4 Simple Movements for Core Muscle Strength

McGill Crunch

Anterior abdominals.

1. Maintain a neutral spine by placing the hands on the lower back.  Do Not allow back to flatten on the floor, this leads to increase stress on the back.
2. Bend one knee but keep the other straight, this will reduce the loss of the neutral spine.
3. Do the curl up by raising the head and the upper shoulders off the floor. The motion primarily takes place in the mid-back, not the neck or lower back.
4. Do not stick out chin, be sure to breathe deeply.  Perform 10 reps holding 3 seconds each.

Side Bridge

Lateral/Obliques

1. It is important to maintain a tight core, a neutral spine and be sure to breath deeply.
2. Hold for 8 seconds, then roll to the other side and repeat.  Complete 3-4x each side. If this is too difficult, disregard the hold, and perform 10 reps holding 3 seconds each.
3. The muscles that are on the side closest to the floor are the ones being trained.  Focus on those each repetition.

Bird Dog

Extensors

1. Begin on the hands and knees, raise the right arm straight out at the same time straighten the left leg back and hold the posture for 8 seconds.  Slowly drop the right arm to the ground along with the left leg and raise the opposite arm and leg in the same fashion. Complete 8-10 repetitions per side.
2. Focus on maintaining tight core muscles while taking breathing deep throughout.  When switching sides, do not shift your weight back and forth, keep the core tight.  Keep movements of the arms and legs slow and controlled and keep a wide base at all times.

Bridge

Glutes

1. When beginning this exercise, focus on tightening the glute muscles.  Do Not place anything between the knees. If you need to make the exercise more difficult, try adding an elastic band around the knees.  Raise the Glutes off the floor and hold for 8 seconds. Repeat 10 times. If this is easy, move to single leg bridge, 10 for 8 seconds each side.  If you cannot complete 10 reps, complete as many as you can and work towards 10.