# Work your Abs when you re not working your abs: See above When you do all of your other exercises all exercise is an abdominal exercise!!

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Julianna Gray
5 years ago
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1 #178 Tools for Training Torso Presented by: Alex McMillan President of Northwest Personal Training & Fitness Education 2006 IDEA Program Director of the Year NASM and ACE Certified Personal Trainer Nike, Nautilus, Fitter, Twist and PowerBar Sponsored Athlete Introduction: The torso is comprised of numerous muscles each with their own purpose and actions. However, most exercise enthusiasts focus almost all of their energy on only 1 or 2 muscles and often neglect other areas of critical importance. To further compound this problem, most of the exercises that are performed regularly should account for only a small fraction of the total training program. When designing an effective torso program, we must examine the muscles to be trained and the movements the produce, but more importantly, we must examine our goal and purpose for training the area. Once the goal is established, the exercises will become obvious! The Problem is this: 1. We are in a flexed posture all day long. The Solution: 1. Do daily abdominal contractions: In your office chair, before you sit down or stand up, when you see your sweetheart, and in many other situations, until it becomes an all day habit. 2. Work your Abs when you re not working your abs: See above When you do all of your other exercises all exercise is an abdominal exercise!! 3. Practical Abdominal/Torso/Core/Stability exercises: Benefits of an effective Torso Training Program: Improved posture Increased range of motion Improved appearance Improved sports performance Decreased risk for injury

2 Improved ability to perform activities of daily living Enhanced quality of life Musculature: Muscle Origin/Insertion Action Rectus Abdominis ( 8 pack) Fibers run vertically originating from Trunk Flexion the pubis bone and inserting onto Assists with Trunk Lateral ribs 5,6 & 7 and into the xyphoid Flexion process Posterior Pelvic Tilt Stabilizes pull of erector spinae group External Obliques (Fibers run at a 90 degree angle to internal obliques) Internal Obliques (Fibers run at a 90 degree angle to external obliques) Transverse Abdominis Erector Spinae (Spinalis/Longissimus/Iliocostalis) Transversospinalis (semispinalis) Quadratus Lumborum Iliopsoas Fibers run from the back, the lower ribs and the crest of the ilium to the body s midline in the front, attaching to the connective tissue of the linea alba covering the rectus abdominis Fibers originate from a groin ligament, the iliac crest of the pelvis and the connective tissue of the lower back. The fibers run both upward and inward toward the front midline of the body, then attach to the connective tissue of the linea alba covering the rectus abdominis and onto ribs 8-10 Muscle fibers run horizontally and are the deepest muscle layer in the abdominal region. The fibers originate at the lower 6 ribs and insert onto the pubis bone. Muscle fibers run vertically on either side of the spine Muscle fibers run diagonally on either side of the spine Muscle fibers run on both sides of the spine, arising on the iliac crest of the pelvis and then inserting onto the last rib and several of the lumber vertebrae Fibers originate from the anterior aspect of the lumber spine (beneath the rectus abdominus) and insert into the upper/inner thigh at the lesser trochanter on the femur Trunk Rotation (opposite side rotation) Assists with trunk flexion Trunk rotation (same side rotation) Assists with trunk flexion Forced expiration (coughing, sneezing) Pulls abdominal wall inward Trunk extension Hold spine erect Trunk rotation + extension Assist with trunk extension Assists with trunk extension Anterior Pelvic tilt Hip flexion Hip outward rotation Trunk flexion (thigh fixed)

3 An effective torso training program will include: a. Stabilization Training: Develops functional strength: The kind of strength that will allow you to sit all day behind a desk, or stand for 8 hours behind a counter, or play with your kids or carry heavy groceries. Our muscles are more than just a fashion statement! Stabilization exercises incorporate a more natural co-contraction of the abdominals and back musculature Stabilization exercises are compound exercises (more than 1 muscle group involved) Training adaptations will improve performance of ADL s. b. Movement Training: Effective overload for muscles involved Effective targeting/isolating particular areas Challenges origin to insertion and insertion to origin Can train a variety of ROM s which promotes blood supply to the spine providing disc nutrition Trains the trunk in a controlled fashion through full range of motion in a variety of planes c. Flexibility Training: Hip flexor Hamstrings Upper Back extension Lumbar flexion Lateral spinal flexion Spinal Rotation Torso Training Guidelines: 1. Use a variety of exercises to ensure a balanced musculature 2. Use a variety of exercise sequences (movement training vs stabilization training) 3. Spend more time training stabilization 4. Use a variety of leg positions (straight vs flexed) 5. Use a variety of contractile speeds 6. Use a variety of tools to add fun and diversity to the program (stability ball, medicine ball, manual resistance, tubing, etc ) 7. Use inclines/declines with movement training to improve execution of movement 8. Remember the abdominal and back musculatures are striated, skeletal muscles. They re under voluntary control and in many ways behave just like much other muscles. Therefore, the work: rest training principles are similar to any other muscle group. 9. Regularly remind participants that spot fat reduction is a myth. Abdominal exercises do not get rid of fat from your abdominal region. There is no direct metabolic pathway from your muscle cells in your abdominal area to the fat cells surrounding them. For any muscle to use stored fat for energy, your body must first send the stored fat to the liver. The liver converts this fat into fatty acids and then sends it back to the muscles to be used as fuel. Unfortunately, the stored fat the abdominal muscles use first may not be from the abdominal region. If fact, it s possible that the energy to perform an abdominal exercise may come from fat stores in your arms! Localized fat mobilization is dependent on genetics.

4 The Exercises: Core Flow Warm up: Medicine Ball (MB) Torso/Hip Rotation (MB) Wood Chops (MB) 1 Leg Mini Squat w/ Overhead Press BOSU Supine Crunches, Pelvic Tilts, Oblique moves V-Sit (With Rotation) Lateral Flexion (Torso and then legs), Side Lying Leg Tuck Prone Trunk Extension, Superman, Arm/Leg Flutter, Sky Diver Medicine Ball Power Sit-Ups (Oblique and Around the World) Supine Side Leg Drop (90 deg. Torso Rotation) Lateral Crunch/Leg Lift Reverse Back/Hip Extension Alternating 90º Leg Slide w/pullovers Stability Ball Plank, Pike, 1 Leg, Alternate Legs Knee Tuck, Torso Rotation, 1Leg Torso Rotation Back Extension, Hip Extension, Torso Rotation Oblique Crunch Reverse Crunch (lye on back with ball held in legs) Tubing Rotation, Seated or Standing Lateral Flexion, Seated or Standing Back Extension, Seated or Standing Back Extension w/ Arm Extension or Flexion, Alternating, Seated or Standing Serape Extension (Cross body back extensions) Step w, 2 risers Reverse Crunch, Incline or Decline Crunch Incline or Decline 90º Leg Lifts, Drops, Slides, Incline or Decline Presented by: Alex McMillan NorthWest Personal Training and Fitness Education

5 1011 Broadway, Vancouver, WA (fax)

MODULE 4: Stability Training for Riders

MODULE 4: Stability Training for Riders The most common answer you will get from almost any rider when you ask them what they need more of, in terms of their fitness, is core strength. Indeed, core strength