Core Strength Exercises

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It has become more and more common to hear about core strength exercises in the context of yoga. But what is meant by the core can be a bit unclear. Are we discussing abdominal strength solely, or strength in waist and and back muscles also? I have even seen descriptions of core strength workouts that include the legs and hips. The "core of the body" can mean the deep center, as in the core of an apple, or the essence, or crux, as in the "core of the issue."

When I say the core, I do mean the anatomical core - the inner and outer musculature, front and back, of the torso region. Strengthening these muscles creates a physical stability that supports graceful (think grace-filled) movement. I also mean a place within you, both physical and metaphysical, that is a point of entry to a vaster, truer knowledge of the self.

The Deep Belly, or Gut brain

Core strength exercises, practiced with awareness, good alignment and a yogic attitude, can get you in touch with your gut. You have probably heard of the enteric nervous system, or "Gut Brain." It is sometimes called the second brain, although I have read that it goes back further in time than the brains in our heads. That feels right to me, as the gut is where we find a depth of knowing that goes beyond our capacity to reason, or to analyze. Science has discovered that the enteric nervous system is responsible for all the workings of digestion, and also that is is related to feelings of stress, and depression, and the fight or flight response. Human experience, and the tradition of yoga, tell us that in our gut is where we connect to our truth, to our intuition, and to our instinct. It is here where we are guided to our right path by an intrinsic longing to be at once connected, and free.

Sometimes this place is referred to as the center, and people who are in touch with this deep intelligence are said to be "centered." They remember who they are even when life's circumstances have them bending twisting in several directions at once. They remember who they are at the core.

Finding the Middle

• Stretches for the groins

• Stretches that target the outer hips and it band.

Core Strength Exercises - Step By Step

Also called boat pose, navasana is sort of the classic among yoga's core strength exercises. It particularly targets the surface abs and builds abdominal strength, but working it properly will expand navasana into a powerful workout for the entire core.

It is performed by putting your body in the shape of a boat, and then holding steady amidst the waves that lap up against and around you.

1. As with all of the poses, we begin by softening, and drawing in. Lie on your back and feel the support of the earth as you become aware of your edges by filling them with breath. Pull your self in around this filling up. Make yourself buoyant, something that would float.

2. Spread your toes. Raise your feet and shoulders to about the same height. You can bend the knees if you need to, to relieve pressure of the lower back. Take your arms straight out in front of you, palms facing inward.

3. From deep in your belly, extend. Try especially to extend through your spine, lifting your heart and chin upwards out of the sitting bones. Try to embody the buoyancy of a boat.

Find support from your breath, swirling in and around you, like the ocean.

The Side Waist

This is one of my favorite core strength exercises, wonderful for the entire scope of the trunk. It strengthens and stretches the deep belly, the abdomen and waist, and builds good alignment habits into the shoulders, and even the neck. To get the most out of this and any yoga pose, and for your optimal safety and happiness, seek the guidance of a teacher in your town before practicing.

1. Begin laying on your back, with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor beneath you, as in preparing for bridge pose. Go through step one for navasana (above), finding agreement between a release into the floor, and a lightness of the inner body.

2. Lift your knees until they are directly above your hips, feet flexed and toes spread brightly. Take your arms out into a "T" shape, minding the alignment of your arms as discussed here. Those of you with tight shoulders may prefer to bend your elbows, rooting the backs of your hands and forearms with fingertips pointing the direction of the top of your head (cactus arms).

Make sure your eyes are looking straight ahead, with your head in anatomical neutral. Gently and lovingly, draw all the muscles of your body in around the bones and the expansion of your breath.

3. Slowly take both knees toward the floor to your right. Go as far as you can towards the floor without touching it. It is important that both shoulders remain grounded, with the heads of your arm bones pressing back into the earth. Keep your head and neck also steady, with the back of the head rooting slightly into the floor and your jaw and face relaxed.

The difficulty of this exercise be modified by:

a) moving the knees closer to (less difficult) or further away from (more difficult) the chest

b) bending the knees more (less difficult) or straightening them (more difficult)

Combine these exercises with other strengthening yoga positions to create your own core strength workouts.

More About the Core and Core Strength Exercises

I think of my yoga practice in part as a kind of earthquake retrofitting for my body, buffering me a little from major damage in the event that I should fall off my bike, or slip on an icy sidewalk. I plan on this coming in handy when I am an old woman, as I have every intention of remaining active and enjoying the movement of my body for a very long time.

In a sense, all the yoga poses are core strength exercises when practiced correctly, with the Universal Principles of Alignment™ skillfully applied.

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