OK guys, as promised heres my first post in what turned out to be an epic word-vomit - how to train your core as a strength athlete! Ill hopefully be able to knock the second part out tomorrow. Core (wow I hate that term) training is a contentious issue in the fitness world. Like any subject, public opinion ebbs and flows on the matter. Not so long ago, it was fairly accepted that throwing a few sets of abs in a week was pretty much good practice, then with the introduction of the functional fitness bros the consensus switched to there not being a need for any extra ab work, as youd get enough doing any compound movement. Given the amount of trained people I see almost daily with poor posture (lordosis generally - a spine stuck in lumbar extension, which can be a sign of weak abs), that dont know how to breathe and that dont know how to brace properly, it becomes pretty obvious that just getting ab work indirectly while training isnt the answer! Theres saying I see thrown around a lot by the Darkside Strength guys - posture dictates performance, and breathing dictates posture - this is extra relevant when it comes to training your abs! The role of the abdominal group of muscles (rectus abdominus, obliques and deep transverse abdominus) for anybody involved in strength sports is pretty simple - stabilize the torso to resist rotation and movement, and support the lumbar spine to resist flexion and extension. You dont want to be carrying anything over your head or a monstrously heavy weight on your back if you dont have strong and tight abs (from abdominal bracing after aligning your diaphragm and pelvic wall - thats a whole other topic I wont cover here) - all the movement and pressure will be transferred to the discs of your lumbar spine, and can create all sorts of lower back problems. Unfortunately theres a tendency in the strength sports world for coaches to push their athletes to arch hard! instead of correctly bracing when squatting or deadlifting, which only compounds the problem! A lumbar spine that is arched hard while deadlifting can prevent the abdominals from bracing correctly, leading to lumbar movement from a lot of extension to slight flexion, increasing the risk of disc problems. Likewise while squatting, a back that is arched hard will usually increase the dreaded buttwink, furthering lumbar pressure. The end result of this is generally erector spine that are massively tight and overdeveloped, and weak abdominals (if they cant work, they cant get stronger!) - leading to a lumbar spine stuck in heavy extension. As an observation, every client I have ever had that has suffered from lumbar disc issues has this exact situation going on. Clearly ignoring your abs completely isnt the ideal option, especially if you have these issues. So that being said, what is the best way to train your core? Stay tuned for part 2!
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 06:30:58 +0000
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