Apr 10
20

Core Control/Strength Routine- The quick hotel room version

Leave a comment »

People often ask me what I do for a basic “core” workout— that frequently cited yet poorly understood term. When you do your core workout focus on the CONTROL aspect rather than being strong or forcefull. What often creates the back problems,hip problems,abdominal problems-general pain and complaints around the pelvic area in the athletic population is often not a lack of strength but imbalances.

Imbalances can be produced by (amongst other things)

  1. a relative lack of strength in one muscle vis a vis others eg strong abdominals versus  weak gluteals and errector spinae will pull the spine out of alignment
  2. OR Nueromuscular patterning- we simply lack the ability to “turn on” particular muscles in the right sequence or other muscles dominate our activity

Well trained triathletes build up a lot of core strength just from swimming biking and running. There is no point doing core workouts that just hammer already tired muscles. The goal of core workout should be to work on fine control and recruiting muscles that we dont ordinarilly use/have gotten lazy- for most people this will meen the deep pelvic and abdominals (the ones you cant see) and gluteals in particular. We want a stable core -strong is of no use if its not stable

There are all manner of complex routines but they essentially come back to the same basic exercises that are the staple of a core workout

Heres a very basic core control/strength routine I’ve adapted from other sources-

Go round the axis-the basic routine

Repeat the following a,b,c,d,e in continuous sequence. For beginners hold each pose for say 20 secs. Build up to longer …2 mins in each position. Four cycles through for a minute each gives you a good 20 minute  routine you can do anywhere-travelling,home , etc- you only need a floor

  • a. Front Plank
Place your elbows on the floor shoulder width apart and directly under your shoulders
Support yourself on your elbows and toes off the floor, be sure your body is in a flat line (no dip or arch in your spine and bottom tucked in)
Keep your spine neutral and draw in your lower stomach.
  • b. Side Plank
Lying on your side, prop yourself on your  elbow placed directly under your shoulder
Place your knee and hip in line with your shoulder
Lift yourself off the ground supporting your body on your elbow and knee, your body should be in one flat line
  • c. Bridging
Lying flat on your back, find your neutral spine and draw your lower stomach in
Slowly push down through your feet and lift your bottom right up so your trunk is straight (shoulders, hips and  knees in line)
squeeze your buttocks as you lift
  • d. Side Plank
Do the other side
  • e. Superman

On your stomach, with your arms outstretched and legs straight, lift your arms and legs off the ground. keep your forehead touching the floor and limbs outstretched

If I did nothing else I would just do these five.
If you have time here’s extra homework…..
  • Front plank variations
-Hold the plank while you move forward on your toes and then back-repeat 10 times
-Rotate the whole plank clockwise 10 times staying parallel to the floor
-Rotate anti clockwise
-Alternate lifting one leg off the floor-balance on the other 3 points
-Take opposite arm and leg off floor
  • Bridge variations
-Bring your butt up then lower to floor -repeat to desired reps(say 1o+)
-Bring your butt up but then extend one leg straight out- with the leg extended lower to floor and back up- repeat
-Same as above but one leg lifted to 45 degrees
-Same as above but one leg lifted to 90 degrees
  • Side plank variations
-From perfect straight line lower just your hips so your side touches the floor and bring back up-repeat to desired reps
-Same as above but turn the top shoulder towards the ground-do the butt up  to desired reps
-From the plank position lift the top leg away from the support leg-repeat to desired reps
When Im in a hurry I dont bother with endless sets of crunches and squats and lunges. The 5 exercises above recruit all the necessary muscles and require control and balance to maintain the position. If Im really rushed I’ll do just 3 cycles- this is 15 mins in front of the TV.
I would rather have a core routine I can do quickly (I already do enough training hours) so that it can be repeated frequently and consistently. Who needs a 1.5hr yoga or pilates class on top of everything else (Im not saying they are not great but this is my failsafe). If I just stick to this basic routine I find my back stays in pretty good shape.
Finding your neutral spine….
The idea of neutral spine simply relates to setting your trunk before you begin a core stability program. By finding your neutral spine position you are activating the key core muscles within your torso, which need to be ‘turned on’ prior to executing coordinated movements.
  • Start by lying flat on your back on a mat or comfortable carpeted floor with your knees bent.
  • Place your arms by your sides so that your elbows are straight and your shoulders relaxed.
  • Slowly take three deep breaths in and out to try and release any stress and relax your body.
  • Gently and slowly tilt your pelvis so that you are flattening your back into the floor. Avoid lifting your buttock. Try to
  • isolate the movement so that only your pelvis is moving.
  • Now tilt your pelvis in the opposite direction so you are arching your lower back. Again try to keep the movement
  • isolated to your pelvis.
  • Repeat steps 4 & 5 a few more times. By tilting your pelvis you are performing what is called an anterior pelvic tilt
  • (arch back) and a posterior pelvic tilt (flatten back).
  • Now to locate your neutral spine, find the middle position between flattening and arching your back. (A tip to do this: Place the heel of your hands on the hip bone of the same side and place your finger tips on your pubic bone located at the very bottom of your stomach. Your hands are making a triangle shape on your lower abdomen. The fingers and heels of your hands should all be level
  • References:

1.http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-263-266-12031-0,00.html PUBLISHED 07/19/2007

2. Swim Smooth -Core Stability Program October 2005

This entry was posted on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 09:31:15 +0000 at Tue, 20 Apr 2010 09:31:15 +0000. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted in All Articles by Jimmy C No Comments Yet

Leave a Comment