Core Issues

Core activation is still a hot buzz word on the lips of many a pitchman on infomercials. Some of the products are great, some are worthless, but all of them essentially miss explaining the root of what this means for you. Core activation, at it's simplest, is the forcing of the muscles in the center of the body (deep skeletal muscle, midsection/trunk) to do their proper job. Sounds a little silly when put in those terms but the reality is that these muscles are typically lazy and defer to another muscle group to do their work. Before you go lecturing your core about it's lackadaisical attitude toward doing it's job, keep in mind that this is mostly your own fault. In the modern world we live and work in, we offer our core little more than mixed signals and half opportunities to carry out it's purpose. Most workplaces are either 99% sitting still(office jobs,driving) letting the core relax and you posture go to hell or they are 99% standing jobs(factory work , service industry) which again keeps these muscles in bad form and allows them to not do their job to it's potential. Just to be clear I am not saying you can't sit down or that you shouldn't stand up but rather mix them up a bit. Doing anything over and over again is not only monotonous, it's not really good for you. The great news is that there is a way to get your core activated without breaking up your routine. It starts with an awareness of your posture . Sitting up straight, keeping your shoulders back and your chin tucked a little will start your core to work. All we need to do from there is to squeeze your abs tight like you are trying to make your navel touch your spine. This is different from trying to suck your gut in like you are trying to get your favorite jeans on that are o size too small.You will feel the ab muscles tighten and still be able to breathe. This alone will take your game to the next level no matter where you're at. Try it out and go get your workout done.

5 min. warm up
Stretch
10 min light jog
20 squat thrusts
10 min moderate jog
20 speed skaters
10 min jog
25 jackknifes
5 min cool down
Stretch

Enjoy!

J