4 Core Exercises You Need to Be Doing

This post was originally publish at Spurlingfitness.com

I can’t count how many times I have had clients come in with the goal of strengthening their core.

The purpose of strengthening the core could have come about because their doctor said so; it could be to help their back pain or to help with their golf game. 

These are all great reasons to put a focus on your core. 

The “core” is looked at as just your abs, the six-pack area.
In reality, the core is the area starting at the top of your knees and ends at your shoulders.

It may sound odd to say your core starts at the top of your knees, but the purpose of your core is to control and resist forces to the hips, back, and shoulders.

Your quads, hip flexors, glutes, and hamstrings all play a significant role in controlling your hips, which then control your back and up to your shoulders. 

I bring up this point because having a better understanding of how the body works together will make for a stronger core. 

If you do these exercises consistently, you will have a stronger core to help with your back or that golf game.

You need to appreciate that you are not just working the six-pack muscles, you are working an area of the body that works together as a whole, and that is what you should be thinking about when doing these exercises.

The Routine:

• Side Plank: 2-3 sets of 5-8 breaths each side 
• Bird Dog: 2-3 sets of 8-10 on each side 
• Half Get Up: 2-3 sets of 4-6 on each side
• Glute Bridge: 2-3 sets of 15-20 

These exercises to any of you who have been exercising for a while may feel like beginner core exercises. That is true; they are not the most complex or extreme of exercises, but if you appreciate them and focus on doing every rep with great form and focus, they will not be easy, and you will have a solid core. 

The best way to do this exercise routine is to add it to your current warm-up or as something quick to do during your day.

Now go about and give it a try. 

Your Fitness Sherpa,
Coach Josh