What if I told you that planks, L-sits, palloff presses, dead bugs, and other anti-rotation based core exercises were slowing down your clients performance improvement?

Hmmm…Is this true, or is this just a polarizing hook for the article?

Well, when we look at some of the most explosive sports (football, baseball, track and field, etc.) we can clearly see that the spine is being challenged in nearly every direction at any given moment.

Yet when we see most athletes training their core, we see mainly exercises that avoid movement.

Seems counter intuitive when we think of it from that perspective.

But what about from a Crossfit and Olympic Weightlifting perspective?

The majority of the movements we see in these sports are done with a neutral spine, right?

In this article we’re going to review 5 incredible spine mobility exercises that will challenge your clients in many different angles and planes of movement so that they can be ready for whatever the whiteboard throws at them.

But first, let’s have a look at how the spine is being challenged throughout seemingly “neutral spine” movements, and why moving the spine is truly supportive of athleticism in these sports as well. 

Let’s dive in!

The Backbone of Performance: Is Neutral Spine Even Real?

Before I jump in here, I want to first say that I am not advocating for lifting with a rounded back, or being irresponsible with how we load our spines, in any way.

I wouldn’t say that that approach is safer or more ideal than lifting with a neutral spine at all.

But what I am saying is that if our clients are only training within a neutral spine, they will naturally begin to “suck” in other spinal positions.

So what happens when one of your clients attempts to do a set of deadlifts that is heavier than what they are accustomed to (say..a new 3 rep max) and their spine starts to move into flexion due to the heavy load?

They’re traveling through unknown territory.

Their body is moving into positions that it has been guided to avoid at all costs, and even worse, it’s doing so under heavy loads.

While the ideal lifting technique generally suggests that a neutral spine is the way to go, what does that even mean?

Dr. Greg Lehman is one of the leading voices in the world of loaded spinal flexion.

He was a student of Professor Stuart McGill and has done extensive research on the subject.

In this article, he speaks on the research and studies that have found that a “neutral spine” really isn’t neutral at all (I highly recommend you give that article a read, and dive even deeper into some of his other resources).

That spinal flexion is inevitable and we are all lifting and moving into this function of the spine on a daily basis.

One of the core principles that we teach in the Primal Mobility Certification is “There are no dangerous positions, only lack of preparedness”.

The human body is an adaptation machine.

We are designed to adapt to the stimulus we are being placed under frequently.

The same logic that makes us strong in a neutral spine, makes us strong in a bent or rotated spine.

As coaches, we want our clients to feel strong, confident, and resilient under the barbell.

But as clients, building true resiliency means being exposed to stress.

A human spine has 4 main functions - flexion, extension, rotation, and lateral flexion (side bending).

We need to challenge our clients through all the functions that their spine has to offer, so that they feel GOOD going into their WOD, instead of constantly thinking that they should put their belt on.

Let’s dive into 5 of my favorite spine mobility exercises that will expose our clients to every function of the spine and help build movement control and strength within them.

5 Spine Mobility Exercises You Need to Try

One of our rules at Primal Mobility is that you MUST experience an exercise for yourself before you offer it to a client.

You have to understand the nuances of the movement, how it feels, where it should be felt, what to focus on, what to avoid, etc.

Make sure to try each of these before you add it to the program!

For fun, I wanted to organize these five spine mobility exercises in order of “spiciness”.

The more we move down the list, the more challenging the exercise will get.

1: Kneeling Side-Line = 🌶️

The Kneeling Side-Line exercise is dynamic, but quite simple and basic. While a side-line stretch such as this one is generally performed statically (without movement), we are doing to bring in repetitions to allow the athlete to explore the ranges of lateral flexion.

This one will be a great option as a total beginner spine mobility exercise that would also work great to open up the ribs and get the QL moving as part of a warmup.

Instructions & Cues:

• Get into a tall kneeling position (right leg down, left leg up), and cup your hand behind your head (same side as knee down).

• Take your opposing hand and grab the elbow of the arm that is cupped behind your head.

• Take a deep breath in, on exhale drive hip to the side and pull gently on the elbow to find a deep stretch in the side line of the body.

• As you are driving the hip to the side, think of this as a lateral hinge movement.

• Repeat for a prescribed number of repetitions and then repeat on the other side.

2: Controlled Spinal Rotations 🌶️

It says it all in the name. This one is great for challenging the spine through some of the deepest ranges of rotation that it has to offer, but even better, in a very active manner.

While many athletes will simply stretch their spines into deep rotation passively, offering an active approach will allow them to develop movement control through the ranges.

This will naturally help the nervous system connect to this function of the spine more appropriately, and allow the athlete to feel stronger and less restricted throughout their spinal rotation.

This one is quite gentle and feels good, but still brings a bit of a challenge, so guide the athlete to move slowly and avoid compensating so that the spine is the main intention!

Instructions & Cues:

• Lay flat on back and place arms out directly to the sides, with palms facing the floor, to make a T shape

• Bring the knees up to a 90º angle and keep them glued together

• Press the hands down into the floor to help maintain balance and core engagement

• Without straightening the legs, SLOWLY allow the knees to drop to the left while looking to the right.

• As you begin to reach the end-range of spinal rotation, you will feel that your shoulders want to lift off the floor - stop just before that point and move back to starting position

• Perform the same movement on the right side next, while looking toward the left.

3: Dorsiflexed Jefferson Curl 🌶️🌶️

The Jefferson Curl is an absolute classic.

While many people will fear moving into deep spinal flexion, the Jefferson Curl will challenge this function throughout the entirety of its ability.

This exercise can certainly be easily loaded, but it would be wise to begin learning the pattern of this one without loading first.

As spinal flexion is a commonly weak position, you should be cautious as to how quickly you progress this one.

Start unloaded, then SLOWLY add stimulus as you feel is safe and effective.

Considering that this exercise is a dorsiflexion variation, it will challenge the posterior chain in a big way, with a predominant focus on the lower leg.

Instructions & Cues:

• Standing on a slant board (or toes up onto a bumper plate), begin by standing tall in a neutral spine

• Start the movement by first bracing the core and begin to look down toward the floor

• Next, aim to bring each individual segment of the spine into flexion (think of this as a wave type motion - it should flow from one section of the spine to the next)

• As you move, guide your hands down your legs toward your toes - continue to move until you feel you have reached your safest end range

• Slowly return back to a tall starting position while maintaining the bracing of the core throughout.

• ONLY ADD LOAD ONCE YOU FEEL IT IS LOGICAL AND SAFE TO DO SO

4: Spine Undulations🌶️🌶️🌶️

This undulation exercise is one of the greatest ways to develop full spinal control throughout both extension and flexion.

Considering the amount that we all train our spines in neutral, it’s highly common for athletes to feel like their spine is “blocky”...moving all in one segment.

Undulations are great to help your athlete regain awareness of each segment of their spine and to bring in a high level of control throughout the process as well.

Remember, we want this to be active, so encourage your athlete to move SLOW and to maintain a braced core to establish real control throughout the various different positions.

Instructions & Cues:

• Start by getting on hands and knees in a stable position with a neutral spine

• Then, brace your core and pull your pelvis into an anterior tilt (hyperextending the lumbar spine)

• Slowly move your way up the spine by bringing each segment into flexion, finishing with the neck by looking up at the ceiling

• Once in this position, while keeping the rest of the spine in deep extension, next begin by tucking the chin and pulling the neck into flexion

• Continue to the spine one segment at a time until you reach the lumbar spine, by pulling the pelvis into a posterior tilt

• Continue this sequence for the programmed amount of time or reps.

5: Thoracic CARs 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

If you’ve ever truly experienced any CARs exercise, you know it’s not just physically demanding, it also challenges your mind in a big way.

And considering how challenging this area of the spine is to isolate in movement, this one gets real tough, real quick.

The concept of this one is to take your thoracic spine throughout its entire range of motion, without compensating from other areas.

Simple, but HARD.

Give it a shot!

Instructions & Cues: 

• Start by sitting in a deep kneeling position (seiza position) and giving yourself a hug (grab both shoulders with opposing hands)  - this can also be performed in a seated position if the knees won’t allow the deep kneel

• From there, brace the core HARD and engage the lats as much as possible (give yourself a strong hug)

• Now, begin by pulling the thoracic spine into flexion

• While as active as possible (contact your entire upper body, you want to feel as though this is very taxing) begin to rotate the thoracic spine only - a good cue here is to keep the belly button facing forward throughout the entirety of the movement

• Move the thoracic into extension and continue the circular movement by then rotating to the opposite side

• Finally, move back to flexion before repeating this movement in the opposing direction.

• Continue this sequence for the programmed amount of reps

Learn the Prescriptive Art of Strength-Based Mobility Programming

At Primal Mobility, we have been spending years refining the most ideal approach to building game changing mobility programs that help athletes master their performance.

Whether you’re looking to master spine mobility or just looking for a unique approach to getting your clients results that help you stand out as a world-class expert, we have an awesome tool for you.

Grab our FREE E-Book - Creating a World Class Mobility Program

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