Workshop: Abdominal Muscles: Role, Function and Conditioning from an Integrative Perspective

When our clients develop a more optimal and efficient posture and movement strategy and develop core strength on top of this strategy, they have the keys to successfully and safely relieve chronic tightness, discomfort, and to progress towards achieving their health and fitness goals.

There are really no secrets. Just follow the basic principles:

• Teach your client how to breathe with the diaphragm and stabilize their thoraco-pelvic canister.
• Teach them how to control a neutral spine and achieve a long spine.
• Progress them through the fundamental movement patterns.

The most important system except the nervous system is the respiratory system due to its control over the intrinsic pressure system between the chest cavity and the abdominal cavity. This pressure keeps the stability and the control of the core muscles, especially the transverse abdominis, the pelvic floor, the diaphragm and the multifidus. The scalenie and the sternocleidomastoid which control the alignment of the neck are also related to breathing. So we use breathing as part of the practice of the abdominal muscles.

We are not just strengthening muscle endurance, but we are also activating them, working on coordination of neuromuscular system. We address the abdominal muscles not as a separate group, but as a part of the core muscles around the torso.

There is no one ultimate abdominal exercise!!!

Train the abdominals in the manner in which they are designed to function in their role:

• in developing intra-abdominal pressure and TPC stabilization;
• in stabilizing the thorax over the pelvis; and the pelvis under the thorax.
• as trunk rotators.

We must remember that if we don`t first change wrong breathing and movement patterns, even the `best` abdominal exercises won`t achieve their goals but will only strengthen those wrong habits. As long as the torso will act in the right timing and load, our functional control of the limbs will be more effective and less overloading. Once we prove to clients and patients that performing only crunches and similar exercises can actually de-stabilize their spine, they wonder what they can do to ‘strengthen’ their abs. This workshop will show you that there are other more efficient ways to get a strong, shaped and healthy core!

`Core strength` refers to being able to brace the body’s center against external forces, as well as engage this region to produce forces. At the root of every exercise is the activation of one’s core. Core activation is also important in functional training, as it is used in almost every full-body movement. In additional to the basic principles and ideas of functional training, session participants will learn core strengthening exercises that can be implemented in every strengthening program.