Do you need to train your core directly?

I have seen a growing movement online suggesting that you don’t need to do direct training for your core if you are already doing heavy compound movements such as squats, deadlifts and bent over rows. These are movements that require a lot of stabilisation from your core in order to protect the spine and maintain a neutral position.

These can be very demanding on your core under load and creates an isometric contraction of the muscles. This mean that’s the muscles are under tension without becoming longer or shorter.

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Your core is worked through the majority of exercises that require us to be in a stable position. But does this work mean that we don’t need to train your abs and core on their own by doing sit up, crunches or twists?

In my opinion, no. I think if you have taken a full body approach to strength training or at least somewhat invested to develop more muscle, you should be training in a variety of different movement patterns where the sole aim is targeted towards your core.

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Here is why…

You wouldn’t just train your legs by doing a squat hold or wall sits you would do movements such as squats and lunges in order to get the most out of your training. Muscles develop and grow when you take them through a range of motion. Typically, the more range of motion the better. Isometrics are a great way to gain strength and can be particularly good for training muscle endurance however, I find doing isometrics alone is a fairly one-dimensional way of training and leaves holes in a program.

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What is your core?

When people here core, they often think of abs. Actually, there is a lot more going on which includes muscles such as obliques, (internal and external) transverse abdominis, erector spinae of the lower back and psoas which is a hip flexor. Through compound movements alone we fail to train these muscles which require flexion, extension, rotation and lateral flexion.

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From an athletic stand point.

As I mentioned earlier, you can become strong in some positions but weak in others. If the goal is to become strong all around then we need to train our bodies to be just that. Training for a sport often requires rapid movements, agility and power. We can’t always recreate movements from sports but we can train in a way that covers movement patterns that are transferable.

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Here are my 5 favourite core exercises

-??????? Cable rotation

-??????? Hanging leg raises

-??????? Single Leg V up

-??????? Bench side bend

-??????? Slide Plank

?For me, these are my favourite ways to directly train my core. They offer good variations, spine flexion, and an element of stability and sufficiently challenging so I don't have to do 20-30 reps.

Abs and diet

Having Abs look great, sure. They are another muscle group which should be trained just like any other. Hard sets, close to failure and progressive overload. ?They don’t need higher rep ranges, more volume or to be trained every day.

You will get visible abs but only with a very low body fat percentage. This is why people say abs are made in the kitchen. They still need to be trained but nutrition plays a huge part.

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Core for functionality

The abdominals contribute a lot to core strength and really help with stabilisation during exercises, better form and balance. This is why you should train them.

Its hard to even move without using the muscles around your waist so training them to improve strength only makes tasks easier and reduces the risk of injury. A weak core is often responsible for a bad back.

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