Core Training: 4 Pro Tips

There isn’t anything more misunderstood in fitness than core training. 

Today you’ll learn what your core really is, and how it works to keep your whole body feeling fine and functioning fantastically. 

What is your core?

Your core covers your entire midsection front-to-back like a barrel from just above your hips to just below your chest. Yes, your low back is part of your core, too. It includes different muscles of all shapes and sizes. It’s not just six-pack abs.

What does it do? 

It stabilizes your body so your arms and legs can move. When you pick up your phone, a bag of groceries, or a 50-pound sack of dog food, your core works to keep you injury-free and functioning.

This may seem confusing so think of it like this. When standing on solid ground you can easily move, talk on your phone, and carry things. If you were standing in a canoe? Not so much. In this example, the ground is your core. If it’s stable, you can do things you can’t do if it’s not. 

Why is this important?

When you understand this, you understand how important good core function is for your back and shoulders. They must work overtime if your core doesn’t do its job well. And like you do when you must cover for that lazy S.O.B, they get angry and that can mean pain. 

What do you do about it?

Good core exercises focus on challenging your core stability. You do this by putting your body in difficult positions and holding. A plank is a good example. Once you’re able to hold that position for a certain period of time (in my gym, that’s 45-seconds) you progress it by moving your arms and legs in certain ways while keeping your core still. 

 Here are my four pro tips:

· Breathe and exhale deeply while doing core exercises. This activates some of the smaller core muscles I mentioned earlier. It also teaches you to breathe deeply under tension, which is an extremely valuable skill for stress reduction and shoulder health.

· Do core exercises as slowly as possible. This forces your core to stabilize. When you combine this with deep breathing you have a Steph Curry-Klay Thompson level combination.

· Always think of your posture. When doing core exercises, your posture should be as close to perfect as possible. Yes, you can have good or bad posture lying on your back, on all fours, or in any other position. Good posture allows your core to work well. Bad posture forces your back and/or shoulders to do the work. (Like your lazy office mate.)

· Don’t rely on crunches. Crunches work through movement, not stability. Worse yet, much of that movement comes in your low back, which is why many people experience back pain doing them. 

 I hope this helps clear up some of your core training questions. Let me know if you have any more.