The Basics of Core Training
A good workout routine is holistic and balanced; just like there’s no such thing as spot training, there is certainly no good fitness regimen that doesn’t consider the whole picture of the body.
A core component (pun intended) of such a fitness regimen is core training. If you’ve never heard of core training, we’ve put together this core exercise training 101 article to get you started.
What is Core Training?
In the most basic terms, core training is fitness training that focuses on the muscles in your core and your core stability.
Your core muscles are made up of everything in your trunk—this includes all of your abdominal muscles, sides, chest, and back. Basically, anything under the neck, between the arms, and above the legs is your core.
Core workout training might look like the traditional movements we associate with a good old 6-pack: sit ups, planks, etc. But core strength exercises that support your spine, keep you balanced, and force you to move in absolutely any way you can imagine are a component of core training.
Why is Core Strength Training Important?
Strong core training is important for one simple reason: it enables ease of movement.
What does that mean? Effectively, it means that core training makes your life in the physical realm easier.
Imagine the last time you strained a muscle in your back or completely threw it out. Maybe you were turning to put on your seatbelt or picking up a grocery bag. Either way, as your muscles reacted poorly to that movement, you may have been feeling the potential effects of a weak core.
Training your core muscles prevents the muscle strains we feel as we move through our everyday lives. We all live in unique and dynamic ways and it’s our job to ensure that our bodies are able to support all of the movements that help make life so much fun. The freedom to move is a huge benefit of core training—a benefit that is the best when you don’t even have to think about it!
More than just making movement easier, core training prevents injuries by way of improving balance and supports posture. Plus, it improves athletic performance; any and all sport movements require thoughtfully developed core strength.
So now instead of asking yourself, “Why is core training important?” it’s time to ask yourself how you can possibly live without it.
How Can I Start Core Training?
If you’re looking to get started with core training, we’re happy to tell you that it’s very easy to do and there are an infinite amount of ways to do it. Getting started just comes down to what movements make you feel the most comfortable at first and what movements you can learn to push yourself in the long run.
If you’ve never worked core training before—or maybe you did a long time ago and decided it’s time to get back to it—you can start with simple movements like dead bugs, planks, and crunches.
If you’re looking to up your core training game, you can go crazy with v-ups, Turkish get-ups and reaching your toes to a pull-up bar. And if these terms sound foreign to you, we have an article to get you started with some of those movements and plenty of gym space for you to work in at all of our locations.
And if you would prefer to ease into core training with the guidance of an instructor, classes like Killer Core and Glutes, Abs Central, Mat Pilates, and PIYO are already waiting for you in-club. Or, try a week of similar classes on our digital fitness platform, iChuze Fitness, for free!