Why core stability is so important

Making the muscles in your trunk (abdominals) strong is great for the spine and posture. Stability is great for balance, lower back pain, strengthening the tendons in your back and stomach. The inner muscles are there to help support your spine and body, as the other muscles outside of the inner core are there to help you work and make movements. Working from the inside the core means working the transverse abdominis (TVA) muscles and then starting to strengthen the outside like the oblique, upper, and lower abs.

You might be asking yourself why this important….

Well some facts that I have found on WebMD and other websites is that 1. Being strong and feeling healthy comes from good posture. 2. Good balance means you can move more efficiently and have confidence in your strength. 3. More energy, strength, and power for your activities. 4. Your chances of getting injured are less likely because the body is stronger and stable. 5. And the most important is that core stability is a great way to reduce lower back pain!

There are a million reasons why core stability is important especially when it comes to being healthy. Have you ever thought about the way you breathe while working out? Breathing from the diaphragm helps move air in and out of your lungs. The best way to do this is as easy as 1,2, and 3. I found this on WebMD so read it over and tried it out. It’s amazing how we don’t know how we are breathing!

1.   Lie down on your back and put your hand on your stomach. 

2.   When you breathe in and out, your hand should move up and down. Notice how it feels to breathe this way. 

3.   When you start to exercise, try to get the same feeling of your chest and belly moving in and out as you breathe, rather than your chest and shoulders moving up toward your neck and back down.

If your interested in learning more go to the link and read up on finding your neutral spine, pulling your belly in, and floor bridge. But I’m going to give you a couple of exercises for you to start building up the TVA! The picture below is the set up of the trunk. The trunk is much more complex than many people think unless you have taken an anatomy class.

So here are exercises to help strengthen the TVA.

1.       Plank

2.       Side Plank

3.       Bicycle Crunch

4.       Long arm crunch

5.       Ab crunch on exercise ball

Ok, so let’s go with a couple of different plank exercises to start with and as you gain strength start looking into other core building exercises.

Plank

1.       Start in either a push up position or with your forearms lined up with your feet. BE SURE TO KEEP A FLAT BACK AND KEEP THAT BUTT DOWN! If you're not ready to do this you can place your knees on the ground and work on form first. For the time start with 10 seconds to 15 seconds to 30 seconds and then move your way up as you get stronger

2.       Like I said before keep your body straight like a line from your ears to your toes with no sagging or bending.

3.       Keep your head relaxed and keep a focus point on the floor.

4.       Don’t clasp your hands together. Try to keep your arms a lined with your shoulders. This position will burn at first, but as you get stronger it will get easier. 

As you get stronger, try the different variegations with lifting one leg or arm. Then you can move up to one arm and one leg at the same time. For example put your right arm out and your left leg out and hold it for as long as you can then give yourself a break and switch to the left arm and right leg out to balance out the stabilization.