The Core Strength Training Book (16th Edition)

Improve your strength, posture and fitness with this essential core-training handbook. Modern day lifestyles can be highly sedentary, meaning certain core muscles may become inactive. If you don’t exercise your core muscles regularly, you will lose the ability to engage them instinctively while performing everyday movements such as bending and lifting. The Core Strength Training Book is packed with over 150 exercises with additional variations and progressions to make each as versatile and challenging as possible. Clear annotations will help you achieve the best possible form, and precise anatomical illustrations include details about the location and function of each of your core muscles – and how they work together in body movements. Loaded with step-by-step, user-friendly instructions, this is the definitive guide to building a stronger core.…

INTRODUCTION The book’s introduction offers a clear and simple guide to the basics of core training. Beginning with a definition of what the core is, and how it works, the chapter explains how core strength helps with everyday activities, posture, sport, and pregnancy. With useful guidance on assessing and developing your core strength, it also provides essential advice on how to engage the key core muscles, and a range of suggested exercises to help with specific activities. CORE-TRAINING EXERCISES This section features over 150 exercises with additional variations and progressions to make each as versatile and as challenging as possible. The chapter’s main four main sections progress in order of increasing difficulty, and start with a selection of mobility stretches (» pp.38–49). Each of the core-strength exercises featured in the…

The core is the foundation for your movements, enabling mobility in the upper and lower body, directing power efficiently to your limbs, and stabilizing your spine, ribcage, and pelvis against the stress of those movements, or of external forces exterted upon them. The core plays a key role in everyday biological functions. It creates internal pressure within the abdominal cavity, holding the internal organs in place, and helping with the expulsion of air from the lungs, and of bodily waste. The core muscles, in particular the transverse abdominis and pelvic floor (» p.17), are also active during childbirth. AN INACTIVE CORE Modern lifestyles are highly sedentary, meaning certain core muscles may become inactive. If you do not exercise your core muscles regularly, you will lose the ability to engage them…

HOW THE SPINE WORKS To understand how the spine supports the body and controls movement, it is helpful to divide it into four main sections – the neck (cervical), mid-back (thoracic), lower back (lumbar), and hip complex (sacrum). Individually, these perform different primary functions, such as controlling movement of the head; together they bring about movements that involve the whole body. ■ The cervical spine (or neck) is made up of the first seven vertebrae in your spine. It is the most flexible part of your vertebral column and controls movement of your head and neck. It is strong enough to support your head, which can weigh as much as 6–9kg (13–20lb), while being sufficiently flexible to allow you to turn your head while looking and listening. At the same time,…

THE MUSCLES Rectus abdominis The rectus abdominis is the “six-pack” muscle, its appearance caused by the three fibrous bands running across it and the vertical band (the linea alba) running down the middle. It is mainly involved in flexion (bending). Transverse abdominis A deep muscle that runs around the abdomen, the transverse abdominis acts like a girdle, holding the muscles of your core together. It is key to isometric core strength (resisting external forces) and stability, and is involved in all core movements. External obliques The external obliques are surface muscles located on either side of your rectus abdominis. They are important to rotational core movements and side flexion (bending from side to side). Together with the internal obliques (right), the muscles also help to stabilize the spine against lateral (sideways) forces.…

THE MUSCLES Erector spinae The erector spinae (spinal erectors) are a group of long tendinous muscles that run the length of the spine. They provide support to your spine when you flex it (bend forwards) and extend it (bend backwards), and are also involved in stabilizing it against sideways movement. Multifidus The multifidus is a series of muscles attached to the spine, which work to keep it straight and stabilized while helping to distribute body weight evenly along it. They also play a protective role, stiffening the spine to resist forces that might cause it to bend. Quadratus lumborum The inner portion of the quadratus lumborum is adjacent to the spine and counters any sideways force, such as that caused by holding a suitcase or shopping bag in one hand. Gluteus…