Become Advanced - Actually Focus on Bracing Your Core
Written By Kyle Ligon - MovementLink.FIT Head Coach
If I had to name the single most important aspect of technique that transfers into functional performance, aesthetics, tissue and joint health, and overall health and wellness, it would be core bracing. Not only that, if I had to name the aspect of technique that everyone knows about, but the fewest people actually put effort into, it would also be core bracing!
Although bracing your core is day 1 stuff, it takes years of dedicated practice to actually get good at in dynamic positions under stress. What does brace your core actually mean? Most will say something like, flex your abs. There are a ton of different ways someone can “flex their abs”, so what way is best? Most people know they are supposed to brace their cores, but not only do they not know what that actually entails, when their workouts get challenging, they get distracted from bracing their core and assume that whatever they are naturally doing is good enough…it’s not. Just like performing a squat does not guarantee that your technique is correct, performing a sit-up does not guarantee that you are using your core correctly. It took me about 7 years and 4 back injuries to finally wake up, ditch my weight belt, and learn and commit to putting a priority on bracing my core. As of writing this it has since been about 9 years since my last back issue, core bracing is still the #1 priority in all of my workouts, I am still improving my ability to brace my core, and I am the strongest and fittest I have ever been in my life.
Let’s start here - When I ask people about how their fitness progress is going and what they think they need to work on, one of the most common responses I get is, “I need to work on my core strength.” Before we dive into how to develop real core strength, I first want to help you peek under the hood on what I believe most people actually mean when they say, “Core strength,” what core strength actually is, and why they should care about it, even though it is different than what they actually mean.
What people mean when they say that they need to work on core strength:
When I dig deeper with people, typically, most do not mention any performance or pain-related things that would require developing additional core strength - like them experiencing back pain or not being able to maintain a quality back position in exercises. Instead, most people say core strength, but actually mean things more like “I want to lose belly fat” or “I want for my abs to look muscular.” This is a key distinction, because these are different than developing core strength. Let’s explore:
“I want to lose belly fat” - Amazing. Belly fat is one of the highest predictors of a higher probability of all-cause mortality, which means dying from anything. But, unfortunately for those who want to lose belly fat by doing sit-ups, you cannot target where on your body you lose fat, meaning that sit-ups cause you to lose equal amounts of fat from your belly as it does your arms. Because of this, there are way more effective methods than performing sets of isolated ab exercsies that will help you lose belly fat.
Genetics plays a role in where different people tend to store their belly fat, but the exercises we choose do not target fat from a particular area. Not only that, if you build muscle in an area that also has fat, then that fat gets pushed out further, so if you are focused on building your ab muscles, but not doing the what is actually necessary, then you are actually just going to push your belly fat out further.
So, what should you do if you want to lose belly fat? Follow a holistic cross-training program and implement healthy daily habits that focus on nutrition, quality sleep, and not being sedentary throughout the day. The more things in this list you commit to, the faster you will shed belly fat.
“I want for my abs to look muscular.” - In my opinion, practically everyone who is lean has abs they would be happy with. Now, make it someone who cross-trains with a priority on core bracing (like I’ll discuss below), then abs can really look muscular. But, if you want your 6-pack to really pop-out in huge, distinguished rectangles like what you see on professional bodybuilders, then adding in extra exercises focused on the rectus abdominis muscles (the 6-pack muscles) is required. It’s important to note that a ton of extra work in this area is a bodybuilder thing, it is purely aesthetic, and can actually be a detriment to functional movement and muscle balance. It’s important to remember that bodybuilders spend a lot of time on their rectus abdominis muscles, but also a lot of time on every other muscle on their body. The rectus abdominis muscles (the 6-pack part of the core) are far from the only core muscles that matter when talking about back health and functional performance. When one area is a lot stronger than other areas, it will tend to take over, even on tasks that is is not well equipped for. Also, excess work on the rectus abdominis muscles can cause head and shoulder forward postures and lead to shoulder and neck issues.
So, personally, I do not spend any extra time on my rectus abdominus (6-pack) muscles beyond what I feel is balanced for my body and function. If I were going to, then I would be prioritizing my aesthetics over functional performance, tissue and joint health, and overall health and wellness and instead my goal is to create balance across these. But, if you want to bias your program towards isolating any muscle(s), I would highly recommend being patient, waiting until you have a solid foundation of exercise and healthy lifestyle habits because just through a standard fitness journey, which you can fastrack, you will likely determine that your abs look great and require zero additional work to make you happy. This would avoid creating any issues that may come from an unbalanced approach to isolating muscles. Once your foundation is in place, if you determine you want more focus on any one particular muscle for aesthetic reasons, then I would recommend taking a very minimal approach. Not only can a little bit can go a long way, but the more minimal the approach, the better balance you’ll have across everything.
What is Core Strength Really?
Core strength is about function and is mostly about being able to brace and stabilize your trunk to 1) protect your spine, 2) optimize the leverages we use in as we move, and 3) to maximize the amount of force we can produce. The rectus abdominis (the 6 pack abs) are mostly for flexing our truck to help us get up off the floor, the “snap” part of our arch and snap (part of our jump & land movement pattern you’ll find in our foundations course), and to protect us from snapping in half backwards if we get hit from behind. When developing actual core strength, the transverse abdominis, the internal obliques, the external obliques, our diaphragm, spinal erectors, glutes, hip flexors, our pelvic floor, and many more all play major roles. If one area is overused, issues can build up. To have true core strength, all of these areas not only need to be strong, but need to be integrated together into our movement patterns.
So, how do we do that?
Simply prioritize learning and developing your ability to brace your core during your workouts. This is day 1 stuff that most put extremely little attention towards…until there’s a problem. Think about this, why do almost all people who have been consistently exercising for 10+ years swear by putting a priority on bracing their core? Why do so many coaches talk excessively about bracing your core? Because those who never come around to putting a priority on it don’t last. The only exercises left are those who don’t get injuries and quit, so the only long-term exercisers still in the game are those who figured out how to prioritize core bracing.
If you want your exercise program to be sustainable, putting core bracing as your #1 technique priority is vital. I have a free online foundations course that can teach you how to brace properly. It is the first thing we teach people in our gym’s intro class, but, unfortunately, it is usually not something people take seriously until they experience some back pain.
How do you develop core strength?
Simply put most of your effort and thought into bracing your core on most of your reps in the gym. That’s what I do.
People usually want an answer that has them do extra crunches or for me to show them an advanced ab exercise that will unlock their potential. The answer is to lean how to brace and prioritize bracing on everything you do. When you do, your core develops in a profound way as every exercise you do is a core exercise. So, how often do I work my core? Every rep of every exercise in every workout. I typically do a core-specific exercise like sit-ups, hanging knee raises,etc. 0-2 times a week. Yes, there are a ton of weeks where I do zero ab-specific exercises, but because I put so much emphasis on core bracing in all my exercises, I am constantly developing my core strength.
Here’s how to develop real core strength:
Follow a Cross-Training Program, centered on functional exercises, that targets speed/power, strength/muscle, VO2 Max/anaerobic thresholds, endurance/stamina, and mobility/stability.
Workout F.I.I.T. (For Intent, Intensity, and Technique) with a priority on bracing properly in every exercise you do.
One in a while, integrate some pauses into key parts of your exercises during which you can check in on your posture and core bracing. Then, you can remove the pauses and get a feel for checking in on your bracing and posture as just normal habit during exercises. One of the many added benefits to working out FIIT as opposed to always working out for a score.
Note: I personally find that when my focus is on technique, especially during very challenging workouts, it distracts me from focusing on the burn, being out of breath, overwhelmed with what’s still to come, etc. Technique focus keeps me in the moment. It’s not the only priority, but the #1 priority of my technique focus are different elements of bracing my core.
Notice how developing tremendous core strength requires zero changes from the MovementLink Method protocols that will also develop all-around functional performance, improved body composition, tissue and joint health, and overall health and wellness and does not require any additional time or effort to target the core. Our core is at the “core” of the program.
If you follow MovementLink Methods, you will not only have tremendous core strength, but you’ll lose that belly fat too!