Exercises that need to be avoided

You don’t need a thousand exercises to build a strong core; you need the right ones!

The core is the group of trunk and hip muscles that surround the spine, abdominal viscera and hip. Core muscles are essential for proper load balance within the spine, pelvis, and kinetic chain. They spare the spine from excessive load and are essential for lad transfer between the upper and lower body.

In my high school days, churches were the only exercise I used to know to get six-pack abs. Many new core exercises are booming these days; everyone wants to build a strong core and grow abs as fast as possible.

However, these exercises are just a fancy form of spinal flexion, killing your back and making it more prone to injury. Before I make you understand, let’s dig deep into some science stuff!

How spinal flexion exercise affects the spine curvature?

According to the strength and condition journal, research has found that our neutral spine has discs, which consist of spinal fluid. At night, no load or force is acting against the disc. Which ultimately absorbs more liquid and increases in volume.

In the early morning, intradiscal pressure is almost 200–250% higher than at night. So, it increases the bending forces up to 300% by disc, and a ligament, it is 80% higher because of hydration and absence of creep. As the day goes by, it becomes less stiff and more elastic.

After waking 30 mins in the morning, the disc loses 54% of the disc height and water content. For this reason, spinal flexion exercise should be avoided at least half an hour to an hour after waking up.

Here are some exercises that need to be avoided :

1. Russian twist :

The Russian twist is a combination of spine flexion and rotation: which puts more pressure on IVD (Intervertebral discs), and rotation pressure puts more shear force on the spine.

2. Crunches :

It is unsuitable for the back because it creates too much flexion through the spine, which puts pressure on the discs.

3. Superman :

Be careful to avoid too much extension so that you are not hyperextending and jamming the joints- a bird dog is better at safely strengthening erectors.

The most important thing is muscles endurance appears to be more important than muscular strength in core training.

So, you don’t need to grind your spine anymore to get a strong core. Instead of doing this exercise, try doing these basic ones:

1. Dead bug :

Lying supine with legs in the air with knees flexed to 90 degrees. Maintain a neutral spine and brace the core. Slowly lower one leg at a time without allowing too much lumbar extension. Stop when no longer able to keep a neutral spine. Can progress this to add arms and legs at the same time.

Beneficial for people with hyper-lordosis of the lumbar spine or those that have anterior pelvic tilt.

2. Plank Kickbacks :

Plank kickback targets your Glutes, core, quads and shoulder (pectoralis).this is an anti-rotation type of core exercise. Start with a quadruped position (four limbs on the floor facing downward), shoulder aligned with the hands. On an exhale, slowly extend one leg to knee height with a bit of hip extension. as you come back, engage the core by bracing correctly.

There are many core exercises with different variations. Picking the right one can be tricky. Sticking to a simple core routine 3 or 4 times per week, starting with 5–6 reps, can increase strength and endurance.

Get your mats and start today to get your abs on fire. Little motivation is all you need to build a consistent exercise routine.

After all, you don’t have to be extreme, be consistent! Life is a marathon, not a sprint!