"Abs" vs Core Strength

“I want a six pack!” I hear this from people of all ages, athletes and non. Bottom line- abs are made in the kitchen. Excuse me? It’s not the exercises you do that gives definition to your abdominals, its your diet and what you eat.

I don’t want to talk about this today.

Core strength though is a different topic and one I do want to address. Like a house sits on a solid foundation (remember what Jesus said about this after the Sermon on the Mount??) our bodies, and by extension key elements of our health, rest on a solid core.

Here’s the problem: many people have become more sedentary due to recent lockdowns and people working from home more due to the Covid pandemic. If you’re moving less this will ultimately affect your core strength.

So, what exactly is core and why is it important to have good strength in this part of your body? The core consists of the muscles in your midsection, or torso area, surrounding the spine and your pelvis. This includes the abdominal muscles at the front (yes, six pack!!) but also the muscles within the lower back. While core muscles aren’t considered powerful they do play a critical role in the stabilizing of the spine and pelvis. They’re also critical for good posture which in turn is critical for overall health. These functions are important to ensure you can move your limbs easily. Your core also protects you against injury and especially lower back issues. Lower back pain is usually always a function of weak core. We use our core muscles while performing daily things like getting out of a chair, lifting things like groceries, standing, walking and even mundane tasks like vacuuming. Athletes know (or should know!) the importance of core for running, jumping and lifting weights.

Okay, do I have you convinced?

As with other muscles, if we don’t use our core they become weak. When weak, our movements are less supported which puts pressure on other parts of our body (hence lower back issues!). The good news is we can improve core strength relatively easily with exercise. Here’s some things to consider when looking to improve core strength (disclaimer: if you have back or knee pain you should consult your doctor or physiotherapist before getting started).

Here are some things you can do at your home in order to get started. While walking and running do activate the core muscles to some degree to really target the core we need to look to some specific exercises like the traditional abdominal crunch. These work predominantly your abdominal muscles so adding a standard plank pose is good since it engages all the elements of your core. Add in side plank for a variant, bicycles, swimmers of supermans to give your core a great workout.

Don’t know what a superman is or not sure how to set up a core program message me and I’d be happy to help set up a program that will get you on the path to core stability. And hey, you might even end up with a ‘six pack’ in the process(as long as you watch what you eat)!