Bone · Lumbar spine

Lumbar spine

Vertebrae lumbales

The lumbar spine is the five vertebrae of the lower back — the part most people mean when they say 'my back'. They have the largest bodies of any vertebrae because they carry the most load, and their facet joints are set almost vertically, which allows free bending forwards and backwards but very little twist. Their broad processes are the anchor for the erector spinae, multifidus and quadratus lumborum, and the psoas major runs down off their bodies to the leg.