Fave Things Friday: Core Control Progressions

There are a number of movements that I see people doing poorly every single day. Wanna see me get really wound up, just start up a conversation with me about push-ups. I’ll. Never. Stop. Talking.

But as passionate as I am about correcting push-ups, before I can really start tackling them, I have to first address the plank … another position that is often butchered.

For years, I had no idea that I too was doing plank badly. I could hold it for several minutes but I still wasn’t really doing it right. I was actually kind of cheating and my poor lower back was paying for it.

How do you cheat in plank you ask? You buckle (overextend) your low back and heavily rely on your spine to maintain the position. (PS You may be doing it too if you find that you have to keep putting your hands under your butt when doing core work on your back.)

But learning how to stop doing that has been quite the process. It meant taking a break from plank and instead learning how to brace the natural curve of my lower back with my core — core control vs. core strength. It was humbling but so so worth it in the long run.

So for this week’s edition of Fave Things Friday, I’m sharing the movement progressions that got me using my core for what is was designed for and helped heal my lower back issues.

Honestly, the best place to start is with the Dead Bug since it’s a single-leg move which is critical to get down first. After you’ve progressed that (not sure it ever actually gets easy), it’s time to start working with two legs.

Here’s the plan of attack: