Best Spine Roller for Back Pain

If you are in a hurry and just want to find out what the best spine roller for back pain is, then I’d recommend the Chirp Yoga Wheel as the best one.

One of the most common reasons for people to attend yoga classes is back pain.

The yoga classes offer remedies for many things, and there are many exercise aids in every yoga studio.

Finding the best spine roller is, however, something that requires personal input and decisive action.

Here are the top spine rollers we’ll be reviewing:

• Nature’s Integrity Yoga Wheel 
• Reehut Yoga Wheel
• The UpCircle Seven Yoga Wheel
• The Acumobility Back Roller
• The Chirp Plexus Wheel

What are Spine Rollers?

Spine rollers are a variety of exercise props that are designed to help you achieve better results.

These props include foam rollers, yoga wheels, and many more. Although yoga wheels are relatively new in the yoga world, they are rated as some of the best spine rollers ever designed.

In my experience, yoga wheels offer more flexibility as compared to other types of spine rollers.

How to Use a Yoga Wheel

As I mentioned earlier, yoga wheels will give you a more comprehensive range of exercise positions compared to most spine rollers.

The trick to achieving maximum results for your back pain using the yoga wheel is understanding how it works and knowing what type of exercises you can perform using it.

The yoga wheel is praised for its ability to stretch the front part of the body, while at the same time relieving stress areas in the back, and opening up tight shoulders.

It is, however, important to note that if you suffer from a severe back condition or recovering from injury, you should get advice from your therapist before attempting the exercises outlined below.

The yoga wheel also offers more height than most spine rollers, and this point should be noted to avoid overstretching and dangerous falls.

Here are some ways you can use your yoga wheel to reap the maximum benefits.

Child Pose

The child pose is a relaxed pose that helps you stretch your lower back, hips, and thighs in a few simple moves. To achieve the pose, follow the steps outlined below:

1. Get into a kneeling position, ensuring that your big toes are touching.
2. Slowly and gently sit back on your heels.
3. Separate your knees to achieve a hip-distance space between them.
4. While in the position above, place the yoga wheel between your knees, and set your hands on top of it.
5. Take a deep breath, and as you exhale, lean your upper body forward, gently rolling the wheel away from your body with your hands.
6. Continue leaning forward, until your stomach rests between your thighs, and your arms are stretched out in front of you.
7. Gently lower your forehead until it comfortably rests on your mat, and hold this position for about five seconds.

The child’s pose allows you to stretch your spine, shoulders, and chest comfortably.

The Easy Pose Recline

Another simple exercise that helps alleviate back pain is the easy pose recline. This pose will help relieve shoulder tension by opening up your chest in a relaxing backbend. To achieve this position, follow the below steps:

1. Get into a straight sitting position, with the yoga wheel positioned behind you such that it is parallel to your spine.
2. Place your legs in a crossed position, such that your pelvis is comfortably in contact with the floor.
3. Closing your eyes, place your hands in a palm-up position on your knees.
4. Inhale deeply, and as you breathe out, lean your spine over the yoga wheel so that it supports your backbend.
5. Let your head come to rest on top of the yoga wheel, and sit in this position for at least five breaths.

Renowned as a good exercise for developing steady breathing and a strong mind, the easy pose recline is one of the simplest exercises to do using a yoga wheel for support.

The Lizard Lunge

The lizard lunge is a great way to stretch the lower back, thus helping alleviate back pain. This is how you do the lizard lunge using a yoga wheel:

1. Get into a kneeling position on one knee, with the other knee bent straight and the foot flat on the ground.
2. Lift the back leg from the floor, and position the yoga wheel under the foot such that it offers support to your ankle.
3. Take a deep breath as you engage your core.
4. As you breathe out, lean forward and place your hands on the floor such that they are under your shoulders and inside of your front foot.
5. Taking another deep breath, press your back foot against the wheel, and as you exhale, lift your knee from the ground. Use the wheel to stretch your back leg until it is straight.
6. In this position, lengthen your spine by pushing your hands as much as you can towards the inside of your front foot. Maintain the position for at least five seconds, or longer if you can.

Benefits of using a Yoga Wheel

As we have seen, the yoga wheel adds some benefits to your exercises. These include:

• It makes it easy to accomplish challenging exercises.
• By providing additional support, it helps prevent accidents and injuries.
• A yoga wheel adds to the variety of exercises you can safely do, by helping increase your body strength and flexibility.
• It helps alleviate back pains by massaging and lengthening your spine.

Five of the Top Rated Yoga Wheels

In this section, we’ll be taking a look at 5 of the top yoga wheels we’ve identified to be the highest quality currently available.

While you really can’t go wrong with any of the yoga wheels mentioned below, we’ve also recommended our favorite one. Read on!

Nature’s Integrity Yoga Wheel 

The Nature’s Integrity yoga wheel is designed to add comfort to your exercises, thus encouraging you to keep stretching your back.

Easily fitting the best spine roller category, this wheel is designed to help you achieve higher confidence levels in your yoga exercises due to its design.

Some of the pros and cons of this yoga wheel include:

Pros

• Affordable. The Nature’s Integrity yoga wheel is affordably priced. We all want to get quality products at friendly prices, and when it comes to yoga wheels, this is one of the best-priced wheels available in the market.
• Sturdy. The Nature’s Integrity yoga wheel is made from durable material, and you will not have to worry about it getting easily damaged. It is designed to bear weights of up to 650 pounds, which means the wheel can be used by some of the heaviest humans alive.
• Comfortable. With extra padding to maximize your comfort when exercising, this wheel is designed with you in mind. The filling also makes it suitable for spine rolling, since the wheel will not press hard against your back.

Cons

• Durability.Nature’s Integrity wheel is prone to cracking, and some people complain of the foam peeling off the wheel.

Reehut Yoga Wheel

The Reehut yoga wheel is specially designed to help you push your limits while exercising. Some of the pros and cons of the Reehut yoga wheel include:

Pros

• Versatile. The Reehut yoga wheel can be used for a variety of exercises, making it a particularly important part of your daily exercise regimen.
• Comfort. The wheel comes fitted with foam padding to give you a comfortable feel during your stretches.
• Durable. Made of hard plastic and TPE foam padding, the Reehut yoga wheel is built to last. You do not have to worry about replacing your wheel every few months.
• Affordable. The wheel is well priced as compared to other brands in its category.
• Sturdy. The Reehut yoga wheel is designed to take weights of up to 350 pounds. This feature makes it a good choice, even for heavier people.

Cons

• Size. When compared to other products in its category, the Reehut yoga wheel is smaller in size. This feature makes it unsuitable for some exercises, which may affect your routine.

The UpCircle Seven Yoga Wheel

The UpCircle Seven yoga wheel is another highly rated product in the best spine roller category. Designed by medical professionals, it is bound to have some amazing benefits to help you alleviate back pain. These include:

Pros

• Sweat Resistant. The UpCircle Seven yoga wheel is designed to offer you the peace of mind and comfort you need during your exercises. It features a sweat-resistant outer layer that ensures you do not have to worry about losing your grip, or having to bear the smell of sweat as you practice.
• Padded for Extra Comfort. One of the best ways to reduce back pain is by using comfortable exercise props. The UpCircle Seven yoga wheel features thick, comfortable padding that cushions your body during exercise, reducing the risk of injury and enhancing your endurance.
• Well-priced. One of the best features of the UpCircle Seven yoga wheel is the affordable price. It is friendly to your pocket and does not compromise on quality.
• Versatility. The wheel is designed with the yoga enthusiast in mind. As such, it gives you the support to try out many different exercise positions without having to strain your body.

Cons

• Not Sturdy Enough. The UpCircle Sevens wheel lacks sturdiness as compared to other wheels in its category. This might limit some users due to the intensity of their exercise regimes.

The Acumobility Back Roller

The Acumobility Back Roller is loaded with features that will transform your exercise experience, and at the same time, help you alleviate your back pain.

Pros

• Comfortable. It is designed for extra comfort during exercises. The Acumobility wheel features a tall, staggered bump pattern that comfortably fits into your back muscles. These bumps gently massage your back as you carry out your exercises, resulting in a stimulating effect.
• Sturdy. The Acumobility back roller is designed to take weights of up to 1000 pounds. This feature makes it one of the most sturdy yoga wheels in the market and allows it to be used by people in every weight category.
• Versatile. The Acumobility back roller can be used as a yoga prop, a back roller, and you can use it against the wall to offer support as you perform other exercises. This versatility makes this product one of the most sought after in the market for its category.

Cons

• Small in Size. Although some say the small size is perfect for travel, I prefer a larger wheel for my back exercises as they enable me to stretch my spine without much strain.
• Bumped Surface. The bumped surface, though a good feature, may feel uncomfortable the first few times before you get used to it.

The Chirp Plexus Wheel

From my own experience and the reviews of numerous other users, the Chirp Plexus Wheel, also known as the Chirp Wheel+, stands out as a clear winner from the other brands in the best spine roller category.

This is due to its unique features and how these enhance your exercise experience.

Pros

• Sturdy Build. The Chirps Wheel+ is designed with an injection molded rigid core that enhances its weight-bearing capacity. The wheel can comfortably bear 500 pounds of weight, making it a suitable choice for people in different weight categories.
• Ergonomic Design. The Chirp Wheel features a unique groove surface that gently massages and accommodates your spine during exercises. In addition to preventing unnecessary pressure to the spine, this feature enhances your spine stretches, thus helping reduce the back pain.
• Versatile.The Chirp Wheel+ allows you to exercise your back and spine in many different ways with the same level of comfort.

Cons

• Pricey. One thing I did not like about the Chirp Plexus wheel is the price. The product was a bit expensive, and while this yoga wheel is pretty high quality, it’s hits the budget a bit more

Conclusion

From my personal experience, the Chirp Plexus wheel (AKA Chirp Wheel+) is the clear winner in the best spine roller category.

Compared to the other yoga wheels in this review, it offers more comfort during exercises and allows you to do a wide variety of moves.

Due to its unique ergonomic groove, it minimizes pressure to the spine, at the same time improving the spine stretching ability.

This is particularly important for people with back pains since the reduced stress on the spine means that you will be able to go through the motions of your back stretching exercises without having to suffer excruciating pain.