Core Exercises

Many people make the mistake of starting a body-building program by lifting weights, without doing any preliminary exercises.

Often they use weights that are too heavy, and then of course they become discouraged.

The first thing to remember is that you should never strain yourself with weights. You don't have to. But more about that later.

The second point is: Before you start any weight-lifting session, you should always do a series of these core exercises for warm-up. You've probably had a taste of these calisthenics in school; they're also a regular part of the Basic Training programs in all of the Armed Forces.

It's easy—and wrong—to think that these core exercises are un-important because they're not done with weights.

These core exercises can keep you in good physical shape if you do them regularly—even if you never work with weights. They're not only designed to loosen, stretch, toughen, and warm up your muscles; they're also excellent body-builders in themselves. Give them half a chance and they'll build lean, calorie burning muscle.

You can do these core exercises quickly, with snap and precision, after the first few sessions.

In the beginning, don't work so fast that you run out of breath in a few minutes. Your motions should be smooth and rhythmic.

And don't forget to breathe. That may sound funny, but there's a natural tendency to hold your breath while exercising.

You may not even be aware of it, so you should try to think about it consciously at first. Despite what you may have heard or read, there's no special way to breathe while exercising. Some people think you should breathe only through your nose. Others say, "Inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth." And still others will tell you that athletes should breathe only through the mouth while exercising.

You can disregard all the special tricks. Not one of them has been "scientifically proven," as people will claim. The important thing is to breathe deeply, as often as you need, in a regular way. Breathe through your mouth whenever you need more air. Do whatever is most comfortable for you—but don't forget to breathe. It's an important part of the exercises.

1. TOE-TOUCHER. Stand erect, hands on hips. Keeping knees straight, bend from waist and touch toes (or floor) with fingertips. Try 12 repetitions.
This is excellent for the abdominal muscles; the exercise is a well-known stomach-firmer and waist-reducer. As your suppleness increases, touch the floor with your palms, instead of your fingertips.

2. SIDE-BENDER. Starting position: Stand erect, hands on hips. Bend forward at waist so that upper body is parallel to floor. Now proceed to rotate your upper body around in a loop, bending as far as you can in each direction. Do 12 repetitions—that is, 12 complete circles.
Don't be afraid to stretch those muscles. Do the exercise in a smooth, swinging movement, without stopping or pausing. This doesn't make it easier, but harder, if you re doing the exercise right and really bending and stretching.
This is an old military exercise, and still very effective. You can have strong arms and shoulders and legs, and still be weak if your trunk muscles are weak. The abdominal, back, and side muscles are the foundation of a solid, powerful body. Yet these are the weakest parts of the body in most men. That's why a number of these exercises are geared to strong abdominal and trunk development.

3. LEG-RAISER. In supine position (lying on back), place hands under hips, palms down on floor. Raise legs to vertical position,keeping feet together. Then lower them slowly, bringing heels to within a few inches of the floor, and hold legs in this position for four seconds. Try five repetitions for the first two weeks, then increase to 10.
You'll feel this in your abdominal muscles at first, but they'll soon toughen up. This is one of the finest exercises you can do. The longer you can hold your legs off the floor, of course, the more you'll develop.

4. BICYCLE KICK. Lie on your back, hands at sides, palms down. Throw your legs into the air and move them in a rotating kick, as if riding a bicycle. Forming a supporting triangle, with hands on hips, elbows and arms on floor, is not good. It prevents your stomach and side muscles from getting most of the benefits of the exercise. Get your lower body up in the air as far as you can with your own trunk-power. Do 50 cycles with each leg.

5. SIT-UPS. Lie on back, hands at sides, feet together. Bring body to sitting position without bending knees or using hands or arms to push up. All the work is done by the abdominal and back muscles. Arms should rise slowly, roughly parallel to floor, as you sit up; do not stop when sitting position is reached, but continue to bend forward and touch toes with fingertips. Try 12 repetitions.

6. PUSH-UPS. Start in prone position (lying on stomach). Place hands on floor, a shoulder's-width apart. Keeping back straight, push yourself up to arm's length, then lower yourself until chest or chin touches floor; then push up again. Begin with 10 repetitions, and continue to increase the number until you can do 25 or 30 push-ups in good form.
It is important to keep the body straight, for proper form: no sagging in the middle, no hunching up. All the work is done with the arms and shoulders. This is especially good for the triceps and deltoids.

These Core Exercises can be done anywhere, and can be broken up in to little bite sized workouts throughout the day.
Or they can even be done during the commercial breaks of your favorite TV show, forming the core exercises of the Television Workout Routine.

Here's a simple worksheet for tracking progress as you do these exercises. For beginning, it is a great way to keep track of how many of each of these you can do, and see how the number increases over time.

Philip Kustner

Develope a habit of doing core exercises


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