Editor’s note: Before starting any new exercise program, consult your doctor. Stop immediately if you feel pain.
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection as they target all of your major core muscles: the transversus abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques, and internal obliques. However, despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, the plank is actually one of the most feared core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
If you fall into this category, don’t worry. There are several other bodyweight exercises that are also great for strengthening your core, something almost everyone can benefit from. But it’s not because a strong core equals sexy abs: a strong core is essential for your overall health.
The core muscles control the movement of the spine, pelvis, and rib cage. A strong core improves balance and stability, makes it easier to perform many daily activities, such as tying your shoes and carrying groceries, and helps prevent injuries.
“Everything we do is related to the core,” said Samira Shuruk, a Pilates instructor at Columbia Yoga Center in Maryland. “When you sneeze, cough, laugh out loud, have an orgasm, it’s all related to the core. Additionally, over time, a strong core helps with the prevention of hernias and incontinence problems.”
A strong core is also an important means of combating back pain, especially in the lumbar region. Nearly 40% of U.S. adults reported experiencing back pain in 2019, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You are more likely to have back pain if you are overweight, not exercise regularly, have congenital spinal problems, or have a job that requires lifting, pushing, or pulling heavy objects, according to a 2020 report from the National Institutes of Health.
Breathing is the key to success.
Before performing any basic exercise, you should first think about your breathing. In addition to the abdominal and oblique muscles, your core also includes the diaphragm, pelvic floor, and the multifidus muscle, also known as the deep core. To activate the deep core during your workout, you need to breathe from the diaphragm.
“Be sure not to hold your breath, which increases intra-abdominal pressure,” said Dr. Jessica Chellsen, a physical therapist and certified strength and conditioning specialist at Vibrant Coast Physical Therapy & Wellness in San Luis Obispo, California. “And exhale through pursed lips during the difficult part of each exercise, which will help you recruit your core muscles.”
You can practice diaphragmatic breathing by lying on your back with your legs bent and feet on the floor. Place your hands on your ribcage under your chest and breathe slowly through your nose. Feel your ribs expand under your hands. Then exhale audibly through your mouth, as if you were blowing up a balloon.
Basic exercises that do not require planks.
Ready to strengthen your core without planks? Then try the creaking bicycle, the bird dog and the dead insect. People new to working their core muscles should perform these exercises three times a week, doing two sets of 12 repetitions, Chellsen said.
bicycle creak
Like the plank, cycling exercises all of your major core muscles. To do this exercise, lie on your back with your feet on the floor and your hands behind your head. Contract your core muscles and then raise your knees to a 90-degree angle. Slowly perform a bicycle pedaling motion, bringing one knee toward the opposite elbow by twisting your torso and then repeating on the other side.
“I really like this exercise because it’s rotational,” Chellsen said. “It works your obliques, which will help you if you play sports, like golf, but also when cooking in the kitchen and spinning.”
To make the bike crunch easier, tap your feet on the ground after each turn. To make it more difficult, keep your feet in the air.
Bicycle crunches require more leg movement than a typical crunch. They are excellent for improving core strength, stability, flexibility and coordination. (Prasert Prapanoppasin/Moment RF/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)
bird dog
The bird dog (believed to be named after the pointe position of hunting dogs) works the muscles of the posterior kinetic chain: the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, transversus abdominis, upper the back and shoulders, hamstrings, calves and glutes. These muscles are important for stabilizing the pelvis and lower back when performing movements such as running, getting up from the ground, and lifting heavy objects. Basically, they prevent us from falling forward and down.
To perform bird dog, place your hands and knees on the floor at hip height. Slowly extend your opposite arm and leg until they are parallel to the floor. Lower yourself, then repeat with opposite limbs.
“This is an amazing exercise that I do in every Pilates class,” Shuruk said. “Make sure your wrists are under your shoulders and your knees are under your hips. “I also emphasize trying to make a long, straight line from your fingers to your toes.”
To make the exercise more challenging, hold a light dumbbell in your extended hand. To make it easier, start by extending one leg, but not the opposite arm.
In addition to strengthening your core, hips, and back muscles, Bird Dog Pose can help relieve lower back pain and promote good posture. (fizkes/iStockphoto/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)
dead insect
The dead bug works all the muscles in your core. First, lie on your back with your arms raised and pointing toward the ceiling and your legs in the air at a 90-degree angle. Lower your opposite arm and leg until they are just above the floor, then return to the starting position and repeat on the other side.
“I give almost all of my clients some version of the dead bug because it’s simple, allowing them to focus on the right core commitment,” Chellsen said. “Many people try basic exercises that are too difficult for them and then compensate in some way and don’t properly activate the core.”
To increase the difficulty of this exercise, perform it holding light weights. To make it easier, limit how much you lower your arm and leg.
Throughout all of your core exercises, you should always move with focus and control, Shuruk said.
“If you move fast, you’re doing calisthenics,” he said. “You’re using more momentum and probably losing the stability factor, which is what makes these exercises so good for the deep core.”
The dead bug exercise strengthens and stabilizes the core and improves balance, posture and coordination. (Morsa Images/E+/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)
Melanie Radzicki McManus is a freelance writer specializing in hiking, travel, and fitness.