If you, like many of my clients, suffer from low back pain, but still want to be able to develop core strength, stability and endurance, then Bird Dog could be an important addition to your routine. In the tutorial above I talk about why it’s so important as well as some of the ways I see people getting it wrong.

Why is Bird Dog important for low back rehab?

Bird Dog is useful and important for 3 reasons: 

1. It's helping you develop something I call joint awareness.
2. It's a high stability exercise – developing good quality stability.
3. It's a low compression exercise - so it doesn’t put a huge amount of stress on the spine.

What do we mean by joint awareness?

If you want to be technical, we should be calling this proprioception, but I just want to keep it simple here. That’s why I’m calling it joint awareness. This means what is your body doing when you ask it to perform specific exercises? Where are you feeling the movements? Are you able to work individual joints independently...

Should you train your core dynamically - with movement, or isometrically - without movement? In the tutorial above, I explore the best core exercises, covering things like planks, deadlifts and chops. And I offer plenty of practical tips to help you put them together into a workout or programme.

Isometric versus dynamic: which is best for core exercises

First things first, isometric exercises are performed statically. You’re probably familiar with the plank, side plank and bridge. But the question is, are these types of static exercises the best ones for your core? Or should you be working in a more dynamic way.

In short, the answer is you should be doing both. But in the right way – start isometrically and only progress to more dynamic movements once you’re ready.

Why is it better to start with static exercises for your core workout?

I often talk to clients about the benefits, both physiological and psychological, of starting with isometric exercises and then moving into dynamic ...

In this month’s blog I am talking about how you can unlock your core potential. To do that we’ll look at the different components that make up core training as well as five exercises to help you build a robust core, giving you the strength, endurance and stability you need

Exercise 1 - Core Endurance – Side Plank

When we want to build the core, we don't just build core strength, we don't just build

core stability we need to build all the different components. So for core endurance we use the side plank because it’s a relatively simple position to hold, yet it gives us the ability to challenge the muscles over a prolonged period of time.

When we’re performing the side plank we want to imagine a straight line all the way down the body. Don’t allow the hips to hike up or sag, try to create a nice straight line going through the two shoulders. As we do this on both sides, we’re able to challenge the right side, the left side and a portion of the middle part of the torso too.

To build ...

The Turkish Get Up is a perfect exercise for core stability and joint mobility, however it can be difficult to get to grips with. That’s why I wanted to create a tutorial to go through some of the tips and tricks I share with my clients to help them build up to the full exercise. And hopefully this will help make things easier for you too.

Prerequisites for Turkish Get Up beginners

If you‘re coming to the Turkish Get Up as a beginner, and you’re looking for a place to start, let’s talk about some prerequisites.

1.  Hip extension

The first thing you’ll need for a smooth Turkish Get Up, is adequate hip extension. When you’re lifting up from the floor to the correct position, you need the hip to be extended rather than flexed in order to be able to get your knee underneath your body. You’ll find that successfully mastering this first part of the move comes down to glute muscle strength as well as range of movement.

2.  Hip and shoulder stability

In simple terms, you need your hip ...

It’s a question I’m often asked by clients: ‘How can I strengthen my core quickly?’

Here, I want to share five things to focus on if you’re keen to build your core in the right way, fast.

1.  Build your entire core, don't focus only on the abdominal wall

For true core strength, you’ll need to focus on building those deep core muscles, not just the rectus abdominus and the obliques. The diagram on the tutorial above gives a good overview of the muscles involved, from the thoracolumbar fascia at the back to the abdominal fascia at the front. For core strength, stability and endurance we need to make sure all these muscles are working as efficiently as they can, in a balanced way, front to back and left to right.

You can work on this using static exercises like the plank, side plank, bird dog and bridge.

2.  Start making your exercises dynamic

Once you’ve mastered the exercises in step one, start making these same exercises dynamic so you can challenge more muscles while you work...

If you’re looking to improve your mobility it’s about more than just stretching. You’ll need to do a specific type of workout. Simply making your muscles more flexible will not achieve this. Instead you’ll need to focus on increasing the range of movement of the joint.

Here’s how.

Mobility versus flexibility

Mobility and flexibility are often used interchangeably, so to differentiate we have to think about the result not just the muscles. In short, the muscles are the means to the end, the mobility is the end we have in mind - the range of movement of a joint. While flexibility is more about the muscles specifically, how much they can stretch, or how long they can become.

Of course when it comes to a joint, there are multiple muscles at play, meaning that having one or more long muscles doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have good mobility at the joint. Simply stretching out the glutes, for instance, doesn’t mean you’ll be able to  get down into a full squat as there are other muscle ...

A lot of people come to see me because they are struggling with lower back pains and have been told they have a weak core. They know they need to strengthen it.

But how can you tell if you are in the same boat?

Do you think you may have a weak core?

If you believe you have a weak core the first thing you need to do is work out whether you need core strengthening or core stabilizing. Only by identifying the differences can you work out how to fix the problem.

Core strength versus core stability versus core endurance

First we need to identify core strength, core endurance and core stability – what are they?

Core strength is the ability to get into a position and hold it initially.

Core endurance is the ability to hold the position for a period of time, resisting and minimising fatigue.

Core stability is more about the muscle control that results in smoothness of movement.

But how can you identify which one of these you need to work on?

Many people say they have a weak core bu...

If you’re new to core training it can be difficult to know where to start. That’s why in this tutorial I chose to concentrate on one simple exercise and break down exactly how to perform it. You’ll then be able to take this and apply it to many other exercises in order to work towards a stronger core and healthier spine.

Let’s focus on the Plank

I always advise that the easiest way to start with a plank is to move into it from a kneeling on all fours position. Focus on keeping your spine straight, or with a natural curve, keep your elbows directly below your shoulders and your forearms parallel to one another. You’re looking for a straight line from your shoulder to your knee. It doesn’t matter if you start with the back arching a little higher as it will allow for you to drop a little as you fatigue and still maintain an effective position rather than bowing.

 Extend the legs to plank position…

Once you’ve found the position on all fours, extend one leg so you’re on one foot stret...

Have you ever considered the importance of your hip movement when it comes to supporting you with squats and deadlifts? In the tutorial above I shine a light on exactly why it’s important to undertake some hip mobility exercises and some of the things you should be doing to get those hips in the best possible shape for squatting and deadlifting.

Why are hip mobility exercises important?

There are several reasons why it’s important to focus on hip mobility exercises if you want to improve your squats and deadlifts and reduce the risk of injury.

1.  Hip mobility gives us a margin of error for pain and injury

When we move ineffectively, or put our joints into a sub-optimal position, we create stress, which can lead to stiffness, aches and even pain. It could be that we are unsure how to move safely in a particular way, or it might be we’re unable to move in a way that protects the joint due to tightness or lack of function.

If we’re trying to lift a deadweight from the floor, for ex...

Ever wonder how you go from a beginner level up to an advanced level in core training?

Put simply it’s about understanding how the core is designed and built and using that knowledge to select exercises that work with rather than against it. That’s why in this tutorial I go through:

• How the core is built
• Exercises that work against that build and design
• Exercises that work for that build and design

Once you understand this you can start to build dynamism, movement and extra weight into the exercises you are doing without risk of injury. And in doing so you can safely and effectively take your core strength training from a beginner to an advanced level.

Four things to understand about core muscles

1. The core is not one muscle it is one ‘unit’ of muscles:

With rectus abdominus on the front, the obliques on the side, spinal erectors on the back, transverse abdominus deeper along with quadratus lumborum (QL) and some deep spinal erectors, the trunk of our body is filled with ...