I don’t know about you, but my Lower back started hurting from teaching around age 22. I remember thinking I was too young for lower back pain, but there it was. Each evening I would lay on my back and breathe deeply, trying to release the tension and pain from my lower back. Now that I’m about to turn 30, I have intentionally focused on improving my lower back flexibility and strength to ensure that I can keep up with my dancers–even after five+ hours of teaching.

After research and testing different methods of relieving back pain, here are my top tips.

Stretches

Stretches will no doubt keep the muscles throughout your back working, but there are a few specific ones that really help me. Try these stretches both before and after teaching for maximum benefit.

Child’s Pose: Child’s pose is amazing for stretching and relaxing your lower back. Hold a child’s pose for atlast a minute to feel maximum relief.

Hang: A standard bent-over hang to stretch your hamstring removes built-up tension in your lower back. I personally prefer a wide stance, but narrow should work too.

Side Stretches: Side stretches often get overlooked as a non-essential stretch in dance. But they are incredibly important not only for your obliques but for your lower back.

Bridge: Flexion and extension are important for general back health, so pop into a bridge before and after you teach.

Strengthening

Of course, stretching will only help so much if your back is weak. If you sit for most of the day besides teaching, you could be suffering from weakened muscles which can contribute to pain while upright. Try these strengthening exercises.

Bird Dog: Start on your hands and knees and alternate lifting your hand and opposite leg. Here’s a video of the movement. You can also do this in a plank position. It’s also a great ab workout!

Dead Lifts: Practicing deadlifts (ideally with heavy weights) strengthens your lower back along with your hamstrings. Just make sure you have good form. Here’s an article discussing best practices.

Walking & Running: This is anecdotal, but whenever I’m consistently running 3 miles 4-5X/week, my standing back pain gets so much better. Running (or walking) is great because it’s a constant exercise that targets every muscle in your back in a sort of chaotic way. Each step is slightly different and forces your back to engage.

Flat Back Exercises: If you can’t deadlift or run much, add flat back exercises to your warm-up. I love a good flat back — contraction sequence to connect back muscles to your abs.

Support

Besides stretching and strengthening, add some additional support to your back with good, shock-absorbing shoes. I am currently wearing Adidas Cloudfoam shoes on my long nights and I generally like them. Typically gel and foam shoes will be better than air because gel and foam don’t break down and conform better to your feet.

Consider Anti-inflammatories

If you are really suffering, consider adding an anti-inflammatory to your routine. Anti-inflammatories could be pain relievers like ibuprofen or healthy foods (here are 13 foods). I personally am a fan of Golden Milk which is a hot beverage with Tumeric and other vitamins (even if it doesn’t completely fix your lower back pain, it’s delicious.)

Relax

And then, of course, relax! After a long day of teaching, grab a hot pad or blanket and put your feet up. Resting your back muscles between long-standing durations will help reduce inflammation and relieve built-up tension that ends up in our lower backs.