Breathe: Hold this position. Take a long, deep inhale through your nose, and a slow, full exhale through your mouth, feeling your ribs drop.
