The Importance of a Strong Core

Having a strong core, or building ‘abs’, isn’t just for aesthetics, it’s much more than that…

A strong and stable core affects how the rest of our body moves and thus every movement we perform day to day and in the gym; proximal stability (stability at the core) affects our distal stability (stability at our limbs, hands and feet).

The core has many functions. But when training the core for beginners, we can categorise training based on our ability to resist movement, for example, anti-flexion, anti-extension or anti-rotation; your ability to resist forces trying to rotate your spine or pulling your spine into flexion or extension.

Anti-flexion is somewhat satisfied during our key movements, like the deadlift or the bench press, but anti-extension and anti-rotation are rarely directly trained and thus focusing on these factors in our extra core work makes sense. If needed, read our blog on What is a superset workout?

The Ultimate Core Superset

1 - Ab Roll Out (Anti-Extension)

• With your knees on a pad and an Ab Roller in hand, assume a position which creates a straight line through your knees, hips and shoulders.

• Tuck your rib cage down towards your bum to avoid setting up in an over-extended position

• Take a deep breath, as if sucking through a straw, to brace and then lean forward into the ab roller with all your weight, until your head is between your arms.

• Pull the wheel back in, leading with the shoulders and keeping your bum tucked under.

Key Tip - Regression

If this is too difficult, as with any exercise, instead of avoiding it altogether, we can just scale it. With the ab roll out, why not try just performing the roll out without the return? Just roll out as far as you can, drop to the floor and reset and go again.

2 - Pallof Press (Anti-Rotation)

• Assume an athletic stance, feet just outside shoulder width and knees slightly bent, with a Resistance Band in your hands, held up against your sternum, attached to a rack so that it is pulling perpendicular from the direction you are facing.

• Push your hands out until fully extended, resisting the resistance bands tension and staying in line with your sternum throughout.

• Then slowly return to the start position, again, resisting the urge to rotate into the resistance band.

Key Tip - Which Resistance Band Tension Should I Use?

• Here, stability is the key. Therefore, it is important that we select a level of resistance that we are able to stabilise, otherwise, what is the point?

• Pick a band that you can control start to finish, but that still tests you.

• You may start with a #1 Band and then progress to #2 Band and #3 Band once they become easy.

• To bridge the gap between different band tensions, you can also step further away from the rack that the band is attached to, thus elongating the band and creating more tension.

Hooked on the pallof press? Go more in depth with our pallof press variations.

Written by guest author Ewan Hammond.

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Tags: Equipment > Power Racks and Cages ; Equipment > Resistance Bands ; Exercise Type > Conditioning ; Misc > Workout