Site Search

Would You Like a Strong, Leaned Toned Body?; Got Core Training!

By Tim Rudd

I recently started working with a new client that has been working out at my gym for over 6 months, using machines as his only source of strength training. That's right, the type of machines that isolate muscles at a single joint, while sitting down on your butt with either a supporting pad on the chest and abdomen or on the back, no core needed, once again a lack of core strength. He told me he felt like his body wasn't responding in terms of fat loss and that his joints were always bothering him. Oh, also his lower back constantly ached, especially after playing racquet ball and golf. He's 40 years old and told me he felt like he was an old man after participating in sports he enjoyed, because it was so hard for him to walk through his stiff back and joints the next day, which was all compounded by the extra weight he was carrying in his belly, another side effect of a lack of core strength. He was frustrated and desperate to feel and look young again so he could enjoy the things in life that make him happy. One other thing I forgot to mention, he just played softball for the first time in over a year and said he felt every muscle in his body was going to pull when he swung the bat and attempted to run the bases, once again a side effect of weak core strength. Basically he was desperate and confused. He was under the impression that sitting on his butt working in an isolated environment with artificial support was going to get him the Strong, Lean and Toned Body that he was trying to achieve. Well lucky for him I had the answers to all his frustrations and a way of training that could get him the body and strength he was looking for. Now of course nutrition plays a big role in getting lean and strong but that is out of the scope of this article and is discussed in another article published on this site. This is about training core movements for greater fat loss and life performance so you can enjoy how you look and participate in extracurricular activities without feeling like you've aged overnight.

So you may be asking; why is machine based training obsolete compared to core training? Well let's look at the problems associated with machine based training first and why it's not an ideal way to achieve the Strong, Lean and Toned Body that you're trying to achieve. Machines basically train each muscle as if every other muscle in the body has no involvement in helping that particular muscle perform a task in a given movement. This is what I mean by a single joint movement, basically if you do a bicep curl on a seated machine with chest support and the back of the arms are supported on the other side, with the only movement occurring at the elbow, that is a movement occurring at a single joint. Now let's look at the problems associated with this, first imagine using those biceps to pick up an object in your real life environment. Well it's going to take more than movement at the elbow to perform that task pain free. You will have to use core strength, multiple joints and muscles to perform this task adequately. That is functional strength. Single joints movements are gym strength, useless to real world activities. Also since your seated with artificial support, you have very few muscles involved, which leads to less calories burned, and weak abdominals, hips and lower back(core musculature), all muscles that are important for stabilization of the spine for protection during functional movements. We already have enough problems associated with sitting too much, why go to the gym and try to strengthen your body in a position that contributes to a sedentary lifestyle. Also, the majority of machines have maybe 3 to 4 adjustments, this for a body that has over 206 bones that are connected by joints. The problem is less than 1 percent of the population will actually fit the artificial range of motion these machines take your joints and muscles through. Big problem! Imagine forcing joints, ligaments and muscles to go places they weren't meant too which lead to?.. injury!

Now let's get to core training and how it can help you achieve a Strong, Lean and Toned Body. Well many of you may think core training is as simple as doing traditional abdominal movements such as sit-ups, side bends or some twisting movement etc... Well that is a form of core training but what I'm talking about is your lumbar spine (lower back); Hips and Pelvis, muscles in this region are required to perform dynamic movements so power can be transferred from the legs up through the upper body to perform functional tasks while protecting your spine. So then you ask what is a core movement? Well it's any movement that requires you to push or pull, change levels, walk, stand, run, jump, rotate or resisting rotation; basically any human movement. Examples would be squats, dead lifts, push-ups, step-ups, pull-ups lunges etc... All these movements require multiple joints and muscles which require the core musculature to stabilize and transfer power from muscle to muscle and stabilize from joint to joint, while the whole time protecting the spine. Now imagine all these muscles contracting during these movements and the coordination required to complete these exercises. That's right! A lot of calories being burned and an increase in natural human growth hormone being released to stimulate fat loss and lean mass accrual, due to the all the large muscles involved. Also, you gain the type of strength that is useful in your life performance whether it be lifting heavy objects, playing with the kids or the weekend warrior in you.

So basically, get away from training body parts and train movements that require as many muscles as possible. Create an environment where you train the whole body each training day and get away from split routines that train a different body part each day. Getting a Stronger, Leaner, Toned Body takes effort, not a magic pill or diet, and not one specific exercise. It's going to take training with proper technique, involving multiple joints and muscles to get that body you want. Train smart with a program that results in ideal body composition, a healthy body and increased life performance. Got Core Training!

About the Author:

Tim Rudd is a Certified Fitness Professional in Concord, Ca. He is the top persoanl trainer in his area, known for his fat loss results oriented programming. His website is http//www.fit2thecore.com