Challenge 3 -  Lower Abs

CHALLENGE TARGET - 10 / 20 foot taps

Whenever people who run, cycle or even trek talk about ways to prevent injury, the phrase "core training" is never too far away.

The problem is, there is a huge misunderstanding of what exactly the "core" is and how you should train it to provide the body with support and "function" during exercise.

Core training is NOT just a few planks or a few crunches - it is WAY more complex than that.

Complexity of the Core

Over the years, a combination of  lazy journalism and the sheer the complexity of core training, have lead the overwhelming majority of people to think that an article suggesting you do a "core circuit" of a few sit-ups, planks, side planks and a few more situps will give you a solid and "strong core."

Sadly, core conditioning for endurance events is so much more than that.

Your core comprises several different layers or "intrinsic" and extrinsic" muscles all of which need to be trained "statically" and then "dynamically" to provide the body with functional support during movement. 

Training these different muscles in different ways is not easy and is the reason why personal trainers are there to assess you and advise you on which muscles you need to work on for your chosen sport.

Lower Ab Challenge 

This third (lockdown) challenge targets one part of the core which is often overlooked - yet incredibly important.

Conditioning the muscles of the lower stomach, helps to co-ordinate movement between the pelvis and the legs, helping to "form a solid bridge" between these two incredibly functional parts of the moving body.

This exercise is often overlooked , but "bang for buck" it remains one of the best core exercises any runner, trekker or cyclist can do.

Impress me and win a copy of my book

Send in your videos to the GH Training Facebook Page of you attempting or completing the challenge and if you impress me over the series of lockdown challenges - a copy of "The Marathon and Half Marathon: A Training Guide" could be yours.

New Challenges will appear every few weeks, so keep checking back and see what challenge is up next.

Login to the Hub

For more information, tutorials and vlogs about the importance of functional core stabiity," login in to the GH Training Running or Trekking Hub.

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