Hi there. It seems like your husband has aggravated an underlying disc problem which he might have been having for sometime. Sudden exercises can aggravate such problems if somebody is not used to it. For a patient having an acute pain i would initially recommend a period of bed rest for 3-4 days until the pain subsides.He can sleep with his hips and knees flexed that will reduce a bit of pressure on the nerve roots that are getting compressed. He can take Aceclofenac 100 mg to add to the initial pain relief and apply some topical analgesic ointments or sprays. During the period he can walk to the bathroom and walk around as tolerated. He would need to avoid sitting for a long time if possible. Then once the pain subsides he can get back to his normal day to day activities. Then he should build up his back muscle strength by doing extension exercises. And if he is on the heavier side he should do a bit of dieting and exercises that for losing weight that will help him in the long run. Any exercise regime should be started with gradual increments in the repeats. Ellipse is a demanding machine and one needs to increase their training gradually. Thank you.