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I came across a newly-published study about core strength, plank pose, and low back pain that I thought you body geeks would find interesting!
Before we get to the new study, here’s a little background info we should know:
Background Info: The Core Strength/Low Back Pain Connection (or Lack Thereof 😉)
You’ve probably heard it before – maybe in a yoga class, a gym, or even from a well-meaning friend:
“You’ve got back pain? It must be because your core is weak.”
Or the flip side:
“If you strengthen your core, you’ll prevent back pain.”
It’s a super common belief. And it sounds logical, right? But here’s the thing – we’ve known for years now that this idea isn’t actually evidence-based!
Low back pain (LBP) is a complex, multifactorial condition, and influences across biological, psychological, and social realms can all combine to play a role in someone’s experience of pain.
So LBP is a much more nuanced picture than the oversimplified, black-and-white claims we commonly hear like “a weak core causes back pain”, etc.
(Plus, have you ever thought about the fact that not everyone with a strong core is free of back pain (!), and not everyone with a weak core has LBP?! So on a purely logical basis, we should question these common beliefs – you know??)
In fact, research shows that lots of different types of movements – yoga, strength training, walking, Pilates, cardio, etc. – can all be helpful for LBP.
Yes, core-targeted exercises can certainly help with LBP – but they’re not more effective than general exercise. ‼️ All types of exercise can be beneficial!
Main Takeaway?
The main takeaway is that when it comes to LBP, we don’t need to limit ourselves to narrowly-defined, specific types of exercises (like planks, dead bugs, bird dogs, etc.).
As one systematic review on LBP put it, “current evidence-based exercise prescription for treating chronic LBP may be exercise agnostic”. (Gilliam et al., 2023).
All types of movement can be good, and so the best kind of exercise is the one we find enjoyable and that we’ll actually stick with! 💡 How movement optimistic, right??
Now to the Brand-New Study on Core Strength, Plank Pose, & Back Pain I Wanted to Tell You About!
✨ OK… now that we’ve established our background, we can talk about this brand-new study about LBP and plank pose that just came out that really adds an interesting layer to this conversation:
The Core of the Issue: Plank Performance and Pain in the Lower Back (Eimiller et al., 2025)
The researchers looked at people with and without LBP and tested how long they could hold a plank (a classic measure of anterior core strength endurance).
What Did the Researchers Find?
They found that the people with LBP actually held the plank longer than those without LBP. 🤯
That’s right! “Individuals with LBP demonstrated significantly longer plank hold times than those without.”
Even though we already knew that a strong core doesn’t necessarily mean less LBP, these study results are so interesting because they flip the popular belief on its head: the subjects with LBP had more core strength endurance (in a plank task) than the subjects without LBP.
“An unexpected finding was the inverse relationship between plank duration and LBP status. This challenges the assumption that longer plank times provide protection against spinal pain.”
But That’s Not All!
👉 In the group of people with back pain, those who had better posterior chain endurance (think: glutes + hamstrings, measured with a single-leg bridge test) relative to their plank endurance reported less disability from their back pain.
So more posterior chain strength relative to anterior core strength was correlated with less disability.
But what do we always hear? “For LBP, do exercises that target the abdominals” (i.e. anterior core work like planks, dead bugs, and bird dogs.). Could these common recommendations be overlooking the benefits that posterior chain targeting might have to offer? 🤔
So What Might This Core Endurance/Plank Pose/Back Pain Research Mean for Us as Yogis?
Well, this study challenges that old-school idea that the key to a pain-free back is doing tons of crunches or holding plank forever. Instead, it highlights the importance of a more integrated approach – training the core (and the whole body) in a more well-rounded, 360° way.
From the study:
“The present findings reinforce a growing rehabilitation perspective that prioritizes integrated core training over isolated muscle strengthening. Emphasizing posterior chain development, particularly through exercises targeting the gluteus maximus, hamstrings, and lumbar extensors, may help reduce disability and enhance functional outcomes in individuals with LBP.”
Of course, one single study is far from having all the answers – and none of this means that planks, dead bugs, and bird dogs are bad! I personally love and teach all of those movements – but of course, I include them within a broad, bigger picture approach to the core.
Let’s remember that low back pain is multifactorial – and yoga teachers don’t treat or diagnose. But as a form of movement, yoga can be helpful for back pain in that big-picture way (just like general exercise can be!).
Reference:
Eimiller, Kira, et al. “The Core of the Issue: Plank Performance and Pain in the Lower Back.” Journal of Clinical Medicine14.11 (2025): 3926.
