10 Gentle Yoga Stretches For Hip And Lower Back Pain Relief (2023)

(This post has been updated to include 15 yoga stretches for hip and lower back pain)

Today I want to share a list of my favorite gentle yoga stretches for hip and lower back pain relief.

Yoga and stretching are beneficial in so many ways. Chronic muscle or joint pain can make stretching a challenge.

Chronic Lower Back & Hip Pain

Nearly 80% of all adults experience chronic lower back pain, making it one of the most common types of musculoskeletal deterioration in adults.

Additionally, research has shown chronic low-back pain is more prevalent among people who sit for longer than three hours a day or who function in enclosed workspaces. Office environments promote inactivity, which leaves inactive persons more vulnerable to problems like lower back pain and other musculoskeletal imbalances.

I used to experience more pain and flare-ups following yoga or an aggressive stretching routine.

I remember so many times not being able to get back up from the floor from the pain.
I know that pushing beyond certain ranges of motion or doing the ‘wrong’ stretch for your body can quickly trigger pain.

I often talk about why stretching can make the pain worse.

So how can we apply stretching and get its physical and psychological benefits without worsening pain?
Simply by choosing gentle lower back stretches that your body responds to positively.

And our bodies will respond differently to stretching and exercise depending on where we are in our healing journey.
So take the information you learn, and make it specific to your current level.

Benefits Of Stretching

As I mentioned above, stretching benefits the mind and body. Here are the most common benefits:

• Improves range of motion at the joint
• Improves flexibility
• Psychological effects such as reducing stress hormones and reducing tension

The last point is what interests me. I love the relaxation effects of stretching. The ‘slowing-down’ effect after a long day.

Can A Yoga Routine Relieve Lower Back Pain?

Yes, if we choose gentle stretches focused on re-aligning proper alignment and releasing tightness.

Improving Posture

Yoga can help you improve your posture and body alignment. Certain poses focus on aligning the joints, which improves the overall posture and can naturally help you reduce muscular tension. The wall 90-degree stretch and sitting wall stretch come to mind!

Mindfulness

Another fantastic benefit of practicing yoga to help alleviate lower back and hip pain is carving time for yourself to tune in and feel what’s happening in your body.

With each stretch or pose, you can pause and feel how your body is responding and where you are holding on to more tension.

The camel pose, for example, is known for its emotional release power. We often store tension in some areas, and by tuning in and releasing it while also feeling into that, we can get emotional, and that’s another healthy way to release stress.

What’s Causing My Lower Back Pain?

I want to share my video on the causes of lower back pain. I go in-depth about assessing what is constantly triggering the pain. It’s not enough to stretch and get that short-term relief.

Static Postural Malalignments

During functional activities, the position of the lower back, pelvis, and hips (length-tension) determines the optimal muscle performance. A decline in the activation of the muscles involved occurs if we are unable to maintain a neutral spine.

Compression and Overloading

When moving, lumbar flexion causes an increase in disc pressure and stresses, as well as a decrease in lordosis (lower back rounding). Furthermore, lumbar spine motions such as flexion and lateral bending can increase the strain on the discs. These two motions, when combined, can induce a disc herniation to form.

Compression, together with bending and twisting at the disc, have been linked to earlier degeneration in intervertebral discs.

Abnormal Muscular Activation Patterns

Individuals suffering from lower back pain have delayed or altered muscle activation patterns. Patients with lower back discomfort and sacroiliac joint pain had decreased activation of the transverse abdominis, multifidus, and gluteus maximus.

I’ve gathered 15 excellent gentle lower back pain relief stretches you can do at home.

1. Downward dog
2. Walk Your Dog
3. Pyramid Yoga Pose
4. Child Pose (Balasana)
5. Seated/Standing Spinal Twist
6. Bridge
7. Wide-legged child pose
8. Hip flexor stretch
9. Low cobra
10. Wall psoas
11. Hamstring Stretch
12. Staff Pose (Dandasana)
13. Legs up the wall
14. Savasana
15. Standing Stretch

I’ve also included important notes and instructions below each image to help you perform the stretch without triggering pain or worsening an existing injury.

15 Gentle Yoga Stretches For Hip And Lower Back Pain Relief

Coaching note: Instead of forcing each stretch, allow your body just to relax. If you force yourself beyond your limit, you risk hurting your back or straining another area of your body.

Breathe deeply, use the time to allow yourself to relax, and respect your body exactly as it is now. Be gentle with yourself. Remember also to use gravity to help you drop into a more relaxed state.

Downward Dog

This is a safe and gentle yoga stretch for the back, hamstrings, and calves.

It’s normal to feel a bit tight when first doing this stretch. You can start on your toes and bend your knees. As you repeat this stretch, you’ll gain more flexibility and be able to stretch your back further.

This simple yoga pose can help you lengthen your back and release hamstrings and ankle tightness.

Walk Your Dog

If you’re holding on to a lot of tension in your legs and lower back, start with this gentle pose and stretch one leg at a time. This is an easier flow that you can do daily throughout the day.

Push against your hands to lengthen your back while also focusing on releasing the hamstring and calf of each leg.

Pyramid Yoga Pose

A great transitional stretch from the downward dog.

This stretch targets the calve muscles and hamstrings. The post also promoted good lumbar spine alignment.

Tight calves can alter movement and cause lower back pain (following a postural shift). Tight calves can contribute to flat feet and knee inversion, leading to lower back tension.

Don’t ignore these muscles that connect to the base of your body.

Keep your hands on your hips if you cannot bringthem floor. It’s important to maintain good back posture. Don’t worry about bringing the hands lower.

Child’s Pose (Balasana)

A simple, effective lower back release yoga pose.

Stretch the back, decompress, and let the floor pull you down to open up your chest.

After a long stressful day, this pose can help you bring your focus back into your body, tune into your breath and let all the tension in the lumbar spine fade away.

Seated Spinal Twist

It’s beneficial to engage in spinal rotation. When you do, make sure it’s gentle and not aggressive.

Gentle twisting exercise increases blood flow to the spine and promotes spinal health. The most important thing to remember is to focus on the middle part of the movement and not how far back you can go.

Keep it gentle (no need to push through your limit).

Another great variation is doing the rotation standing:

Standing Spinal Twist

You can transition from the pyramid pose to the standing twist post as you build more flexibility. You can improve your body alignment and flexibility by incorporating a stretch like this that targets multiple areas of the body.

Hip Flexors Stretch

Stretching your quadriceps (part of the hip flexors) will help you get relief from hip pain and lower back pain. This particular stretch targets the quadriceps and is very easy to do.

Rest your forehead on one hand and use the other to grab your foot. Breathe, and with each exhale, relax your body and relax on your mat.

You can also target the quads standing:

If you tend to develop a lot of tension in your hips, check out my post here to learn how to properly release the psoas muscle after you’re done reading this post. (I’ll link it again at the end of this post)

Bridge Stretch

The bridge is a great glute strengthening exercise. And it can also be used to get you an amazing hip flexor release.

The trick is just to bring your feet closer to the center of your body.

You’ll feel a deep stretch on your hips when you do that.

The higher you lift your glutes, the deeper the stretch.

Go slow with your progression. Again, we want to keep these stretches gentle and not aggressive.
The higher you lift your glutes, the deeper the stretch.

Low Cobra

The Cobra pose helps restore spinal alignment. Instead of pressing against the hands, I prefer the low-cobra variation because it’s more gentle on the lumbar spine. Especially if you have any disc issues. You can even start by resting your head on your hands and slowly progressing into the low-cobra.

Sometimes, I even like to grab a book or my kindle and read a few pages while I hold this pose for a little while.

Wall Psoas

Start with a simple hip flexor lunge stretch in front of a wall. Rest your back foot on the wall to deepen the stretch. The closer you are to the wall, the deeper the stretch.

You can also rest your foot on a block or a pillow to start.

Wide-Legged Child Pose

Similar to the child pose, only here widen your knees.
Breathe deeply into your belly as you drop your belly down. Practicing diaphragmatic breathing to decompress the lumbar area and release lower back pain.

Staff Pose

This fantastic pose was extremely helpful to me when I was suffering from chronic lower back and hip pain. It helped me immensely. The wall will restore your shoulder-hip-ankle posture.

Use the wall for guidance. If you’re not able to use to use the wall, you can also practice this pose sitting with a band to assist align your hips and keep your back straight.

Keep your legs straight and toes pointing up.
You can add a band anchored to your feet to increase the stretch. This helps your back stay straight as you lower your torso down.

Hamstring Stretch

Bring one foot forward and one back, keeping your feet as straight as possible.Keep your back straight and lean forward.

It’s okay to bend your knee slightly if you can’t keep both your legs straight but work your way to eventually keep your legs straight as you lean forward.

It’s important not to force this stretch. You can skip leaning forward in the beginning and just focus on the stretch.

Leg Up The Wall

Bring your hips closer to the wall. Rest your legs up the floor and relax! Let gravity pull all that tension in your legs and lower back away. You can use a soft pillow below your lumbar spine for more support.

A very simple yet amazing restorative stretch that has many mind-body benefits.

It can help you relax your nervous system, improve your sleep, restore your hips, and stretch your hamstrings (the closer you are to the wall).

I noticed that this stretch tends to take off all tension from my lower back as well.

I just love doing it whenever I feel stressed…letting gravity do its thing!

You can also open up your legs with the feet on the wall (in a squatting post) to stretch the inner thighs and open up the hips without aggressive stretching.

Savasana

This gentle yoga post is extremely powerful.

It teaches your body to relax through the power of your breath.

It also encourages you to tune in and use your mind to scan your body and let go of any tension you’re still holding on to.

I found this pose to be even more relaxing than all other stretches. If you want to experience a magical feeling, do this pose in nature.

Standing Stretch

This may look simple but give it a try.

Sitting all day or walking hunched over, our spine compresses, and our muscles tense.

Standing straight up and stretching your arms out decompresses the spine and helps the body get in alignment.

I love doing this stretch against a wall and trying to reach up as high as I can.

This simple stretch helped me get immediate relief from lower back tension on days when I had to sit.

It’s simple yet very beneficial!

I hope you give these lower back yoga stretches a try.

Make sure to start slow. Pick a few stretches you can stick to. And don’t forget to track how you’re feeling before and after each stretch.

Below are some of my related posts that I think you’ll benefit from as well…

Related Posts:

• How to effectively release the psoas muscle
• The bridge exercise. Strengthen and stretch at the same time.
• Why stretching makes the pain worse
• 5 Yoga poses to avoid (that makes the glutes and hip pain worse)