How to Get out of Bed Without the Backache

Safe Moves to Minimize Twisting Your Back

Many people wake up in the morning with back stiffness. You want to protect your back when you get out of bed by using safe moves that minimize twisting. You may never have given thought to the way you get out of bed and that it might include twisting. Use these eight steps to do it correctly.

1

Deep Breathing and Stretching

woman laying in bed

Anne Asher

Try spending the first few moments before getting out of bed doing some deep breathing and stretching. Consider this to be a warm-up for the instructions that follow. When you stretch, all you need to do is elongate your body for a few seconds and you are ready to get out of bed—safely, of course.

When you are ready to begin to get out of bed, start by lying on your back, close to the edge of the bed.

2

Bend Your Knees

Woman laying in bed with bent knees

Anne Asher

Next, bend your knees and place your feet flat on the bed. This is called the hook lying position. It is similar to the drawing in maneuver, a core stabilization technique taught to spine patients during the initial phases of physical therapy.

3

Roll Onto Your Side

Woman laying on her side

 Anne Asher

Now roll onto your side. As you do this, be sure to move your trunk as a unit, rather than twisting it.

To keep the parts together, you might imagine a steel rod or wooden log that runs the length of your spine, starting from the shoulder area and moving down to the hip area. Also, let gravity help you roll.

The key to success is avoiding intentional tightening of your back or ab muscles.

4

Push Yourself Up to Sitting

Woman starting to sit up in bed

Anne Asher 

Using both hands, push yourself up to a sitting position.

As you come up, gently bend at the hips and knees. Continue to use the image of the line through the center of your spine, and remember not to twist.

Allow the weight of your legs to anchor your position, enabling you to push the rest of your body up.

Go as slowly as you need to accomplish this movement safely and comfortably.

5

Getting Ready to Stand Up

Woman getting ready to stand

 Anne Asher

Once sitting up, take a moment to rest, if you need it. Then, when you're ready to come up to standing, start by making sure you're sitting equally on both sides of your seat.

Sit up tall and gently try to arch your lower back to help transition from many hours of lying down into standing.

Put one leg in front of the other on the floor.

6

Bend Forward From the Hips

Woman getting ready to stand

Anne Asher 

Bend your trunk forward from your hip joints while keeping your back straight.

7

Straighten to Come Up

Woman standing from bed

 Anne Asher

Press your feet down into the floor to get the leverage to come all the way up.

Straighten both legs at the same time as you rise.

8

Feet Together

Woman standing next to bed

Anne Asher 

Bring your back foot forward to meet the front.

Congratulations, you are up and ready to have a great day.

You may want to perform morning back stretches to improve your flexibility. Also, consider finding a more comfortable sleeping position that may result in less back stiffness in the morning.

9 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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  3. Park SD, Yu SH. The effects of abdominal draw-in maneuver and core exercise on abdominal muscle thickness and Oswestry disability index in subjects with chronic low back painJ Exerc Rehabil. 2013;9(2):286–291. doi:10.12965/jer.130012

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  6. Allegri M, Montella S, Salici F, et al. Mechanisms of low back pain: a guide for diagnosis and therapyF1000Res. 2016;5:F1000 Faculty Rev-1530. doi:10.12688/f1000research.8105.2

  7. Shahbazi Moheb Seraj M, Sarrafzadeh J, Maroufi N, Ebrahimi Takamjani I, Ahmadi A, Negahban H. The Ratio of Lumbar to Hip Motion during the Trunk Flexion in Patients with Mechanical Chronic Low Back Pain According to O'Sullivan Classification System: A Cross-sectional StudyArch Bone Jt Surg. 2018;6(6):560–569. PMID: 30637313

  8. Whitman R. The classic: a study of the weak foot, with reference to its causes, its diagnosis, and its cure; with an analysis of a thousand cases of so-called flat-foot. 1896. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2010;468(4):925–939. doi:10.1007/s11999-009-1130-1

  9. Gordon R, Bloxham S. A Systematic Review of the Effects of Exercise and Physical Activity on Non-Specific Chronic Low Back PainHealthcare (Basel). 2016;4(2):22. doi:10.3390/healthcare4020022

Additional Reading
  • Kisner C, Colby LA, Borstad J. Therapeutic Exercise: Foundations and Techniques. Vancouver, B.C.: Langara College.

By Anne Asher, CPT
Anne Asher, ACE-certified personal trainer, health coach, and orthopedic exercise specialist, is a back and neck pain expert.