The Must-Know Reasons to Strengthen Your Core

When you are first starting to workout or you are looking to attend a workout class, you will often hear everyone talking about their core. They may talk about how they are devoting so many days per week to their core strength, or you may hear an instructor talk about let’s get started on core strength. Why is it important to work on your core strength? Let’s just say this, when the core is strong...you are strong!

What are Core Muscles?

Core muscles refer to the muscles located in the torso and lower back. This is the trunk of the body so to say, so when it is strong, the entire body is strong. The core muscles are going to include your abs down towards the pelvic area, as well as the lower back behind the shoulders. Therefore, be sure that you are doing exercises that are going to help build these up to make you stronger.

Why is Core Strength Important?

For those who are new to the workout world, why are so many people obsessed with core strength? While some people may say that they want that slim abdominal area that makes them look fit, there are actually some hard core reasons why everyone should be working on their core strength. The benefits of having a strong core include:

• This is going to help dramatically with your posture. And remember, when your posture is off, it can affect how your body feels, how you walk and everything that you do. Feel pain in the lower back after a lot of sitting? This often means that your core is not as strong as it should be. You can get rid of the pain by ensuring that you build up your core strength.
• When a core is strong, this is going to help with everyday acts. When you bend to put on your shoes or even pick up a bag, you are using your core muscles. When these are not as strong as they should be, it will make everyday tasks that much harder!
• The core is the stabilizing factor in the body. If you are finding that you are losing your balance and you are just not that stable as you once were, chances are your core is not as strong as it needs to be. You will find that when the core is strong you can lower your chances of falling down and hurting yourself.
• You will find that when the core is strong, you are going to be able to perform sports better. Even those low paced sports like golf are better performed when the core is strong.

There are numerous reasons to strengthen your core. But, ultimately, if you want to feel better and perform everyday tasks better, then the core needs to be strong!

How to Strengthen Your Core

For those who are looking to strengthen their core, you will find that there are tons of exercises devoted to working the core and strengthening this. For beginners, they will find that they want to start slow with doing exercises like the pelvic tilts where they lay on their back and then slowly tilt their pelvis up to get these muscles working.

Other ways to strengthen your core include any exercise that works the abs and lower back. You will find machine that will do this, free weights and even exercises that use your own body weight to get the resistance. For example, abdominal crunches, bridges, squats and other exercises. Do these exercises a few times per week and you will find that your core starts to get stronger little by little.

Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash