Work on your CORE

There is lots of debate about the core.  As a matter a fact, I hate the buzz word “core,” and often wish people would remember the concept of the “core.”  The core is designed to be a transmitter of force.  It is the link between the movement of the lower body (whether it’s touching the ground or not) and the movement or motion of the upper body.  No matter if you’re a swimmer, football player, or dart thrower, your core functions all of the time.  What people often forget is what’s so seemingly obvious: it aids in movement(s)! 

This past week I saw one of my athletes (hockey player) who I started with to help rehab a spine fracture.  In order to help prevent this type of an issue again, his “core” work has been hammered home.  He can hold planks for minutes, pass the FMS (pain free), and pass all of his “tests” which allow him to be ready for the ice.  The only issue is that when he’s been back out on the ice, he’s had some issues with tightness.  This simply proves that isolated core stability is simply a baseline for human movement.  His ability to stabilize with his core as he transitions back into skating is NOT great and it has shown.  Some people may watch him hold planks and the like and think “man this kid has a strong core.”  Well…kind of.  He can hold certain positions, but as always, core comes down to being able to stabilize movement.  If he were in the sport of planking, he’d be a champion, unfortunately he’s a hockey player instead.

Make sure to use movements that allow the transmission of force from the feet to the hands.  This means free weight exercises (with dumbbells and barbells) where one must stabilize and balance with the feet and lower body, while at the same time transmitting the force to the arms to move.  In other words, get off the machines and lift some weight!  On this same note, according to a review study done by Behm, et alin the Journal of Applied Physiology and Nutrition Metabolism (vol 35,  Feb. 2010), “For athletes and nonathletes at all levels, ground-based free-weights should form the foundation of exercises to train the core musculature.”  They also noted that resistance exercises performed on unstable surfaces (stability balls, bosu balls, etc.) have a place in low force phases or rehab. 

As we enter this new year make sure you have a good blend of strength exercises (deadlifts, squats, and olympic lifting variations) along with some instability training when it’s needed.  This blend will help ensure a good balance of stability and strength so that you can perform to the best of your ability.