Leg raises......lower back gives out too quickly

[victor12]

Hello all. So I've been noticing that everytime I do lying/hanging leg raises my lower back gets really sore after like 8-10 reps or so and I give up because of this. Does anyone know why this happens to me?. Also, I did injure my lower back like 6 months ago but it's been fine ever since.

[enetblazin4eva]

Put your hands under your glutes........

[victor12]

Put your hands under your glutes........

Now how can I do that during a hanging leg raise?.

[enetblazin4eva]

Now how can I do that during a hanging leg raise?.

I was suggesting that for the lying leg raises. For the hanging it sounds like the "core" is still weak.

[Tyrbolift]

Ever try the leg raises where you put your forearms along the two bars with a pad in the back. It's a frame/apparatus made for dips or leg raises.

[victor12]

Ever try the leg raises where you put your forearms along the two bars with a pad in the back. It's a frame/apparatus made for dips or leg raises.

My gym doesn't have that but I know another gym that does.

[Abzzz]

Your lower back is weak and can't take the strain. Do weighted back extensions once or twice a week as a back workout to strengthen your lower back, I had the same problem doing decline sit-ups where my abs were fine but my back felt like breaking, did back extensions for a week or two and it got strong and I still do it every week. Good luck.

[victor12]

Your lower back is weak and can't take the strain. Do weighted back extensions once or twice a week as a back workout to strengthen your lower back, I had the same problem doing decline sit-ups where my abs were fine but my back felt like breaking, did back extensions for a week or two and it got strong and I still do it every week. Good luck.

I do deadlifts every once a week during my back day but it's only at 190 X 8 though.

[gbg]

Ever try the leg raises where you put your forearms along the two bars with a pad in the back. It's a frame/apparatus made for dips or leg raises.

This^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

If your doing hanging leg raises and your back hurts your most likely swinging all over the place and not really isolating the targeted muscle, your back hurts because those muscles are recruited when doing this exercise you could also continue with them but lower the reps and sets and focus on form slowly increasing as you can.

[mc-]

to add to the above:
never move into pain.

if there's pain,
1) reduce the range of motion (make the move smaller)
2) reduce the load.

you will find folks who do not like lying leg raises at all because of how it impacts the back - a lot of folks there lumbar spine starts to curve as the legs come back down, putting undue flexion on the spine to support the legs - that's not good.

Hanging leg raises can also do this, but sometimes to a lesser extent.

THis is why you'll find some PT's who caution against ever using these moves.

It may be that those muscles are as suggested above weak that would hold the lumbar spine more fixed, or it may also be that you have some related mobility issues in your hips or upper spine that is causing this response

As suggested, you can slow down, reduce the sets. you can also tuck your knees in to help with that load reduction, so knee raises rather than legs.

BUT you don't want pain to be your limiting factor - that means you're still using crappy form potentially, and just working till it hurts, not till you fatigue.

so you may want to watch yourself - especially how your low back curves in a mirror.

on the lying raises, when coming down - only go down for now as far as you can keeping your back flat on the mat. as soon as it starts to curve, stop there. it will get progressively deeper if you work it in this way.

same thing with the hanging tho again that's often harder to see - so you can use your floor measure as your limiter for lowering your legs.

another thing is to look for alternatives. Janda sit ups can work very nicely as an example. twists can be nice - there are tons of ways to work the core without stressing your back/

Hope that helps.

mc
mc

[Abzzz]

I do deadlifts every once a week during my back day but it's only at 190 X 8 though.

I recently started doing deadlifts but back extensions is what worked for me, that isolates the lower back, why not give it a shot? Since you're saying you back used to hurt, try doing it without weights for now. It really helped me, now I could do sit-ups until my abs die on me, just listen to me, I think it's your solution.

[victor12]

I recently started doing deadlifts but back extensions is what worked for me, that isolates the lower back, why not give it a shot? Since you're saying you back used to hurt, try doing it without weights for now. It really helped me, now I could do sit-ups until my abs die on me, just listen to me, I think it's your solution.

Will do, thanks.

[whitebandit]

bump

[the101dan]

I recently started doing deadlifts but back extensions is what worked for me, that isolates the lower back, why not give it a shot? Since you're saying you back used to hurt, try doing it without weights for now. It really helped me, now I could do sit-ups until my abs die on me, just listen to me, I think it's your solution.

This is the worst advice ever. Let me explain why.

OP is raising his legs and moving his back in the opposite motion of a back extension in the process and his back hurts. This is because, in comparison to his abs, his lower back is TOO strong. The body's muscles work in pairs (biceps, triceps; back, abs; etc). If his back was hurting when he was doing extensions, then he has a weak lower back in relation to the opposing muscle group, the abs. But this is not the case. His back is too strong (again, in relation to his abs) and thus at "rest" his back tends to pull harder than his abs. When he tries to go against the grain, it comes to a point where he cannot do this anymore; by default, his abs are stretched and lower back flexed. This is a large muscular imbalance. I used to have the same.

Anyone with this problem needs to fix this imbalance. I did leg lifts until my back hurt (I did not continue after this point and I don't know how any human could) and I found the bending point which causes my back to hurt. So I decided to take exercising out of the equation (temporarily). I bent my back over the right angle that my bed makes at that bending point, thereby stretching it and reducing the muscular imbalance, and what do you know? It triggered the pain, although not as strong. After this point, I knew that I was correct and it was a muscular imbalance. If my lower back wasn't strong, it would not hurt this much just by stretching it. My viewpoint was the only possible correct one. I knew to fix this I had to get my abs stronger and stretch out my lower back more. So, every day, I stretched my lower back using my bed as a right angle for about 5 minutes. And during days that I would normally work out my abs, I did mostly alternative workouts, but I also did leg lifts UP TO THE POINT OF HURT. I did not advance farther past this point (it would be dangerous to do so I think), but this point did increase over time due to the stretching of the back. Now, my abs and back are in balance, as they should be, and I can do leg lifts just fine.

tl;dr: If anyone cannot do leg lifts due to a severe pain in the lower back, it is due to a muscular imbalance between the back and the abs and can be fixed by stretching the back at the bending point which causes the pain for about 5 minutes every day and continuing to work out the abs as normal, although less intensively in the exercises which cause your back to hurt.

[ericaamato]

to add to the above:
never move into pain.

if there's pain,
1) reduce the range of motion (make the move smaller)
2) reduce the load.

you will find folks who do not like lying leg raises at all because of how it impacts the back - a lot of folks there lumbar spine starts to curve as the legs come back down, putting undue flexion on the spine to support the legs - that's not good.

Hanging leg raises can also do this, but sometimes to a lesser extent.

THis is why you'll find some PT's who caution against ever using these moves.

It may be that those muscles are as suggested above weak that would hold the lumbar spine more fixed, or it may also be that you have some related mobility issues in your hips or upper spine that is causing this response

As suggested, you can slow down, reduce the sets. you can also tuck your knees in to help with that load reduction, so knee raises rather than legs.

BUT you don't want pain to be your limiting factor - that means you're still using crappy form potentially, and just working till it hurts, not till you fatigue.

so you may want to watch yourself - especially how your low back curves in a mirror.

on the lying raises, when coming down - only go down for now as far as you can keeping your back flat on the mat. as soon as it starts to curve, stop there. it will get progressively deeper if you work it in this way.

same thing with the hanging tho again that's often harder to see - so you can use your floor measure as your limiter for lowering your legs.

another thing is to look for alternatives. Janda sit ups can work very nicely as an example. twists can be nice - there are tons of ways to work the core without stressing your back/

Hope that helps.

mc
mc

Never ever had a problem til recently I understand the way hip flexors attach to your back so I focus on keep the abs contracted to not let my hips come out of a neutral position but every single time i end up in pain for days now. I went to title gym where they had us do 15 min straight of weighted abdominal moves when I was already sore from the day before (trx).. Felt like I pulled a muscle in my right oblique and and were sore over a week. Since then I've been so much weaker in my abs than ever. this was 2 months ago deadlifts and back extensions seem fine and my back is very flexible. I have no issues with full bridges or bending in half and hugging my thighs. No pain with any stretch.

[barnespm13]

This is the worst advice ever. Let me explain why.

OP is raising his legs and moving his back in the opposite motion of a back extension in the process and his back hurts. This is because, in comparison to his abs, his lower back is TOO strong. The body's muscles work in pairs (biceps, triceps; back, abs; etc). If his back was hurting when he was doing extensions, then he has a weak lower back in relation to the opposing muscle group, the abs. But this is not the case. His back is too strong (again, in relation to his abs) and thus at "rest" his back tends to pull harder than his abs. When he tries to go against the grain, it comes to a point where he cannot do this anymore; by default, his abs are stretched and lower back flexed. This is a large muscular imbalance. I used to have the same.

Anyone with this problem needs to fix this imbalance. I did leg lifts until my back hurt (I did not continue after this point and I don't know how any human could) and I found the bending point which causes my back to hurt. So I decided to take exercising out of the equation (temporarily). I bent my back over the right angle that my bed makes at that bending point, thereby stretching it and reducing the muscular imbalance, and what do you know? It triggered the pain, although not as strong. After this point, I knew that I was correct and it was a muscular imbalance. If my lower back wasn't strong, it would not hurt this much just by stretching it. My viewpoint was the only possible correct one. I knew to fix this I had to get my abs stronger and stretch out my lower back more. So, every day, I stretched my lower back using my bed as a right angle for about 5 minutes. And during days that I would normally work out my abs, I did mostly alternative workouts, but I also did leg lifts UP TO THE POINT OF HURT. I did not advance farther past this point (it would be dangerous to do so I think), but this point did increase over time due to the stretching of the back. Now, my abs and back are in balance, as they should be, and I can do leg lifts just fine.

tl;dr: If anyone cannot do leg lifts due to a severe pain in the lower back, it is due to a muscular imbalance between the back and the abs and can be fixed by stretching the back at the bending point which causes the pain for about 5 minutes every day and continuing to work out the abs as normal, although less intensively in the exercises which cause your back to hurt.

Do you have a picture or video of this stretch. I am having the same problem.

[Jackal005]

Strong bump.

But to address the issue - 9/10 times when people have back pain during leg raises it's simply because the exercise is too advanced for them. You need to have a certain amount of core strength to properly perform leg raises, and absolute novices don't have it.

A good starter is to lie on the floor with your legs pointing straight up, brace your core, then slowly lower your legs until you start to lose the core stability. Develop that until you can lower your legs until your feet are an inch from the floor.

OR you could just do heavy squats, deadlifts, presses and weighted chins and develop your core that way.