Core Stability Exercises. Working on your Strength

A generation ago, you'd be hard-pressed to find elite runners paying attention to their abdominal muscles

Today, it's practically mandatory.

I can’t emphasise the importance of core conditioning , and all good sports scientists and coaches now know that you can't run your best without a strong core, the muscles in your abdomen, lower back, and glutes.

They provide the stability, power, and endurance that runners need for negotiating twists and turns, sticky mud, powering up hills, sprinting to the finish, and maintaining efficient form mile after mile on roads.

When your core is strong, everything else will follow, and that goes for elite and club runners. It's the foundation for all of your movement, breathing patterns and injury prevention, no matter what level of running you're doing.

The key is to train your core like a specialist. Experts have mapped out precisely how the movements of running draw on the strength and stability of the gluteals, obliques, and your abdominal muscles that lie deep beneath what some people call their six-pack, for want of a better term.

They've learned how essential it is for runners to engage these muscles to have an efficient breathing rhythm when running fast, also to go all the way and finish fast, reduce pain, and hang in there on long runs. Best of all, there are running specific exercises to help them do that.

All runners from those re-habbing injuries to elites trying for PBs, can benefit from this detailed approach.

When all the muscles involved in running are supported, and the muscles in the hips and trunk work together, imbalances are minimised, you don't get as many injuries and can enjoy running more.

N.B. Quality core work isn't easy.

But it doesn't require more than a few minutes after runs and 15 -20 minutes a few times a week, an investment that will pay dividends in your running.

When your core strength is developed, you can run more efficiently and maintain an extra edge.

BEYOND ABDOMINAL CRUNCHES AND SIT-UPS

This 15-minute session below I have put together just for runners

Fortunately, quality core work doesn't require a lot of time or equipment, just a few key moves done regularly, correctly and consistently.

It is devised to strengthen the specific muscles runners need for bounding up hills, sprinting to the finish, enduring long distances, coping with tough courses and preventing common running injuries.

E.G. Try doing first one set then progress to two sets of these moves right after your run, three times a week.

FIRST OF ALL HERE'S HOW YOUR CORE WORKS FOR YOU ON THE RUN

Highlighted are the areas affected and aimed at.

Speed

As you extend your stride or quicken the rate of your leg and foot turnover when you're trying to pick up

your pace, the lower abs, including the transversus and rectus abdominis-and lower back are called into action.

The stronger and more stable these muscles are, the more force and speed you can generate as you push off the ground.

Uphills

The glutes and lower abs support the pelvis, which connects to the leg muscles needed to get uphill. If the core is strong, the legs will have a stable plane to push from, for a more powerful ascent. When you swing your leg forward, the hip-flexor muscles, such as the rectus femoris, pull on the pelvis. As you push off the ground, the glutes and hamstrings are engaged.

Downhills

When you're flying down a slope, you need strong gluteal muscles to help absorb the impact and counter the momentum of the forward motion. As fun as it may be to zoom down, without the core strength to control your movement, I.T bands, quads and knee joints bear the extra pounding of your body weight, which can lead to fatigue, pain, and even injury.

Endurance

As you're nearing the end of a race, a solid core helps you maintain proper form and run efficiently, even through fatigue. With strong lower abs and lower-back muscles, such as the erector spinae, it's easier to stay upright. If your core is weak, you may end up shuffling, slouching, and putting too much stress on your hips, knees, and shins.

Lateral Movement

Whenever you have to suddenly move to the side-to turn the corner on a course, dodge a pothole, or navigate undulating terrain, the obliques provide stability and help keep you upright. If your core is weak, then you may end up leaning into the movement, which can put excess weight and strain on the joints in your legs and feet.

I would suggest just holding any position for 10 seconds initially, then adding 5 seconds, as you progress your ability to do the moves, but build to no more than 30 seconds total.

Also start with 5 reps and increase as you get more comfortable, no need to rush, but concentrate on a good quality hold position, no need to rush progress either, consistency of doing the exercises is best, as many days as possible, minimum of 3 days.

Obviously you know to warm up first, my preference is to do them after a run, have a drink, a quick towel down, change shorts and shirt if needed.

N.B. these I work in to routines with various other yoga moves

Superman

What It Hits: transversus abdominis (deep abs) and erector spinae (lower back)

Start face down on the floor, with your arms and legs extended out front.

Raise your head, your left arm, and right leg about five inches off the floor. Hold for three counts, then lower. Repeat with your right arm and left leg. Do up to 10 reps on each side.

Keep It Honest: Don't raise your shoulders too much.

Progress To Make It Harder: Lift both arms and legs at the same time.

Bridge

What It Hits: glutes and hamstrings. Lie face up on the floor, with your knees bent 90 degrees, your feet on the floor.

Lift your hips and back off the floor until your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your knees. Hold for five to 10 seconds. Lower to the floor and repeat up to 10 to times.

Keep It Honest: Squeeze your glutes at the top of the movement, and don't let your spine sag.

Progress To Make It Harder: Straighten one leg once your hips are lifted.

Plank Lift

What It Hits: transversus abdominis and lower back.

Begin face down on the floor, propped up on your forearms, with knees and feet together.

With your elbows under your shoulders, lift your torso, legs, and hips in a straight line from head to heels. Hold for 10 seconds. Raise your right leg a few inches, keeping the rest of the body still. Lower and repeat with your left leg.

Keep It Honest: Pull in your belly and don't let your hips sag.

Progress To Make It Harder: Extend the time of the exercise. Each time you lift your leg, hold it for 15 to 20 seconds.

Metronome:

What It Hits: obliques

Lie face up on the floor with your knees bent and raised over your hips, with your ankles parallel to the ground, your feet lifted, and your arms extended outward.

Rotate your legs to the left side, bringing your knees as close to the floor as possible without touching.

Return to the centre, then move your knees to the right side. Do 10 to 12 reps on each side.

Keep It Honest: Make sure not to swing your hips or use momentum; start the movement from your core and continue to move slowly from side to side.

Progress To Make It Harder: Keep your legs straight.

With this I also adapt to hold a bandage with ends in my hands and the middle over my feet; you can buy bands for this. I also do them single leg and adapt to work on hip rotation stretches, glutes and buttock area in general, as a lot of runners can get piriformis or sacroiliac problems and not be fully aware until it’s chronic..

Side Plank

What It Hits: obliques, transversus abdominis, lower back, hips, and glutes

Lie on your right side, supporting your upper body on your right forearm, with your left arm at your left side. Lift your hips and, keeping your body weight supported on the forearm and the side of the right foot, extend your left arm above your shoulder. Hold this position for 10 to 30 seconds.

Switch sides and repeat.

Keep It Honest: Keep your hips up; don't let them sag.

Progress To Make It Harder: Support your upper body with your right hand, instead of your forearm.

ALL THE RIGHT MOVES : a few more tips to make a few quick fixes, and see the payoff in your running.

The Mistake: You're doing the wrong exercises

The biggest mistake that runners tend to make is to take strength-training moves like crunch sit ups straight from the fitness industry, for most runners, standard crunches aren't helpful because they don't work the deep core muscles that provide stability to run mile after mile.

The Fix: Do workouts that hit the muscles and movements that runners need.

Try exercises like the side plank or plank lift that strengthen the obliques, located on the sides of the trunk, and the transverse abs, the deep core muscles that wrap around the trunk like a corset. These muscles stabilize the core, help counter rotation, and minimise wasteful movement so that you run more efficiently.

The Mistake: You're a creature of habit

Even if you've moved beyond crunches, you may have slipped into a routine. You need to constantly challenge your muscles to get results.

The Fix: Mix it up.

Fine-tune your routine or session to make it more difficult. Try balancing on one leg or changing your arm position.

At the gym, use devices like stability balls or balance discs, unstable platforms that force your core muscles to work harder to keep you steady. And as a rule, change your routine around every six weeks or so.

The Mistake: You whip through your workouts

If you're flying through moves, you're using momentum, not muscles.

The Fix: Slow it down.

Exercises like the plank, which require holding one position for 10 to 60 seconds, force you to work your muscles continuously. Even in exercises that involve repetitions, make steady, not rapid-fire, movements.

It takes intention, don't rush through them, and make sure you're doing them properly."

The Mistake: You ignore what you don't see

Runners often have weak backs because they just forget about them.

But when you're running, especially for a long time, those muscles in the lower back and along the spine are crucial for providing stability and support."

The Fix: Include at least one exercise that hits the lower back and glutes in each daily and weekly routine.

Moves like the bridge and superman, build muscles that support and protect the spine.

HARD CORE, HEALTHY RUNNER

Prehab and anticipate your problem areas to run injury-free

Your core is like a power plant.

If it's not strong, your running mechanics can decay and your speed and pace with it.

You will see too much unwanted movement, which decreases performance, efficiency leading to economy or sets you up for niggles or injury.

Here are three areas that can become injured as a result of a weak core.

Lower Back

As your legs pound the pavement, your vertebrae absorb much of the force. That shock worsens if your core is weak, which will produce lower-back pain. Build those muscles with moves like the superman.

Hamstrings

When your core isn't stable, your hamstrings often have to work extra hard,

The added work can leave them shorter, tighter, and more vulnerable to injury.

To strengthen them (not stretching), as well as your glutes, try exercises like bridges, lunges, and squats.

Knees

Without a stable core, you can't control the movement of your torso as well, and you risk putting excess force on your joints each time your foot lands. This can lead to pain under the knee (known as "runner's knee"), patella tendinitis (a sharp pain in the bottom of the knee), and iliotibial-band tendinitis.

The plank and side plank strengthen the transversus abdominis, which help steady the core.

N.B.

I will follow on another page with details of some of the basic Asana Yoga exercises that are best for runners.

These can compliment the core exercises, and in fact most core exercises have a basis of origin in Asana Yoga and bear many similarities.

Created by Dave Rodgers 2010