Five ways to improve core strength - GN Guides - video Dailymotion

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Five ways to improve core strength - GN Guides. Gulf News Guides visits Dubai Sports World to learn five exercises that will help to improve core strength. See more at: http://gulfnews.com/gntv

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00:00We are at Dubai Sports World. I'm here to show you five ways to improve your core strength.

00:13Number one, crunches. Lie down on the floor or on an exercise mat. Make sure your heels

00:20are on the ground, your lower back is on the ground, shoulders are down. Now,

00:25want to activate your core, bring your tummy closer to your spine, but also leave just a

00:32little bit of space, small enough for a piece of grape that can fit right under your lower back

00:37and make sure you do not crunch that grape. It's a great way to remember to activate your core,

00:43shoulders down. Now, as far as your hands are concerned, you may want to put them behind your

00:49ears or cross them over on your shoulders, whichever way you prefer. I personally like

00:56to put them behind my ear. This way, I remember not to tense my neck, not to go that way. Chin,

01:03looking up to the ceiling. Don't drop your neck back. Stabilize the head. And when you're ready,

01:09you slowly move up just until your shoulders are completely left off the ground while you're

01:16looking up. And you slowly come back down until you've reached the starting position. And you

01:23repeat. I always like to encourage people to breathe. We tend to forget how to breathe when

01:31we pay attention to the form. That's all right at first, but as you practice, it will become

01:38very easy for you to breathe as you perform correctly. Breathe in on the way down, breathe

01:45out on the way up. And always remember, that piece of grape that we hypothetically put under

01:51your lower back, you don't want to crunch that. Try to start by doing three sets of 15 repetition

01:57each. Number two, obliques. Lie down on the ground, heels planted on the floor, back straight. Piece

02:05of grape, imaginary, placed under your lower back and try not to crunch it. This is a good way to

02:12remember to activate your core. Shoulders down, hands up here. Now I want you to be able to free

02:18your hand because we're going to the opposite hand, towards the opposite knee. Bring it all

02:24the way back down and switch. Opposite hand goes on to the other side of the knee and go back down.

02:30Take your time. Don't rush into them. Slow, controlled movements proven to be extremely

02:39effective than fast rabbit ones if you're looking to improve your core strength. What you want to be

02:45doing to start with, three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions in each set. Number three, lower

02:54back. An important part of strengthening your overall core is to work on strengthening your

03:01lower back. Here's an exercise that helps you do that. Lying down, face down, arms up, head,

03:10you don't want it to be tucked in. You don't want to add pressure on your neck either. You want to

03:14be here, feet together, slowly move up and down. Now you could stabilize your feet and you just

03:24move up and down with your upper body or slightly advanced, take your feet up the ground as well as

03:32your arms. Remember to breathe and remember slow, controlled movements. Try and do this, three sets,

03:4115 to 20 repetitions in each set. Number four, Swiss ball. Using an unstable surface plays an

03:50important role in strengthening your core. Sit on it as if you're sitting on a chair. Take your feet

03:56forward, you're sliding. Just until your buttocks is off the Swiss ball, try to squeeze your glutes

04:02so it's parallel to the ground. This way you're getting a little bit of glutes as well, as well

04:07as your core. From that position, this becomes your starting point. Hands next to your ears, supporting

04:16your neck, chin up, don't drop your neck. Very similar to crunches. Slowly go up, squeeze, squeeze,

04:23squeeze, and you slowly control when we come back. Slow, controlled movements. Now this will be very

04:30difficult at first, but you'll slowly get used to it. Focus on the breathing. Breathe out on the way

04:36up, breathe in on the way down. Start with one set of five to ten reps and then you can build it from

04:44there, aiming to do three times 15. Number five, opposite arm, opposite leg. Very popular exercise

04:53to improve your core strength. You start by getting on all fours. Make sure your arms are under your

04:59shoulders, parallel to the ground. Core stabilized, tummy in. Be careful where your neck is. You don't

05:06want to drop it over there. You don't want it to be tense either. You want to be in the middle. Get comfortable, try

05:12to be balanced out. Now you very slowly try to shift, moving one arm out and the opposite leg out.

05:20Bring it back in. Shift your weight, the other arm goes out, the opposite leg back together. You might

05:29find this confusing at first and that's actually part of the trick. Once you get the movement right,

05:35breathing will come naturally, aiming to do three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions. On those four,

05:44five tips to improve your core strength.

Five ways to improve core strength - GN Guides

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