A gentle, spine-safe series to ease and protect the low back — warm up the spine, work with control, then release. Move slowly and stay within a comfortable range.
Before you beginA gentle lift, throughout. On every move, lightly draw up through your pelvic floor — a soft lift from the base, never a clench, while you keep breathing. New to it? Start with Pelvic Floor Foundations →
Breathe. Hold the stretches for about 5 slow breaths — that’s at least 30 seconds; if you finish quicker, you’re breathing too fast, so slow it down. For a calming anchor, try Five Finger Breathing: with a fingertip, trace up each finger as you breathe in and down as you breathe out — five fingers, five breaths.
The Back Care Series
A gentle, spine-safe series to ease and protect the low back — warm up the spine, work with control, then release. Move slowly and stay within a comfortable range.
Warm-Up
1. Roll-Down · 3–5 — Move slowly and sequentially — feel each vertebra. Keep the knees soft.
2. Cat-Cow (Spinal Articulation) — Move one vertebra at a time — ripple through the spine. · Let the breath lead the movement, never force the range.
The Work
3. The Hundred (Modified) — Pump from your back and shoulders, not your wrists. · Anchor a heavy tailbone into the floor.
4. Rolling Like a Ball · 6–8 — Stay round like a ball and use control, not momentum. Keep the same C-curve throughout.
5. Spine Stretch Forward — Peel your back off an imaginary wall. · Scoop the belly away from the thighs as you reach.
6. The Pelvic Lift — Lift from the glutes and hamstrings, not the low back. · Keep the ribs soft and the line long — hips don’t sag or overarch.
7. Single Leg Circle (Modified) — Your pelvis is set in cement — only the leg moves. · Draw a precise circle on the ceiling.
8. Single Leg Stretch (Modified Height) — Reach the extending leg out of the hip socket. · Pull the knee toward your armpit, not your ribs.
9. The Swan (Gentle Extension) — Slide your shoulder blades into your back pockets. · Lengthen forward and out — don’t crunch the low back.
10. Spine Twist — Twist your ribs like wringing out a wet towel. · Keep both sit bones equally weighted.
11. The Saw — Saw your pinky toe off with your pinky finger. · Anchor the opposite hip firmly down.
12. Chest Expansion (Kneeling) — Grow an inch taller as the arms press back. · Keep the core canister locked so the low back doesn’t arch.
13. Reach (Opposition Stretch for Balance & Strength) — Reach in two directions at once — long, not high. · Keep the hips square and the belly gently lifted so the low back stays quiet.
Cool-Down
14. Knees to Chest (Rocking Release) — Let the floor massage your spine. · Keep the shoulders soft and the neck long — this is a release, not a workout.
15. Paradise Stretch (Final Rest) — Nothing to do here but breathe and lengthen. · Let the floor hold you completely.
The Way · by Gina Santangelo · ginasantangelo.com · Learn each move at ginasantangelo.com/movement
