KAWARTHA LAKES-It all started back when I was a competitive runner and constantly injured that I heard the saying “Mind right, abs tight”. It became a mantra for me. I tried to keep that idea in my head throughout every single run. I thought as long as I kept my abs tight, I could maintain my form and not worsen my injuries. Unfortunately, keeping my abs on lock throughout a 50 minute daily run was pretty difficult. For one, I could only focus on one thing at a time. So anytime I was focusing on my breath, I lost my abdominal connection. If I was focusing on my stride, again, I lost my abs. I started to get confused about my mantra, “Mind right, abs tight”.
Now that I teach people daily how to connect to their core for better form, better posture, and less chance of injury, I really understand what I was doing wrong. And because I see so many beginners making the same mistakes I did, I understand why it’s so difficult to properly engage your core.
For one, I had a very rudimentary idea of what “core strength” meant. Like many people, I thought the “core” was just your 6 pack abs. Secondly, I was going about the engagement of my “abs” all wrong. I was flexing them, without understanding the how or the why behind it. I was trying to get “core strength” from just “flexing my abs” when I thought I needed them-during a run. In reality, we need our core at all times to take us through our many movements and postures in our daily lives.
Our core is actually so much more than just the 6 pack.
Everyone has four layers of musculature that make up our “core”. The deepest layer is called the transversus abdominis (TVA), which connects your ribcage to the pelvis and offers deep stability. Next, we have our internal and external obliques which criss-cross your torso, like a corset cinching the waist in on the sides. Lastly, we have our top layer-the six-pack-which is what most people know of when we “flex our abs”. You need all four layers to work together for an “engaged core”, which helps to stabilize the ribs, pelvis, and spine. Keep in mind, your core also includes your glutes, hips, and lower back.
So How Do You Properly Engage Your Core?
To engage all four layers of your core does take practice and awareness. First of all, you may have not even known these muscles existed until just now! So it is helpful to be able to locate them, picture them, and practice what it feels like to have them engaged. Start by gently drawing your belly button into your spine, like you are trying to zip up tight jeans. Think of that deepest layer connecting the ribs to the hips as you do this.
Proper engagement of the core is not sucking in your stomach and holding your breath. You should still be able to breathe as you connect to your core, so practice feeling your ribcage expand as you inhale and drawing the core in as your exhale. Practice makes perfect, so try this exercise daily, until you can feel it become second nature!
Having a strong core greatly reduces your chance of pain and injuries, as well as improving athletic performance and quality of movements. I teach Reformer Pilates in Lindsay and Peterborough and would love to help to “find your core” muscles! Visit my website at www.sweathappywellness.com for more information.
Becky Sheehey is a Holistic Health Coach, and a Pilates and Movement Expert with a background in Kinesiology. She lives in Lindsay.
 photo credit: PTPioneer Girl doing stability ball crunches via photopin (license)
