This is a quick video looking at using the LUNGE and ROTATIONAL movement together to develop incredible core strength and stability with the contralateral slings of the body. Both of these movements will develop considerable strength into the obliques, but there real benefit will be the TIMING demands that the exercise requires. When people think of core exercises they always think of some exercise to annihilate the abdominal muscles such as a plank or sit-up. The belief is that if they make it stronger with slow holding movements like they would with a bicep curl the muscle will work better. Unfortunately the core does not work like this at all.
These muscles are not very strong and are heavily reliant on the more powerful muscles of the legs to instigate the movements of throwing a ball or swinging a golf club. To work the muscle separately from its partners does not guarantee it will work more effectively and can even cause serious injury usually to the lower back.
I highly suggest to read the articles below about the SLINGS and the OBLIQUES to gain a better understanding of the core.
SLINGS –
OBLIQUES –
What people fail to understand is that your abs are unable to move you, other than making you wiggle or flop around like a fish out of water. You need your arms and legs to move you for your abdominal muscles are not capable of doing much. Basically the abdominal muscles have very little influence over how you move, for this is not their true purpose. This is very important to understand and will explain why I believe many core exercises are incorrectly implemented.
The CORE is really a combination of both small stabilizing muscles known as the Inner Unit, combined with large prime mover muscles that operate like a series of complex chains and systems to provide stiffness on a greater scale. This known as the Outer Unit. True core strength requires the use of both.
The inner unit is incorporated in almost every movement of the human body. These muscles can act as an isometric or dynamic stabilizer for movement, transfer force from one extremity to another, or initiate movement itself. The role of the inner unit is to stabilize the spine. That’s it. This is where the information to achieve great core strength is to focus on exercises that isolate this function and find ways to make you stiffer and stronger, such as a plank. It all seems to make sense but the problem is that every step, every arm swing, and every turn of the head our body needs to release this stiffness in order to move.
For example consider the need for abdominal tension during a throwing action or a golf swing, but when you start breaking down what is involved you’ll see just how complex the “core” really is. As you throw the ball, everything that prevents you from twisting or turning can be considered a core muscle.
The lower leg needs to be braced and strong to prevent the foot rolling in, which will cause the knee to cave in upstream. Likewise the hips need to be strong to prevent the exact same thing. The muscles that surround the spine – from the small stabilizers right up to the powerful back muscles such as the lats – all act to stiffen and stabilize the spine during such actions. There is definitely abdominal involvement but it is not powerful enough to move, as it requires the legs to the bulk of the workload. In summary the core can then be thought of as all the muscles below your head.
Other great articles to read about the core are shown in the links below
Are core workouts over-rated? –
7 Exercises better than the plank –
Improve Core Strength with the woodchop –
