Be Fit: Strengthen Your Core to Strengthen Your Workout

I recently wrote about the fact that spot reduction is a myth.

Specifically, I used the example of .

I’m not suggesting you never do any exercises to strengthen your abs, but only that those exercises alone won’t shed the bulge.

I am a big proponent of core training. Many people narrowly define the core to mean the abs, but your core is basically your entire midsection with exception of your extremities. Developing a strong and solid core makes a huge difference with your functional ability. Every movement you make—every step, every turn, lift, bend, and reach—engages your core muscles.

The responsibility of your abs is not to bring your ribcage and hips together, as in a crunching movement. Instead, their responsibility is to resist that motion along with forward to back flexion and extension and twisting, or rotation.

Imagine your core as a spring. That spring always wants to remain in one position. Bend it to the side and it snaps back in place. That’s the job of your core muscles too. They’re trying to keeping the body in place. A strong spring will do a better job than a weak spring.

There are literally hundreds if not thousands of exercises to develop core stability and strength. Several of my past articles have focused on planks and variations of planks. Today, I would like to introduce another core exercise.

Today’s exercise is a core rotation. This exercise can be performed using a cable machine (like the one at my favorite Bolingbrook fitness center) or using a resistance band looped around a stationary object.

Watch the video to learn the proper way to perform this exercise. Remember to keep the arms away from the body to get the maximum effect of the weight. Draw the hands too close and you lose the benefit to your core.

Add this exercise to your program and watch for more core training ideas to build a strong foundation.