3 Best Back Exercises for Pickleball Players

Loosen your Spine, Prevent Injury, and Boost Power on the court

Pickleball is fast-paced and intense, requiring swift twists, lunges, and overhead shots—all of which place significant stress on your lower back and spinal muscles. Without proper flexibility, you could end up with acute or chronic back pain.

Here are 3 expert-recommended back exercises to help you play better, safer, and longer.

---

 

1. Knee Rolling

Why it helps:
Knee rolling is a gentle spinal twist exercise that perfectly unwind spinal tension after intense pickleball matches.

How to do it:

• Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor.

• Rest your arms at the sides.

• Roll both knees to one side while keeping your shoulders on the floor.

• Hold for 10–20 seconds, then bring knees back to center and drop to the other side.

• Repeat 5–10 reps per side.

Pro tip: Breathe deeply into your belly as you stretch.

✅ Best for: Pre-game warm-up, post-match recovery, relieving lower back tightness.

---

2. Cat-Cow Stretch

Why it helps:
This gentle movement increases mobility in your spine and relieves lower back stiffness—perfect before or after a pickleball match.

How to do it:

• Begin on hands and knees on the floor.

• Exhale: round your spine (cat pose), towards the ceiling.

• Inhale:  drop your back to neutral position  (cow pose).

• Repeat for 5–10 reps.

---

 

3. Glute Bridge

Why it helps:
Strong glutes prevent back injury.

How to do it:

• Lie on your back with knees bent, feet flat.

• Engage your core and lift your tailbone away from the floor.

• Hold for 10-20 seconds, then lower.

• Perform 5–10 reps.

Pro tip: Avoid over-arching.

---

🎾 Bonus Tips for Pickleball Back Safety

• Warm up first: Light cardio and mobility exercises reduce back stiffness.

• Stretch after play: Include gentle back stretches post-game.

• Enjoy your game!

---

💬 Final Thoughts

'Strong backs' lead to Low Back Pain. Flexible spines lead to healthy spine.

Expert Physiotherapy & Sports Recovery Near You – We offer sports massage, deep tissue therapy, injury rehabilitation, and recovery programs for conditions such as back pain, neck pain, slipped discs, knee pain, sciatica, and sports injuries. Whether you’re an athlete, recovering from surgery, or managing chronic pain, our personalised treatments help you move better, recover faster, and stay active.
At our clinic, we provide a full range of physiotherapy and sports recovery services to support your health and performance. Our treatments include sports massage, deep tissue massage, sports injury massage, rehabilitation massage, recovery massage, myofascial release, trigger point therapy, mobility massage, kinesiology massage, and targeted therapy for sprains, strains, and muscle tension. We also offer pre-event and post-event sports massage, manual therapy for athletes, and injury prevention programs.
We treat a wide variety of conditions, including back pain, lower back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, stiff neck, slipped discs (L4L5), scoliosis, spinal pain, sciatica, nerve pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, ACL injuries, knee arthritis, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, headaches, migraines, jaw pain, TMJ disorders, sports injuries, posture issues, pregnancy pain, frozen shoulder, and post-surgery rehabilitation. We also address gastric issues, bloating, shortness of breath, foot cramps, and numbness.
Conveniently located across Malaysia, we welcome clients from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Melaka, Johor, and Pahang — including key areas such as KLCC, Bangsar, Cheras, TTDI, Mont Kiara, Petaling Jaya, Shah Alam, Subang Jaya, Puchong, Klang, Ayer Keroh, Johor Bahru, Iskandar Puteri, Skudai, Kuantan, and more. If you’re nearby, you’re close enough to benefit from our professional physiotherapy services. Book your appointment today and take the first step towards a stronger, pain-free you.
 

Benphysio @ Oval Damansara
📞 016-390 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 Unit 2-1 & 2-2, 2nd Floor, Oval Damansara, Jalan Damansara, 60000 Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur

Benphysio @ Puchong
📞 010-253 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 40-G, Jalan Puteri 1/2, Bandar Puteri, 47100 Puchong, Selangor

Benphysio @ Bangsar
📞 010-263 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 17, Persiaran Ara Kiri, Lucky Garden, Bangsar, 59100 Kuala Lumpur

Benphysio @ KL Ampang
📞 010-283 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 Lot G.09, Ground Floor, The Grange @ Ampwalk, 218, Jalan Ampang, 55000 Kuala Lumpur

Benphysio @ Cheras
📞 010-287 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 213, Jalan Sarjana, Taman Connaught, 56000 Kuala Lumpur

Benphysio @ Kota Damansara Giza
📞 016-439 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 C-11-G, Sunway Giza Mall, Dataran Sunway, Kota Damansara, 47810 Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Benphysio @ Puncak Alam
📞 016-732 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 No. 25, Jalan Niaga Bestari 7, Puncak Bestari, 42300 Puncak Alam, Selangor

Benphysio @ Ayer Keroh Melaka
📞 018-985 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 No. 1, Pusat Komersial, C-G-9, Jalan Pkak 1, 75450 Ayer Keroh, Melaka

Benphysio @ Mount Austin Johor
📞 018-288 2015 | WhatsApp
📍 Room 15, Nook Workspace•Storage Mount Austin, 117, Jalan Mutiara Emas 10/19, Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru, Johor Darul Ta'zim