Erector Spinae Stretch – Best Stretching Exercises for Flexibility and Pain Relief

In this article, I will show you the best exercises for achieving erector spinae stretch. These muscles are located along the spine and are often tight and painful.

Inactivity and tightness of the erector spinae contribute to a swayback posture.

With these stretching exercises for the erector spinae, you will improve the mobility of your back and reduce muscle discomfort.

Best Stretches for Erector Spinae Muscles

Child Pose Stretch (Best for Longissimus Muscle)

• Assume a child pose stance
• Extend your arms forward
• Rotate your pelvis backward (posterior pelvic tilt)
• Breath deeply and hold this position for 30s.

This exercise is great for achieving longissimus stretch.

Another way to perform erector stretch from this position is to slightly rotate your arms and upper body to one side.

And just hold that position. (See the picture below)

Knee To Chest with Neck Flexion (Best for stretching of lower part of Erector Spinae)

• Lay down on your back
• Grab your knees with both of your hands
• Pull your knees to your chest and slightly outward
• Bend your head and neck
• Hold this position for 30s.

Knee to chest is a standard static erector spinae stretch that’s often used by physiotherapist and fitness trainers when treating lower back pain.

Seated Forward Fold

• Sit on a ground with slightly bent knees
• Grab your legs just above your ankles with your hands
• Flex your head, neck and upper body and gently push forward with your upper body
• Hold this position for 30s

This stretch targets most the lower erector spinae part (lumbar).

Standing Erector Spinae Stretch

Just like a seated forward fold stretch, but this time, you start from a standing position.

Knees are slightly bent to avoid stretching of hamstrings and focus most of lower erector spinae stretch.

Hold for 30s.

Kneeling Erector Spinae Stretch (Static stretch for one side)

• Start from standing on all fours
• Place one arm to the opposite side and toward the opposite hip
• Rotate your torso to that side
• Hold this stretch for 30s

This stretch will isolate erector stretch on one side and that would be the same side as your active arm.

Backward Fold

One of the simplest stretches, yet very effective in relieving the tension in your lower back area and lumbar erector muscles.

From laying on your back, place your legs above your head and hold this position for 30s.

Breath deeply and slowly.

Wall Stretch for Erector Spinae (Best Overall)

This is one of the best erector stretch in my opinion. Here is why.

Your quadriceps are active while you’re standing on a wall, which means your hamstring will be relaxed more than ever.

Why is that important? Because with relaxed hamstrings, your body will stretch mostly erector spinae muscles when flexing your torso.

Also, from this stance you can easily tilt your pelvis backward and hold it there with help of a wall.

Then, you just need to bend your head, neck and upper body forward. Using your hands, you can increase the erector spinae stretch even more.

Find the pleasant stretching intensity and hold for 30s.

Safety Tips When Stretching Erector Spinae Muscles

When stretching erector muscles, make sure that:

• Stretches are not provoking more pain in lower back/legs.
• You breath deeply and don’t bounce into stretches.
• You’re careful when rotating your pelvis backward (posterior pelvic tilt)
• You hold a static stretch for 30s.
• You don’t sacrifice quality of exercise to boost ego.
• You visit your doctor if you have persistent pain in your back/legs.

How Do I Loosen My Erector Spinae?

The best way to loosen a erector muscle is through stretching exercises.

Additionally, you can use a massage ball, massage gun or warm baths/sauna to relax your back muscles even more.

Advantage with using a massage ball is that you can target easily the painful spots in your erector muscles.

On the other side, with warm bath or sauna you will cover the whole erector spinae muscles and achieve a degree of relaxation.

You can try both ways and write your experience in the comments. Sharing here will help people reading this article to choose the best method for them.

What Causes Erector Spinae Tightness?

Erector Muscles – back muscles which are active basically in every standing activity. They are one of a several muscles responsible for maintaining a straight back.

Because of their constant activity, erector muscles can sometimes become tight or painful.

Often will painful back muscles lead to reduced back mobility and subtle changes in upper body posture.

To avoid tightness in erector muscles, make sure you are physically active and that you do a variety of exercises for both back mobility, stability and strength.

Good luck with your training.