Movements Afoot’s Blog

Is Your Ab Workout Hurting Your Back?

by Lesley Powell

A very interesting article was in the NY Times last week.  Core training needs to be 3-dimensional.  Just training the abdominals is not enough.  Especially with our culture being in so much flexion due to computers, cars, tv and the lack of exercise, people are really weak in their backs.

I just taught a Balanced Body University’s Pilates course this weekend. All the students were active professionals.  Most were having trouble with extension in getting to the deep extensors of the back.  When the deep extensors do not initiated the movement,  the back shortens and for some, cause discomfort.

Another problem with abdominal training, is finding qualities of tone.  To get to the deeper  transverse abdominals, breath is essential.  Once found, it has tremendous lightness.  In teaching all clients from beginners to teachers, many are firing and compressing the rectus too strongly for the required action.  For instance, the rectus abdominus assists in flexion of the spine in crunches and rollups.  Many are unneccessarily firing the rectus with a simple pelvic tilts of the lower spine.

“Abdominals come in many flavors” Doris Pasteleur Hall

Training of the spine in different positions is essential for dynamic stabilization.  How you organize your spine lying down is very different from sitting, standing, plank pose.  Getting aware of where your spine is in space is important.

This simple exercise can be difficult.  Many are firing the rectus which will lower the head down.  Some have trouble keeping a head-tail connection.  You will see the spine rotate and/or unleveled.

What the NY Times article is not addressing is how the training of the limbs in coordination with the core is important.  Awareness of how the body moves is lacking in most training.  We have constant pressure by clients of having a stronger workout.  Many of these clients lack internal awareness of their bodies and training of deeper stabilizing muscles.  Many of the deep stabilizing muscles will never have the feel as a bicep firing to lift a weight.

Learning good form is essential for proper conditioning and balance.