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Core Stabilization

What is all the buzz about?

By Ellen Tomsic

Found in: | Inside | Wellness |

The newest buzz words regarding fitness and sport performance is "core stabilization." Although this concept has been used by physical therapists since the 1970s, what is new is transferring this knowledge from the clinic to the playing field.

Core stabilization refers to our bodies' torso, more specifically our deeper abdominal and back muscles. These are the muscles where we get our power and balance. Watch a baseball throw and you will see power coming from the wind-up through the legs and trunk, or core, not the shoulder. The shoulder and arm are the end of the chain. Without a strong trunk, the shoulder itself will be asked to generate more force than it can tolerate. Over time this will ultimately result in an injury such as an impingement syndrome, bursitis, or a rotator cuff tear.

Winter sports, now just a snowstorm away, require a strong core for strength and balance. Downhill skiing requires the upper body to be quiet while turning the skis. However, it is not uncommon to see someone turning the skis with the upper body twisting to initiate the turn and their arms swinging. The end result is the upper body pointing in the same direction as the skis rather than keeping the shoulders square to the fall line. This tends to be common at beginning levels although the inability to control the core can cause problems at any skill level. How about snowmobiling? A huge amount of core strength is required as the machine is heavy and you must lean and use your body for control.

So how is core strength and balance achieved? The most direct way is by training the deeper, lower abdominal muscles and balance.

There are four abdominal muscles, the rectus femoris (the six-pack muscle), internal and external obliques, and a fourth, less familiar muscle, the transverse abdominus or TA. This muscle lies deep in the lower abdomen between the belly button and pubic bone, runs transversely around the body, and attaches directly to the spine in the low back. This is the muscle that is the base of core stabilization. To find this muscle, gently pull your lower belly in and up without using your upper abdominals or diaphragm. This is a gentle, submaximal, hollowing contraction. You should be able to contract this muscle and breath and talk without difficulty. Once you can feel this, try holding the contraction with all your usual exercises. So if you do crunches, make sure you keep your TA controlled and your lower abdominals flat.

Other great exercises are dead bugs and bird dogs. For dead bugs lay on your back, control your low back position in a comfortable arch, contract your TA's, and raise and lower one leg at a time, then one arm at a time, then one leg and arm at the same time. The goal is not to rock the pelvis from side to side or up and down, but to hold stable with the TA's. For bird dogs, lie over a ball with your hands and feet on the ground. Contract your TA's and hold you low back in a comfortable position. Alternately lift the legs, then the arms, and then the opposite arm and leg simultaneously. Now add balance training. Stand with your TA's contracted, and try balancing on one foot with your eyes open and then closed. Stand on a pillow or balance disc and try again.

For more advanced exercises, try single leg squats on a pillow or balance disc, or a side planche. To do a side planche, lay on your side propped up on your elbow and forearm with the spine and body straight and the TA's contracted. Hold this position starting with 20 seconds and progress up to 60 on each side. Now transfer this lower abdominal contraction to your sport of choice and see the difference!

Ellen Tomsic is a co-owner of Rakita and Tomsic Physical Therapy and a member of the Rivergate Sports Medicine Center. She is an avid winter sports enthusiast. If you would like an individualized consultation, she can be reached at (970) 259-0574 or rakitaandtomsicpt@frontier.net.