Copyright (c) 2010 Michael W Harris

You've heard the saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?" Nowhere is that more true than within your own body, specifically with your back. Believe it or not, at some point in their lives, over 80 percent of all Americans will suffer from some sort of back pain! That is a very significant number and odds are highly in favor that YOU will be one of them. It doesn't have to be that way.

There are five muscles in your abdominal region that can, if kept strong and healthy, spare you from the crippling pain so many suffer.

Here is a quick rundown of those muscles and the exercises you can do to keep them in great shape.

Rectus Abdominus

Commonly referred to as a "six-pack," the Rectus Abdominus is a paired muscle anchored to your pelvic bone from which they rise upward fanning out in width and weaving in and out of cartilage from your fifth, sixth and seventh ribs, finally attaching to your fifth rib.

This muscle is critical to your lower back health because it controls the tilt of the pelvis and the curvature and flexing of the lumbar spine. You internal organs stay put in large part due to this muscle and ease of respiration can be increased by keeping your six-pack healthy.

A common exercise to strengthen the Rectus Abdominus is the "crunch" performed by lying flat on your back with your feet flat on the floor and your knees bent. From this position simply lift your upper body towards your knees and back down in slow and deliberate motions. To keep them in top shape, do at least three sets of crunches two to three times a week.

Obliques

There are internal and external oblique muscles. External obliques are the thin muscles on your sides, covering your ribs. They originate from various fleshy areas adjacent to the fifth to twelfth ribs. They angle downward toward your stomach from your back and sides in an oblique shape (thus its name). Internal obliques are much smaller and located underneath the external obliques running perpendicular to them.

Working in unison, these two muscles tug back and forth and make is so you can bend and twist as needed. Even more importantly your internal obliques are chiefly responsible for the expansion and contraction of your diaphragm and consequently your internal organs.

Since the spine is most vulnerable when you twist and lift an object, keeping the oblique muscles strong is insurance against a lifting injury. Exercises that target the obliques are any that involve twisting...such as a sit up in which you extend your right elbow toward your left knee.

Transverse Abdominus

One layer deeper into the abdomen, lying just below the obliques, is the transverse abdominus (TA). They originate from the crest of the hip bone (called the iliac crest), the lumbar spine and the lower ribs. It "transverses" toward the center of the front of your body attaching to the linea alba (center cartilage in your abdomen) and to the pubis.

The main function of the TA is to stabilize your spine and pelvis during lifting movements (it has been referred to as the body's natural weight lifting belt) and to compress the abdomen. It has been stated that the quickest way to a flatter stomachache is to strengthen your TAs. Unfortunately it is one of the most difficult muscles to isolate for resistance training. The only known exercise is called the vacuum in which you suck your belly in toward the spine. Doing this while on your hands and knees will add the benefit of gravity as a resistance.

Erector Spinae

This is a group of muscles in your back that originate in large part from your pelvis from which they split into three smaller muscle strands as they stretch upward connecting to various parts of the spine and your ribs. Its main function is to support the spine. Exercises include hyperextensions, dead lifts and good mornings.

Good mornings involve a barbell placed across your shoulders as if you were going to do a squat. Instead you arch your lower back, keep your knees locked and bend forward until your upper body is parallel with the floor.

To perform a hyperextension exercise you must lie face down on a bench with the upper half of your body hanging off the edge. Raise your upper body until you are about 5 degrees beyond completely horizontal. You will need a work out partner to hold or sit on your lower legs as you do this. This can also be done on an incline bench instead of a completely flat bench.

Using correct body form, lift a weighted barbell up directly from the floor. Bring it to your chest and even above your head. This routine is called a dead lift.

Iliopsoas

The Iliopsoas is a group of muscles comprised of the iliacus and psoas. The psoa originates from the vertebrae and discs in the T-12 to L-5 region and joins the iliacus as it angles down and frontwards to attach to the inner femur of the leg.

This muscle group is responsible for lifting the leg up toward the body or the body up toward the leg (as with a sit up). Exercises include sit-ups, leg raises, hanging leg raises and resisted hip flexion.

A weakened Iliopsoas allows your pelvis to tilt too far forward which directly contributes to lower back pain.

Summary

All the above-mentioned muscles are your core muscles and they each play a significant role in your lower back health. Ignoring them...letting them weaken through inactivity and lack of exercises...allows many different forms of pressure to be placed directly on the spine, and most often the consequence is chronic low back pain.