Welcome back everybody to this week’s edition of 2-Minute Tuesdays. Now this week, we are talking to those of you who may be believing some common myths about the core muscles. What are three common core myths that, if believed, can often make you weaker?
1) You Should Not Do Crunches
The first common core myth is that you should not do crunches. It is often said that crunches can be bad for your spine and you should avoid doing them. While this may be appropriate advice for specific individuals, as a general rule for all people, it is misleading and can result in underdevelopment of your core muscles, especially in positions outside of neutral.
Action Step: Unless you have been told by a medical professional to avoid doing crunches in order to let an injury heal, consider starting to add them into your weekly workout routine. If you haven’t them for a while, error on the side of doing too few. Make sure you move slowly the entire time and are focused only on squeezing your abdominal muscles.
Related: Join the next One Workout Away Challenge here!
2) Your Core Only Includes Your Abs
The second common core myth is that your core only includes your abs. In fact, your core is actually made up of the muscles that live all around your trunk, not just on the front, including your obliques and low back muscles. What this means is if your core work only includes working the muscles on the front side of your trunk, such as your abs, you are missing the majority of your core muscles.
Action Step: Make sure your core exercises are well-rounded! Included exercises that challenge the four main motions of your core – trunk flexion, trunk extension, trunk side bend, and trunk rotation. This will help to ensure that all of your core muscles are challenged throughout the week.
Related: Download The MAS At-Home Workout Program here!
3) Is Is Dangerous To Work Your Low Back
The third common core myth is that it is dangerous to work your low back. In fact, NOT working your low back muscles can be far more dangerous than doing exercises to strengthen them. The key is how you are doing the exercises. While this all varies by the individual, at the end of the day, it is important to make sure your low back muscles stay strong, and exercising them is a great way to do that.
Action Step: Not sure what exercises to do for your low back? Consider hiring a personal trainer or discussing it with a certified MAT® specialist. Each will be able to give you exercise recommendations that can help to strengthen this often overlooked area.