Increasing your Core Stability

Here is the hard truth: Sucking in your stomach is bad for your body.  Almost everyone has done it to try and look thinner.  It happens at the pool, at the beach, or when meeting that class mate you have not seen in years.  Like most things however, when it is done often enough, it becomes a habit.  Habitually walking around with the abdomen sucked in is detrimental to core stability.  When the core is not stable, injury to the spine is possible. The core is the primary mechanism for stabilizing the spine.

True core stability does not come from sucking in, but from pushing out.  Imagine a big barrel like the kind that wine is aged in.  Now imagine balancing on that barrel vs. trying to balance while standing on a flag pole.  Which is easier to balance on (ie more stable)?  Now apply that image to your abdomen.  Stability is created by having an increased diameter of the abdomen through pushing out.  Decreasing the cross-section of the abdomen by sucking in creates a less stable environment for the spine.

Pushing out through the abdomen creates intrabdominal pressure which braces the spine and helps create a stable platform for muscles to pull from.  The easiest way to start practicing this is by pressing three fingers into your abdomen right beside your naval.  Now try and push those fingers out just using the muscles of the abdomen.  If the concept is foreign and hard to grasp, try pushing the fingers into your abdomen and then coughing.  The cough will force the fingers out.  That muscle contraction is the first step to correct abdominal bracing.

Being able to brace the abdomen at will is only the first step. The next step is being able to brace the abdomen while breathing. The proper way to breathe is through the diaphragm and into the abdomen. Unfortunately, most of us have fallen out of that habit and breathe through the chest and shoulders. Breathing through the chest and shoulders will inhibit contraction of the abdomen to stabilize. Unless this is fixed, every breath you take will disrupt your stabilization. Work on keep the shoulders down while breathing and let the abdomen expand. Once you are breathing through the abdomen you can add in core stability.

Thankfully, this is also easy to work on. Remember the first step of increasing your core stability on demand? Practice that first step until you can contract your abdomen to push your fingers out and hold it that way. Now you are ready to move on to the next exercise. Push your fingers into your abdomen by your naval, contract your core to push your fingers out and hold, while holding your core contracted, breathe in for two counts and out for four counts. Try and maintain the contraction while breathing for as long as you can. The more you practice that the quicker it will become habit.

The next step to increasing core stability is to start doing it while performing actions. At this point, you should be able to contract your core at will and breathe while keeping it contracted. Now you are going to add in motion. The best exercise to start with is a glute bridge. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. First contract your core. Next, imagine that you are squeezing a golf ball between your glutes. While keeping your core contracted and that imaginary golf ball squeezed, raise your hips off the ground and hold briefly before gently lowering them to the ground. The key is to keep that core strong through the entire procedure. This will train your body to keep the core tense while other muscles are doing their jobs. After you feel like you have that down you can start doing the same thing with other good core exercises like planks and bird dogs to build core strength.

Finally, the abdomen must be consciously braced during activities like lifting and work. When going to lift or carry something contract the core through the movement. Only then will the body start to replace bad habits with better ones. With repetition, bracing the abdomen will become second nature. Bracing the abdomen properly is the best way of increasing your core stability and protecting your spine during activities.

The road towards correct core stability is not an easy one.  It takes focus and practice.  The good news is that practice does not take any special equipment or facilities.  It just requires and understanding of what core stability actually feels like.  Call the office to set-up an appointment for an evaluation if help is needed to get on the right track towards core stability.  Do not let a misplaced desire to look thin unintentionally harm your spinal health.  Stop sucking in and start pushing out today.