UKC

I have found in the last 6 months I have pulled the muscles in my back quite a lot , some is down (or maybe all) to my fault , but it just seems to be happening more than it ever has even though im doing less. Is there any exercises/activities that will help strengthen up my back? In my family there is a history of bad back problems so no doubt i will end up like that when im older , but im only 20 now and i feel like an old man the amount of times i hear myself saying I cant do something because of my back!
Please help?

In reply to happy_c:

Look up core strength exercises - maybe even things like Pilates and yoga.

In reply to happy_c: I found swimming has sorted out my back a treat. Low impact too

In reply to LastBoyScout: May be a good option , could do with gettig more flexibillity as well!

In reply to Graham T: Hummmm i like swimming as well , just out of interest are both strokes as good as each other? (front crawl and breaststroke)?

In reply to happy_c: if it's lower back then just lay on the floor put your hands on your ears as in sit-up style and lift your head and chest up arching your lower back and hold for 5 seconds each time do 4 reps of 5 to start then increase.

In reply to happy_c:
I've had loads of back problems and find that a combination of weekly swimming and a daily 10-minute pilates routine has helped a lot.
I believe front crawl is better than breaststroke because it uses more muscles and doesn't keep your back stretched the same way all the time. But I do both.

In reply to happy_c: I've had lots of back/neck problems over the past few years (in my family too!) and I've found that Pilates is the only thing that keeps my core and outer back strong. I've tried yoga but found you really need a proper teacher that will teach you which poses are okay for you, as many can be injurous to a dodgy spine (maybe okay if it's just muscular though)

I find that when I stop doing regular Pilates, my spine goes all to pot.

I also visit my Chiropracter every now and again and he helps stop segments of my spine locking up and prevents a lot of muscle spasm.