Nicole Ross Health & Fitness

From the series “how do I strengthen my core” 😁 It’s a fun exercise that will challenge your deep core. Deep core because to do it properly you have to focus on using all core components (not abdominals only), and breath diaphragmaticly, not just lift one leg up and wish the lower back won’t arch 😀. It’s an anti-extension exercise which means the goal should be to resist hyperextension of the lumbar spine. That kind of exercises are very helpful, because they teach us the posture and position we need to perform other exercises to avoid hyperextension (i.e. squats, deadlifts, many exercises in Hip hinge positions etc etc) 🫁 Inhale, lungs expand, diaphragm goes down, rib cage and tummy expand and the pelvic floor lengthens when you prepare for the movement and when the leg goes down. 🫁 Exhale, the lungs shrink, diaphragm goes up, rib cage tummy and pelvic floor recoil when the leg goes up. Pay attention to my stomach and back muscles. I’m expanding 360 degrees, there is no arch in the lower back even if I lift my leg. That’s a good core stability 👌

Split squats - well known to all of my clients 😂 You probably started thinking why my client is leaning forward so much. I found that position very useful when I want to focus more on the glutes muscles, less on the quad. Being upright forces the knee to go over the toes, which in return gives you lots of contraction around the knee. It’s not a bad thing, if your lower leg muscles are strong, knees stable, and you have good range of motion in the ankle joint. I usually do the “more glute” variation for a few months, improving mobility and strength in the lower body during that time, and then go for the other variation which is more upright 🙂

Why having a strong foundation is so important?

A strong foundation—I like to think of it like building a house: isolate it properly, then we paint the walls, rather than painting the walls of a broken house. 😀 We need a strong core and muscles that stabilize the body, then I work on more superficial muscles—those that give you more definition. I always start with strengthening the back and deep core. Depending on an individual’s posture, I might add glutes and hamstrings. However, in my career as a trainer, I have encountered people who were “tight” in those areas, and those muscles needed to be released first. There is no one-size-fits-all approach because we all have slightly different bodies, with different muscles that are overworked or underworked. Our jobs might affect our posture, our hobbies, or the accident you had in the past etc etc One thing I am certain, life is easier with a strong back. So many clients of mine came to me with having headaches often, or feeling their shoulders or neck while doing any plank exercise. Why? Underworked back muscles amongst other things of course😊

Check it out ;)

The first thing that comes to my mind is your pelvis positioning. If you lift your hips with the intention of going as high as possible, you will most likely create an arch in your lower back, which leads to discomfort. Instead, we should feel the contraction in the glutes and hamstrings. Your upper back and shoulder blades should be in contact with the floor; the movement should occur in the hips, not the lower back. Even though it’s a lower body exercise, you are still engaging your core here. You stabilize your spine while breathing correctly. Inhaling creates intra-abdominal pressure that needs to be distributed 360 degrees around the trunk; this will help keep your back straight. 🫁 Inhale: As your lungs expand, your diaphragm moves down, and your rib cage and abdomen expand while the pelvic floor lengthens when we prepare for the movement and when the hips go down. 🫁 Exhale: As your lungs contract, your diaphragm moves up, and your rib cage, abdomen, and pelvic floor all recoil when the hips go up. Have you been doing the bridge this way, or have you felt discomfort in your lower back before?

… so you won’t feel discomfort in your neck while doing arm exercises. Not to mention, you’ll have a sexy back as a result. You’re welcome! 😜 We all train toward our physical goals—I get it—but don’t forget to strengthen the muscles that are vital for maintaining good posture (upper/mid/lower back, deep core, glutes, hamstrings). A strong foundation should be the base. If you spend loads of time in flexion, do the opposite and train extension, and vice versa. It will be so much easier to achieve a nice body definition with the strong and stable body.

It might not look like your typical core exercise but it is! You have to engage the whole core and breath using the diaphragm (360 degrees) to stabilise pelvis, otherwise the hips drop, you arch the lower back, as a result you might feel it in your lower back. Don’t get me wrong you will feel lots of contraction on the hamstring muscles here but it’s a great way to really focus on using all core components. 🫁 Inhale, lungs expand, diaphragm goes down, rib cage and tummy expand and the pelvic floor lengthens when the leg goes up 🫁 Exhale, the lungs shrink, diaphragm goes up, rib cage tummy and pelvic floor recoil when the leg goes down. Once we have a great core stability, crunches and sit ups will make much more sense.

What’s the connection between a strong back and toned legs? 👇🏻

A beautiful example why a strong back is needed if we want to have “toned legs”. Btw TONED is a fancier expression of higher muscle mass and lower body fat but still somehow is more popular amongst women than just “more muscles” 😃. Bands or exercises that have 20+ reps with no weight are surely a good start but if the goal is more peachy bottom, lifted bottom, slimmer legs, we need progressive overload at some point. Doing more reps is not always the answer, peachy bottom needs volume, exercises done with 5-8 reps and moderate to heavy weight. If you don't train your back, you will simply get stuck with many reps and light weight,as barbell on your upper back gives you neck pain or instead of legs you will feel lower back etc etc. 🏋🏻‍♀️Model @yany_fab 🏆