The benefits of a strong core

Training our core to be stronger will help prevent injury when doing our daily chores but will decrease or prevent lower back pain, support good posture, improve our balance, increase the amount of pain free time we have if on our feet for long periods of time, improve confidence and of course everyone’s favourite, it will tighten and flatten our mid-section.

Signs your core is weak or weaker than it could be

Bad balance, shortness of breath, bad posture, pain in the lower back, struggling to stand up straight or getting up from the seated position, can all be signs that your trunk/core isn’t as strong as it could or should be. This isn’t just a thing for athletes and gym rats, it’s for everyone and we all want to live a long and healthy life and stay pain free.

“Having a tight abdominal structure that works as a finely tuned and oiled machine will improve our ability to transfer power through our body upper to lower and lower to upper and to our limbs safely and without or limited risk of injury and improve torso stability”

Posterior chain

The muscles in your trunk can be trained to contract/fire in the correct order to ensure a strong and stable foundation for movement.

It also helps with the distribution of weight and the absorption of any forces, and enhances the neuromuscular efficiency and control throughout the body during movement and physical positioning, and improve posture and spinal control during movement.

These movements can be anything from putting your socks on, getting off the toilet, to doing a push kick in Mauy Thai, if you think of your trunk as a link in a chain that connects your upper and lower body together. All movements will originate or move through the core. It doesn’t matter where the movement starts from. It will pass through the links of that chain so any weak or immobile core muscles can/will govern how well your limbs can function and lower the power and efficiency of the moves that you make. It will also enhance balance and stability which will help with the prevention of falls and injury during complex movements as well as daily activities.

Daily activities such as using a hoover to pushing a shopping trolley around the supermarket, getting dressed in the morning, or sitting in a chair are all movements that rely on your core that you might not even notice until those movements become painful or difficult to carry out.

Lower back pain which can be debilitating and, in some cases, excruciating affects a lot of people throughout their lives which can be prevented by exercising these core muscles to strengthen this area.

Balance and stability

Core/trunk muscles are what give us the ability to move in any direction by stabilising our body.

Ensuring we have good posture stops us from slouching and developing premature wear and tear on the spine and projects confidence. It can also help with deep breathing which helps with exercise and performing daily tasks safely and preventing visits to the physio and possibly medical intervention.

“If you’re looking for a wash board abs, get your calorie intake and macros sorted don’t just smash out crunches as this can provide you will a muscular imbalance by forgetting the rest of the muscles that stabilise your trunk”