Working Your Core Muscles

Do any of your elderly relatives stoop or hunch over when they’re standing or walking? Most of us just chalk it up to old age, but have you ever wondered what makes their bodies contort like that? The reason is simple. Throughout their lives, most people don’t stretch their necks and backs through their full range of motion, and as time passes the muscles shorten. As the muscles remain unused, calcium salt deposits in the joints, completing the immobilization process. Once this calcification occurs, it cannot be reversed.

However, there is no reason for this to happen to you if you just take the time to exercise and strengthen your core muscles. If you’re having trouble getting motivated, just remember this about the core muscles – use them or lose them!

What are the Core Muscles?

Core muscles include the following: the obliques, lower back, abdominals and the glutes. These four areas of the body are responsible for framing our posture and protecting our backs. If these muscle groups are in good condition, it’s reflected in a person’s core strength and posture.

Strengthening Core Muscles

The core muscles provide enough power to the body to cope with almost every challenge you encounter physically, whether it is reaching to a top shelf, mowing the lawn, or playing a sport. Together, these four muscle groups keep you stabilized during physical activity. Here are some benefits of keeping your core muscles maintain strong:

Strong core muscles improve your posture and help prevent lower back pain that originates in the muscles.

Put some stretching exercises into your fitness routine that focuses on these four muscle groups. Be sure to stretch your abdominal muscles, in addition to doing crunches or other exercises for strength work. This will help keep the muscles in your back and core supple and injury free.

Toning your core muscles will help prevent back injury.

Stretching your core muscles tones and strengthens your lower back muscles and buttocks, stretching out your hip flexors and the front thigh muscles. When these muscles are tight, you are at risk for a serious lower back injury.

Working on your core muscles improves your physical performance.

Slow, static stretching is very effective in relieving stiffness and improving flexibility. Once you’ve improved your flexibility, you will be better able to perform your daily tasks, whether it’s lifting large bags of supplies or merely reaching to get a book off a shelf.

Core muscle exercises will lengthen your muscles and help you remain balanced as you get older.

These exercises will lengthen muscles that have reacted to pain by contracting. Strengthening them can also prevent cramping pain after strenuous exercise when performed at the end of every workout.

Fitness experts recommend starting your core muscle work out right away and repeating it twice a week at least. This simple process can be done at the end of your normal workout or whenever you can fit it in. For recommendations on the best exercises for you, consult your doctor or a personal trainer. All you need is ten to twenty minutes of core muscle work each session to keep you pain free and walking tall.

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