Advice from an Expert ...

Marc Ste. Marie

Translating “Core Strength” for the layman

Core training is the “buzz concept” in the fitness industry at the moment. From the beginner to the very fit, the weekend warrior to the professional athlete, coaches and trainers preach this concept to their clients and athletes.   Sounds great, however “what is that going to do for me?” or “you mean getting a six-pack right?” are often the questions asked to trainers.  This is probably due to the abundance of sources such as magazines, the Internet, and infomercials, which get everyone nice and confused about the true meaning of “core strength” or “core training”. 

I will try to clarify the concept for you as best as I can, speaking in plain English.

 Core strength is about torso control. It involves the training of various layers of muscles that will create an “abdominal belt” which will allow you to perform movements with the spine braced effectively in all positions. 

Easy no?  The inescapable rule of effective program design is the following: A “trainee” must squat, bend, lunge, push, pull, and twist.  This can be done a zillion ways. But whether you like it or not, if you want to graduate into more challenging exercises, you will have to acquire the “control” required to execute the exercise without the wobbles (instability) caused by dysfunctional core muscles.  

You have to not only train your abs, but also integrate the training of these muscles into various movement patterns to educate your CNS (central nervous system) to recruit those support systems under strain.

Push-ups

In a nutshell, core strength, referring to the above definition, will keep you out of physio and allow you to perform activities safely.