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Core
Core fitness is the fifth discipline as important as triathlon swimming cycling running rest & recovery.
The equipment you will need includes a ball (known as fit ball Swiss ball or Stability ball)
Without strong abdominal lower back muscles you will always under perform.
Sitting over our PC or TV or in the car does nothing for our core.
Ironman core exercises.
Incline press up with feet on a bench once you are able to complete 3 x 10 (15 seconds rest) then progress from 25cm then to 35cm then to 50 cm then back to 25cm -35cm 50cm using a Swiss ball then eventually progress to a dumb bell weight balanced behind your neck firstly on a bench then dumb bell and Swiss ball.
Swiss stability ball core fitness.
Lay on the ball on your stomach-
- with light dumb bells try and become a star fish by lifting off the ground your feet and hands avoiding contact with the ground, hold for 10 seconds and repeat 4 times.
Lay on your back on the Swiss ball-
Using with dumb bells and do press ups.
Abdominal side plank – focus on holding a straight line between head body and legs.
Normal abdominal plank
Abdominal crunch on a fit ball – lay on lower back on the ball raise up and lower slowly every 5 seconds build up to 10 reps repeating 4 times in total.
Stand against a wall with a fit ball between you and the wall keeping the head and chest up and legs at 90 degrees. At the end of the last squat raise your foot up and down 5cm (known as pulses). The rule is the longer you do the normal squat i.e. 20 seocnds then continue doing pulses for another 20 seconds.
Progress up to 4 x 30 seconds squats plus 30 seconds of extra pulses.
Press ups – feet on one ball hands shoulder width on larger ball complete a full press up & down every 4 seconds slow and controlled.
On a chair –
Sit at the end of the chair on your cheeks arms down by the side-
- Raise knees to creating a V-shape hold for 5 seconds slower slowly and repeat.
- Lift your feet off the ground 5cm swing your legs out and back slowly again.
If you find this difficult start with one leg on the ground and arms down by your side progress to holding each side of the chair then raising both legs simultaneously.
If you have difficulty you can also consider a Swiss ball stabilizer.
Swiss stability ball.
He correct size ball is worked out by measuring the following. See below three tests you can try to find the correct size Swiss ball for you.
Sitting on a ball with your legs pararel to the floor with hips at 90 degrees otherwise go into a seated squat position against a wall aiming for 90 degrees and note the height measure this and add 10 cm for the correct size of stability ball for you.
Sit on the edge of a chair distance that allows you to have your legs out stretched parraell to the ground then measure the distance between your cheek and the floor.
Use too small a ball and you are you are not recruiting your core too large a ball then you are unstable and likely to cause yourself injury.
If the distance is 50cm then you need a 60cm ball.
*CAUTION*
With any exercise you must be warmed up first. Core requires balance and co-ordination and we take no responsibility for loss damage or injury trying out this advice. Seek an expert explain any medical conditions to show you the correct movements and injury prevention tips.
Core fitness equipment.
Correct size stability ball dumb bells medicine balls and exercise mat.
Time efficient training
How about watching TV or working at your PC sitting on a Swiss Ball, putting on socks standing on one feet every day soon adds up to time efficient training.
Hold in your stomach for 15 seconds every 10 minutes while swimming cycling running and even standing in a queue.
The longer you can keep going before fatigue sets the faster you will go.
Once your sports specific muscles tire you then draw upon your core which gives you a brief respite without slowing down, then you can use sport specific muscles again.
The better your core the more you perform to your ability.
Our core stabilizers help give us that extra strength and is used as the pivot point between our arms and legs.
During the Swim Cycle (out of saddle) and run our arms and legs work in unison to create force, an improved core will help you.
When we fatigue we draw upon other muscles usually the core.
Problem with your breathing can be linked to a weak core which is connected to the diaphragm.
Great gains can be made from a small amount of time