Thread: Best Core Excersise

Deadlifts. Free, heavy squats. Chinups. Sprinting.

I am not an expert on all the options you have but I can tell you doing Planks has really helped with my core. I do:
Left side plank- 1 minute 30 seconds
Right side plank- 1 minute 30 seconds
Front plank- 1 minute 30 seconds

and I do 3 sets of each. I started out at 45 seconds for each one.

deadlifts and squats.

deadlifts and squats are good IF things are firing properly....if not...then dealifts and squats will fuck you up.

You need to lay the foundation, integrate that into regular movement and move onto real things.

Typically, I start with bird dogs, planks, various chop and lift patterns, etc...Then, once the firing sequence is normalized and stability has been gained, we move to things like single leg squat to 1-arm cable row, 1-leg squat and press, and other combination lifts as well as the bigger compound movements (of course). But, laying the foundation is the critical part of the equation.

thanks guys i think for the moment ill be better doing some planks and similar excersises - ill look up a couple to incoperate into leg day off the net and just experiment a bit.

Ill move onto heavier squatting and deadlifts in due time but like p-funk said i need to lay a foundation. (struggling with my normal squatting is what inspired me to focus on firing up my core)

Thanks guys - if anyone knows a site with good demonstrations of planks etc can you send me a link! im going to do some searching now!

best core is dead lifts and raw squats

Watch this for how too do planks. Abdominal Exercises: Planks | ExpertVillage Videos

If you google planks you will find others.

thanks for the video - i did some lookin on net and they look pretty handy as an excersise to get my core built to a decent level before really going for it with dead lifts etc (i dont feel im conditioned for that yet)

anyway thanks a lot

Originally Posted by P-funk

deadlifts and squats are good IF things are firing properly....if not...then dealifts and squats will fuck you up.

You need to lay the foundation, integrate that into regular movement and move onto real things.

Typically, I start with bird dogs, planks, various chop and lift patterns, etc...Then, once the firing sequence is normalized and stability has been gained, we move to things like single leg squat to 1-arm cable row, 1-leg squat and press, and other combination lifts as well as the bigger compound movements (of course). But, laying the foundation is the critical part of the equation.

What do you mean by "laying the foundation"?
Do you mean that you start with planks and such during a workout, then move to bigger exercises? Or do you mean when you first start training someone, they start with planks and move on later, as in weeks/months later?

Originally Posted by squanto

What do you mean by "laying the foundation"?
Do you mean that you start with planks and such during a workout, then move to bigger exercises? Or do you mean when you first start training someone, they start with planks and move on later, as in weeks/months later?

Depends on what the findings are in your assessment. From there, I determine what we should and should not be doing right out og the gate. If you are really weak, we use things like blood pressure cuff breathing and other breathing technique exercises to re-learn how to brace our abdominals. then we perform out bird dogs (and other quadraped exercises) and planks.

Once you are cool with that stuff, I use things like bird dogs and planks as part of the warm up, and then do other stuff in the workout (chop patterns and the "bigger exercises") to help integrate what you learned on the floor, in a controlled environment, into something that is actually useable.

OK. I've been doing bird-dogs and various planks at the end of my workouts. I usually go to failure for a set of 2 or 3 different kinds of static holds at the end of most workouts.
Do you think they are better as a warm-up? And when you have people warm up with them, are they doing them to failure?
I feel like they might tire me out if I'm trying to do heavy deadlifts or squats that day? Never tried them at the beginning of my workout though.

Originally Posted by squanto

OK. I've been doing bird-dogs and various planks at the end of my workouts. I usually go to failure for a set of 2 or 3 different kinds of static holds at the end of most workouts.
Do you think they are better as a warm-up? And when you have people warm up with them, are they doing them to failure?
I feel like they might tire me out if I'm trying to do heavy deadlifts or squats that day? Never tried them at the beginning of my workout though.

Squanto,

failure is rare on most exercises in my training program...especially the core ones. I see no point in it. I mean, failure on bird dogs would be silly and have you seen people go to failure on plank exercises? The start to get horrible compensations and the form goes to shit. The goal is to maintain stability. If you can go for 60sec on the regular plank, it is time to move on to something more difficult.

We do them in the warm up as a way to just re-fresh what it feels like to brace the abdominals and tighten up. That helps when we go to deadlift and squat. Or, we actually use those movements in a super set with the deadlift or squat. Even in my own workouts, I will do a set of squats and then go over and do a set of kneeling cable chops or some other core movement.

OK cool, thanks P. Yeah when I mean "to failure," I mean that I stop when my form goes to shit, not to complete and utter failure. But I'll try just doing them to warm up, see if it helps.

I hope this fad/trend peters out soon. I see fat people on the balls and half balls just asking for a slipped disk. I see 20 year old kids in great shape wasting there time on planks and the like. Will it ever end?????????

I'm 19 and I can honestly say planks have made a big (and positive) difference for me. So I would still recommend doing them.

If I can hold all of my planks for 90 seconds what would you recommend me moving on to?

Originally Posted by GOtriSports

If I can hold all of my planks for 90 seconds what would you recommend me moving on to?

I did this with my workout partner. One of us would do sit-ups on a slanted ab board while the others was on the ground doing the planks waiting their turn on the ab board. Doing this back and forth until we did 3 sets each with no rest.

The funny thing about it was holding your plank and looking forward to doing your situps and making the other guy endure the planks

I guess this would be an ab superset

Originally Posted by GOtriSports

I'm 19 and I can honestly say planks have made a big (and positive) difference for me. So I would still recommend doing them.

If I can hold all of my planks for 90 seconds what would you recommend me moving on to?

single leg planks
side planks
side planks with top leg abduction
side planks balancing on top leg with bottom leg in hip flexion
side planks with both legs up on a bench
side planks with top leg on bench and bottom leg in hip flexion
planks with arms on stability ball
planks with arms on stability/1-leg
planks with toes on stability ball
planks alternating between 1-arm Y's


lots of variations to play with.

In the olden days before "core" there was Jack Lalanne.

This is a great way to slip a disc so be careful.

Jack Lalanne is classic stuff. He's been replaced by infomercials...what a sad state of regression.

Originally Posted by Hoglander

In the olden days before "core" there was Jack Lalanne.

This is a great way to slip a disc so be careful.

That guy is hilarious he is my new hero.