What is the “core?” What is “core strength?” What is the best way to support my “core” strength and fitness?

There are a lot of myths and misunderstandings about what “the core” is and this necessarily affects how we think about strengthening our “core,” and even how we may think about ourselves and our bodies. 

From a functional perspective, we want our actions to be well-organized so that we use the least amount of effort necessary in our movements and spread the muscular work proportionally throughout our whole self. Think big muscles do powerful work, small muscles do sophisticated actions. When this gets out of balance we can feel tension, tightness, strain, instability, and lack of flexibility.

We can think about the “core” anatomically and specifically, and it’s valuable to explore these details… and we want to avoid getting stuck in valuing some muscles over others.  There are not places within ourselves that are more important to strengthen or focus on. It’s the coordination and timing of how it all works together. 

Join me for a 4-week series in which we clarify a functional way of considering what “the core” is and how this understanding can help us better clarify how to think about power, strength, stability, and training. Sessions will include some discussion of anatomical structures followed by experiential practice through Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement lessons. We will also explore how this applies to various issues such as back pain, posture, breathing, pelvic health, spinal movement, and spine health.

I look forward to exploring this topic with you!