Strengthening Your Core
I know you always see those articles online about how to get “6 pack abs” and you hear us always prompting you to “engage your core”. Well, our core goes FAR BEYOND having a 6 pack and looking great. Your core is SO important and vital for your body to properly function. Below I broke it down a bit to help you understand the benefits of having good core strength.
What is your core?
Think of your core like the core of an apple. Your core keeps everything together. Your core is more than just your abdominal muscles, it also includes the muscles in your low back, pelvis, gluts, and hips. You use your core for EVERYTHING!
Why you should work your core?
- Strength – working your core will strengthen your abs, strengthen and stabilize your back muscles and strengthen your overall body.
- Posture – a strong core allows you to keep your body upright and will prevent slouching.
- Pain relief – You are less likely to develop lower back pain, will relieve stress and tension of lower back, keeps your body aligned which also prevents strain on your other muscles and joints.
- Balance and coordination – Working your core helps your lower back, pelvis, hips,and abdomen work together in harmony to stabilize and support your body.
- Improved lung capacity – core muscles are connected to the diaphragm which in return will help to inhale/exhale fully and breathe properly.
How do you know if you have weak core muscles?
One of the tests we use is a simple single leg stance position. It is amazing how many people and even athletes have difficulty standing on one leg for 6 seconds. Then I ask the client to do a partial squat while attempting to maintain their knee over the foot. Many times there is no control of the leg. As the client performs a partial squat they start to loose their balance or are unable to maintain their knee over their foot, and the knee moves from side to side during the squat. We observe many clients and athletes with low back pain, hip pain, and knee pain and patellofemoral pain syndrome as a result of weakness of the core muscles. The lack of strength of these stabilizers can cause chronic injury or poor performance.
Exercises to enhance your core strength:
- Planks
- Stability Ball Tuck
- Glute Lifts
- Hanging Leg Raises
- Bicycle Crunches
- Supermans
- Transverse Abdominal Draw in
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