Low Back Pain: Awareness, Protection & Better Movement Artwork

Movement Podcast

Human movement is complex, fascinating, and affects us all. Our hosts, Gray Cook and Dr. Lee Burton, have dedicated their lives to understanding movement and have trained thousands of fitness and healthcare professionals worldwide with their holistic philosophy and approach. Listen as they discuss topics, speak with other industry experts, answer questions & give practical advice on how you can optimize the human body to be the best it can be.

All Episodes

Movement Podcast

Low Back Pain: Awareness, Protection & Better Movement

September 10, 2026 • Gray Cook and Dr. Lee Burton • Season 7 • Episode 106

0:00 | 1:16:33

What are the best exercises for low back pain?

Gray Cook says that may be the wrong first question.

In this episode of the Movement Podcast, Gray is joined by Dr. Kyle Kiesel, one of the leading researchers in rehabilitation and low back pain, for a deeper conversation about why low back pain is not always a simple weakness problem — and why “strengthen your core” does not always solve the issue.

Gray and Kyle discuss inhibition, the multifidus, high-threshold strategies, pain, inflammation, movement patterns, breathing, rolling, and the importance of individualizing care instead of handing every person the same low back pain exercise list.

The conversation starts with a common question: what are your three favorite exercises for low back pain?

But instead of giving a generic answer, Gray and Kyle explain why professionals need to ask better questions first:

What movement patterns are painful?
What movement patterns are dysfunctional?
Is this a mobility problem?
Is this a stability problem?
Is the person weak — or is something being inhibited?
Can the body roll, breathe, squat, touch the toes, and balance?
What needs to be protected before it can be corrected?

They also explore how the multifidus can be affected by pain, inflammation, trauma, compensation, and long-standing movement issues — and why restoring better movement is often about more than simply adding exercises.

This episode covers:

• Why low back pain is not always a weakness problem
• The difference between weakness and inhibition
• Why the multifidus matters
• How pain and inflammation can change muscle function
• High-threshold strategies and “planking your way through life”
• Why toe touch, squat, and single-leg stance matter in low back pain
• Breathing and rolling as key awareness tools
• Why movement patterns can reveal whether the back is ready
• How tape, touch, and position can provide useful feedback
• Why awareness and protection come before correction
• The difference between generic protocols and individualized care
• Why evidence-based care still needs to be personalized

The key takeaway: low back pain deserves more than a generic exercise list. The goal is to understand the person, identify the movement pattern, protect what needs protection, and build the right path back to better function.

Learn more about Functional Movement Systems:
https://www.functionalmovement.com/

Clinical Integration: The LBP Solutions Online Masterclass
https://www.functionalmovement.com/Store/1271/clinical_integration_the_lbp_solutions_online_masterclass

FMS Quick Screen Course
https://www.functionalmovement.com/Store/1275/quick_screen_movement_readiness_screen

Functional Movement Systems

Subscribe to the FMS Newsletter