There are so many people having troubles with their backs these days. There are problems with herniated discs, sciatica, and back pain in general. People are missing work, taking pain medications, and having to pay  doctor and chiropractic visits. Then, there is the eventual surgery that is very expensive and painful.

Recently, I was reading in my son’s bookThe Men’s Health Big Book of Exercises by Adam Campbell. In the back of the book, I found a bonus workout to save your back. There are four basic exercises, which, if you do them everyday for a lifetime, you can have a strong healthy back that lasts.

BONUS WORKOUT: SAVE YOUR BACK IN 7 MINUTES

To reduce your chances of a back attack, try this workout from Stuart McGill, PhD, professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo, and author of Low Back Disorders. This 7-minute (or less) workout increases the endurance of your deep back and abdominal muscles, to improve spine stability and ultimately reduce lower-back stress. Do this routine once a day, every day. Simply perform the exercises as a circuit, doing one set of each movement without rest in between.

• Cat camel  Do five to eight repetitions.

Cat Camel Back Stretch

• McGill curlup Hold the curlup position for 7 or 8 seconds, then lower momentarily. That’s one repetition.

McGill Curlup

• Side plank Hold the side-lank position for 7 or 8 seconds, then lower your hips for a moment. That’s one repetition. Do four or five repetitions, then switch sides and repeat.

Side Plank

• Bird dog Hold the bird-dog position for 7 or 8 seconds, then lower your arm and leg momentarily. That’s one rep. Do four repetitions., then switch arms and legs and repeat.

bird dog

Wouldn’t it be great to do these exercises everyday and enjoy the benefits of a strong, pain-free back for the rest of your life? I think it’s something everyone needs to know about before it’s too late, and surgery has to be done.