When you hear the word "core", what do you think of? Crunches and sit-ups, right? Well, as we've mentioned around here before, your core goes far beyond the abdominal muscles involved in a crunch! You can strategically plan a workout to strengthen and tone up your core from start to finish... without doing a single crunch! Keeping a strong core is a SUPER way to help improve posture & to strengthen and protect the lower back. A strong, tight, and toned core helps to elongate your midsection, creating that long & lean look we're ALL going for ;) Check out these 3 core-blasting tips:
- change your base! Try sitting on the edge of a stability ball or on balance discs while performing upper body lifts. Or if you're feeling confident, stand on one foot! Balance work is an awesome way to keep the core muscles activated!
- single arm it! When you would normally perform an exercise with both arms working in unison, let one arm rest while the other arm works. By exerting only one side of your body, the core is forced to work a little harder to keep your bones, muscles, & joints properly aligned!
- add rotation! As you lunge, squat, & crunch, twist your body. We often forget that the lateral portions of our bodies are lined with muscles from head to toe too! Although this doesn't burn extra fat along your sides, you better believe it will help to tighten the muscles hiding behind those love handles ;) Here are a few prime exercises for adding rotation: back extensions, jack-knives, lunges, squat jumps... what else can you come up with??
Now engage that core and reap the benefits of a tighter, stronger, and healthier bod!
-Peace. Health. RoxyB!!
