Stabilize Before You Mobilize

by Mike Deibler on June 27th, 2010

When it comes to ab training, most people want to jump right in and kill their ab muscles with tough ab workouts. This can be a huge mistake and potentially lead to serious injuries. Ab or core training is just like anything else we do. We have to learn how to walk before we run. The main function of our core is to protect and stabilize the lumber spine and hips. Most individuals who suffer from low back pain have some type of core instability or disfunction. When they hear that a stronger core may help with back pain they hit the gym and start doing crunches and sit ups to get it stronger.

This will most likely lead to even more back pain. Whether you want to train your ab muscles so they look better, function better, or to help reduce back pain your plan should be similar. The first step you want to take is to train your abs the way they were designed to work. Our ab muscle were not designed to work in isolation. They work with our limbs to provide stability in our core. If we don’t have this stability you will not be able to train your abdominals to their full potential.

Fitness professionals often use the phase, “stabilize before you mobilize.” We use this phrase for all types of training. Not just core training. If you can’t control movement you shouldn’t be doing it. This is one of the biggest mistakes I see individuals make at the gym when they train their abs. They jump right in to some of the hardest ab exercises because they want to feel that burn. It is likely if they keep it up they are going to feel more than just burning in their stomach.

If you are worried that a core stability workout will be too easy than think again. These types of exercises usually incorporate more body parts than traditional ab training. This means they will be much tougher and burn more calories. If you don’t believe me you can try our latest Free Featured Workout The Core Stability Workout. Remember you need to sign up for a free account to view this workout. This is a great stability workout. You will never actually move your abdominal muscles in any of the exercises. The goal of each exercise to to prevent any movement in the hips and lumbar spine. Give it a try and see how you can do. If this workout is easy for your than you may be ready for a mobilization workout.