Is Walking Good for Lower Back Pain?

Walking is one of the best ways to help chronic or recurrent lower back pain. A 2024 study found that an individualized and progressive walking program that gradually builds up to at least 130 minutes of moderate-intensity walking per week significantly reduces lower back pain.

Walking is a cost-effective and easily accessible way to relieve lower back pain and prevent recurrence. It strengthens lower back muscles, improves posture, and stabilizes the lumbar spine. Walking regularly can help relieve severe lower back pain and prevent future flare-ups.

Why Does Walking Help Lower Back Pain?

Walking is a great exercise for lower back pain. In general, movement is better for people with recurrent lower back than inactivity. Being sedentary can make back pain worse.

Walking is a daily habit that's easy to incorporate into your weekly routine to helps lower back pain—as well as overall health—in many ways, including:

• Increases spinal flexibility: Walking involves gentle movements that increase the lower back's functional range of motion, improve spinal flexibility, and reduce stiffness.
  
• Stabilizes lumbar muscles: Walking builds muscular endurance and strength in the lower back's paraspinal muscles, which fortifies lumber (spinal) stabilization.
• Strengthens core muscles: Walking loads and strengthens core muscles such as the transversus abdominis, which lowers the risk of experiencing recurrent lower back pain.
  
• Improves posture: Movement of the lower legs during walking enhance bodily awareness and help improve posture. 
  
• Boost blood flow: Walking boosts blood flow to lumbar muscles, which helps deliver essential nutrients to spinal discs and can reduce the frequency and severity of lower back muscle spasms.
  
• Lubricates spinal joints: Low-impact walking improves synovial fluid production and circulation, lubricating the lumbar spine's facet joints and other joints that tend to get achy, such as the knees.
  
• Reduces inflammation: Walking helps reduce the presence of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-8 and TNF-alpha, associated with chronic lower back pain.
• Promotes weight loss: When done along with making healthy dietary choices, walking can help people lose excess fat in the abdominal area, which puts added strain on the lower back and correlates with lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD).
  
• Alleviates psychological stress: Walking regularly can reduce high degrees of mental stress, which are associated with chronic lower back pain.
  
• Releases "feel good" endorphins: Moderate to vigorous physical activity, such as walking at about 3 miles per hour (mph) for a half-hour per day, stimulates the release of endorphins, your body's self-produced pain relievers.
  

How to Walk to Reap the Benefits

To make sure you're getting all the benefits of walking, be sure to do the following:

• Start slowly and gradually build intensity.
  
• Stay consistent with your walking plan.
• Track your progress to keep yourself motivated.
  

Who Should Avoid Walking With Lower Back Pain?

Walking is a low-risk, low-impact activity that's well-tolerated by most people with nonspecific low back pain. Because walking doesn't involve twisting or vigorous movements, it's generally considered a safe form of exercise for those with lower back pain.

If you're experiencing severe lower back pain due to a traumatic injury or medical condition, always speak to a healthcare provider before you start walking regularly. 

Other Activities to Limit

High-impact activities such as running on hard surfaces or playing basketball can exacerbate chronic lower back pain. Below are some other activities to limit if you have chronic lower back pain:

• Heavy lifting
• Repetitive bending
• Twisting motions

Summary

Walking is a good way to treat and prevent lower back pain. If your lower back always hurts, making daily walks a part of your weekly routine can help relieve the pain. Other benefits include better overall physical health, improved posture, and better blood flow.