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Core Stability

Core Exercises
Core Stability
TOPICS

The aim of core stability training is to effectively recruit the trunk musculature
and then learn to control the position of the lumbar spine during dynamic
movements.

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TheMuscles

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The deep trunk muscles, Transversus Abdominis (TA), multifidus (MF),

Internal Oblique (IO), paraspinal, pelvic floor, are key to the active support of
the lumbar spine. The co-contraction of these muscles produce forces via the
"theracolumbar fascia" (TLF) and the "intra-abdominal pressure" (IAP)
mechanism which stabilise the lumbar spine, and the paraspinal and MF
muscles act directly to resist the forces acting on the lumbar spine.
It is not just the recruitment of these deep-trunk muscles, but how they are
[2]
recruited that is important. Research (Hodges and Richardson, 1997)
showed that the co-contraction of the TA and MF muscles occurred prior to
any movement of the limbs. This suggests that these muscles anticipate
dynamic forces that may act on the lumbar spine and stabilise the area prior
[2]
to any movement. Hodges and Richardson (1997) showed that the timing of
co-ordination of these muscles was very significant.

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Training
Having identified the key muscles and how they act, the next step is to
establish how best to train these muscles. As with any type of strength and
conditioning training, the training protocol for improving the function of the
deep-trunk muscles must be specific to the task required. This specificity of
training must take into account the type of contraction, the muscle fibre type
and the anatomical position required. By definition, the deep-trunk muscles
act as "stabilisers" and are not involved in producing movements, but instead
involve static, or isometric, contractions. Furthermore, they must act as
stabilisers continuously throughout everyday activities as well as fitness and
sport activities, and so require very good endurance of low-level forces. These
muscles do not need to be very strong, but they must be correctly
coordinated and capable of working continuously. In addition, we want these
stabiliser muscles to act by holding the lumbar spine in the neutral position,
which is the correct alignment of the pelvis that allows for the natural 'S'
curve of the spine. These characteristics underpin the following deep-trunk
muscle training program.

Thebasics
Core-stability training begins with learning to co-contract the TA and MF
muscles effectively as this has been identified as key to the lumbar-support
mechanism. To perform the TA and MF co-contraction, you must perform the
"abdominal hollowing" technique with the spine in the neutral position.
To do this use the following guidelines:

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Start by lying on your back with knees bent

Your lumbar spine should be neither arched up nor flattened against the
floor, but aligned normally with a small gap between the floor and your
back. This is the "neutral" lumbar position you should learn to achieve
Breathe in deeply and relax all your stomach muscles
Breathe out and, as you do so, draw your lower abdomen inwards as if
your belly button is going back towards the floor. Pilates teachers
describe this as "zipping up", as if you are fastening up a pair of tight
jeans
Hold the contraction for 10 seconds and stay relaxed, allowing yourself
to breathe in and out as you hold the tension in your lower stomach
area
Repeat 5-10 times
It is vital that you perform this abdominal hollowing exercise correctly
otherwise you will not recruit the TA and MF effectively. Bear in mind the
following points:
Visualise the deep abdominal muscles as a corset that wraps round the
abdomen
Place one hand above the umbilicus (belly button) and one below
Slowly draw in the lower abdomen, below the umbilicus, without
drawing in the upper abdomen
Hold the contraction whilst breathing normally
Aim for a 10 second contraction, repeating it 10 times
Do not let the whole stomach tense up or your upper abdominals bulge
outwards, as this means you have cheated by using the large rectus
abdominis muscle (the six-pack) instead of TA
Do not brace your TA muscle too hard; just a gentle contraction is
enough. Remember it's endurance not max strength your are trying to
improve
Do not tilt your pelvis nor flatten your back, as this means you have lost
the neutral position you are trying to learn to stabilise
Do not hold your breath, as this means you are not relaxed. You must
learn to breathe normally and maintain the co-contraction of TA and MF
Use your fingers for biofeedback on either side of your lower abdomen
(below the umbilicus) to feel the tension in the TA muscle
Once you have mastered the abdominal hollowing lying on your back, practice
it lying on your front, four-point kneeling, sitting and standing. In each
position, get your lumbar spine into neutral before you perform the hollowing
movement.

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Thenextstep
Having learned to recruit the TA and MF muscles correctly in various positions,
which can take anything from one session to one month or more, it is time to
move onto simple core stability exercises. These exercises may also involve
the oblique muscles, other lumbar muscles and gluteals to assist the TA and
MF in maintaining the lumbar spine in a stable neutral position.
Lyinglegliftstabilisation

Lying on your back with your knees bent

Ensure your back is in neutral
Place your hands on your hips for biofeedback
Breathe in and relax
Breathe out and, as you do so, perform the abdominal hollowing or
zipping-up action
Once you have established some TA tension, slowly slide your left leg
out along the floor until it is straight and then slide it back

 Your back should not have moved, and your pelvis should not have
tilted as you performed this action
If your back or pelvis moved, you did not achieve the correct stability
Repeat for the other side 10 times each leg
Variations include the same exercise with knee lifts up and knee drops out to
the side. Again, the aim is to retain a stable lumbar spine in the neutral
position as the legs move.
Thewaiter'sbow
Stand up with good posture, knees soft, lumbar spine in neutral, head
up and shoulders back and relaxed
Breathe in and relax
Breathe out and as you do so perform the abdominal hollowing action
Keeping the tension, slowly lean forward from the hips 20 and stop,
like a waiter's bow, keeping your back completely straight and long as
you lean
Hold the lean position for 10 seconds - you will feel your TA and MF
supporting you if you hold the correct position
Keeping the tension and the alignment, slowly return to your start
position
Repeat 10 times
These exercises are two examples of learning how to keep the spine in
neutral, using slow and controlled static contractions of the trunk stabiliser
muscles. Notice how technique is vital and the aim is to build up the time you
are able to maintain good stability.

Gettingfunctional
The ultimate aim of core stability training is to ensure the deep trunk muscles
are working correctly to control the lumbar spine during dynamic movements,
e.g. lifting a heavy box or participating in any sport.
Therefore, it is important that once you have achieved proficiency of the
simple core exercises, you must progress on to achieving stability during more
functional movements. Try the following two exercises.
Thelunge
Stand with feet hip width apart in front of a mirror
Ensure your lumbar spine is in neutral and your back is tall with your
shoulders back and head up
Lunge forward and bend your knee only halfway down
Ensure that your front knee is in line with your toes and your back has
remained upright with your lumbar spine in neutral and your hips level
Push back up, initiating the movement by pushing down into the floor
with your front foot
The force from your legs should bring you back up quickly and easily to
your start position
Your back should have remained totally still and your hips level as you
performed the push back
Many people wrongly initiate the up movement by pulling their heads and
shoulders back first. This extends the lumbar spine, losing the neutral
position. Others have problems keeping their pelvis level while performing the
lunge. You must learn to use your deep trunk and gluteal muscles to hold your
lumbar spine in neutral and pelvis level as you perform the movement up and
down. The movement should only come from the leg muscles.
ThePressup
Start from your knees, even if this means it is easy for your upper body,
to learn the correct technique
Your hands should be slightly wider than your shoulders and your head
must be in front of your hands
Lift your hips so that there is a straight line from your knees through
your pelvis and lower back, through your shoulders and all the way to
your head
Ensure your lumbar spine is in neutral, using a mirror or a
partner/trainer to help you
To maintain a neutral spine and a straight back during the exercise, the
trunk muscles must provide active support
Slowly lower down, bending your arms all the way to the floor. Keep
your head still with your neck straight relative to your back
Push up, initiating the movement by pressing down into the floor with
your hands
Your back should remain straight and your lumbar spine in neutral throughout
the exercise.

These two exercises enable you to learn core stability while performing
dynamic movements. By reducing the resistance i.e. doing only half lunges
and knee press ups, your are able to focus on the trunk stabilisers and
achieving perfect technique rather than working the major muscle groups. The
whole essence of core stability training is quality of movement and relaxation.
The more you practice, the easier it becomes until you can control your
lumbar stability at all times and during complex movements.

Howdoyoumonitorcorestability?
We all believe that core stability work is important as it reduces injury and
improves performance but what scientific evidence is there to support this
believe?
[3]

A study by Chaudhari et al. (2011)

with a group of of 75 healthy
professional baseball pitchers used a measurement device to observe that
professional baseball pitchers with poor lumbopelvic control (core stability) did
not perform as well as those with better lumbopelvic control providing us with
some scientific evidence to support this believe.
Control and strength of the body's back, abdominal and hip muscles is
essential in order to achieve maximum athletic performance but how can we
tell if core stability is being maintained?
[3]

The measurement device used in the Chaudhari et al. (2011)

study
provides audible feedback to alert the user when core stability is not
maintained and the body goes out of alignment. The device, a "Level Belt Pro"
or "Level Belt Lite" iPhone application is available from the iPhone "App
Store". If you do not have an iPhone then a package can be obtained from
Perfect Practice Website. This simple device is easy to use and is a
breakthrough in core stability testing and training.

CoreStabilityWorkouts
The following are examples of core stability workouts:

Core Stability Exercises

The "Alfa Romeo" workout
The "Aston Martin" workout
The "Audi" workout
The "Bentley" workout
The "BMW" workout
The "Buick" workout
The "Lotus" workout
The "Mercedes Benz" workout
The "McLaren" workout
The "Morgan" workout

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References
1. BRANDON, R. (2002) This exercise programme will strengthen your
trunk muscles and this help avoid back problems. Peak Performance,
165, p. 8-11
2. HODGES, P.W. and RICHARDSON, C.A. (1997) Contraction of the
abdominal muscles associated with movement of the lower limb.
Physical therapy, 77 (1997)
3. CHAUDHARI, A.M. McKENZIE, C.S., BORCHHERS, J.R. and BEST, T.M.
(2011) Lumbopelvic control and pitching performance of professional
baseball pitchers. J Strength Cond Res. 25(8) p. 2127-32

RelatedReferences
The following references provide additional information on this topic:
KIBLER, W. B. et al. (2006) The role of core stability in athletic
function. Sports medicine, 36 (3), p. 189-198
LEETUN, D. T. et al. (2004) Core stability measures as risk factors for
lower extremity injury in athletes. Medicine & Science in Sports &
Exercise, 36 (6), p. 926-934
WILLARDSON, J. M. (2007) Core stability training: applications to sports
conditioning programs. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning
Research, 21 (3), p. 979-985

ArticleReference
[1]

The information on this page is adapted from Brandon (2002)

permission of Electric Word plc.

with the kind

PageReference
If you quote information from this page in your work then the reference for
this page is:
MACKENZIE, B. (2003) Core Stability [WWW] Available from:
https://www.brianmac.co.uk/corestab.htm [Accessed 24/10/2016]

RelatedPages
The following Sports Coach pages provide additional information on this topic:

Agility
Conditioning
Conditioning Articles
Core Stability Exercises
Dynamic Stretching Exercises
Flexibility
Pilates
Static Stretching Exercises
Warm Up and Cool Down

AdditionalSourcesofInformation
For further information on this topic see the following:
BEASHEL, P. and TAYLOR, J. (1996) Advanced Studies in Physical
Education and Sport. UK: Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.
BEASHEL, P. and TAYLOR, J. (1997) The World of Sport Examined. UK:
Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.
BIZLEY, K. (1994) Examining Physical Education. Oxford; Heinemann
Educational Publishers
DAVIS, B. et al. (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. UK:
Harcourt Publishers Ltd.
GALLIGAN, F. et al. (2000) Advanced PE for Edexcel. Oxford;
Heinemann Educational Publishers
McARDLE, W. et al. (2000) Essentials of Exercise Physiology. 2nd ed.
Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
BREWER, C (2005) Strength and Conditioning for games players. UK;
Coachwise Business Solution.
CHU, D. (1996) Explosive Power and Strength. USA; Human Kinetics
Publishers, Inc.
BOMPA, T. and CORNACCHIA, L. (1998) Serious Strength Training. USA;
Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.
DELAVIER, F. (2001) Strength Training Anatomy. USA; Human Kinetics
Publishers, Inc.
PAULETTO, B. (1991) Strength Training for Coaches. USA; Human
Kinetics Publishers, Inc.
WINCH, M. (2004) Strength Training for Athletes. UK; Stanley L. Hunt
Ltd.
TENKE, Z. and HIGGINS, A. (1999) Medicine Ball Training. Canada;
Sport Book Publishers
SCHOLICH, M. (1999) Circuit Training for all Sports. Canada; Sport
Book Publishers

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