core
& balance
Going back to basics can help your members to maximise the effectiveness of their workouts. Susie Srivastava reports
H
ave you ever tried to fire a cannonball while sitting in a canoe? Chances are the answer’s no. But this is
the metaphor that corrective exercise specialist Karl Pearson frequently uses with clients to explain the benefits of core or balance training. “This type of training is really important, because promoting balance and stability provides a sound platform from which the rest of the body can effectively move,” he explains. “In the same way, if you did fire that cannon from your canoe, without a steady base you’d soon capsize. That’s exactly the premise that core or balance training works on. Used regularly, it can help people to keep active and functionally fit, as well as preventing falls and accidents.”
injury prevention
Pearson observes that individuals’ goals at the gym regularly focus on easily measured results, such as losing weight or toning up, rather than the less tangible benefits a strong core zone brings: better posture, increased functional strength and muscle firing, for example, as well as decreased risk of injury because the body is better equipped to deploy swift reactions. However, at his own training facility
in Lancashire – Get Involved Fitness – Pearson emphasises the importance of functional fi tness, encouraging members to train in a way that meets each of their personal goals while also improving their capability to effectively complete everyday activities. Core and balance training play a key role in this. “Although we quite rightly hear lots about the benefi ts of maintaining a healthy heart and cardiovascular system, at Get Involved Fitness we believe in the importance of integrating core or balance training into every workout, with a view to improving the body’s functional ability,” Pearson explains. John Hardy, founder of independent
PT studio and instructor training provider Faster Fitness, and a consultant for Escape, agrees: “Core and balance training has evolved to mean passing through a point of neutral spine, rather than holding the body in one place
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STRIKING A
BALANCE
Strength to the core Core/balance training should be part of everyone’s workout
and moving other limbs. This is a vital component of all workouts, because it gives the client the ability to experience and develop defence strategies in positions of potential injury.”
universal relevance
Says BalanceMaster’s Peter Hope:
“Balance training should be part of everyone’s fitness programme. Improved balance increases range of movement, ensures muscle groups are co-ordinated and enhances agility and sporting performance. It puts muscle strength to functional use, encouraging major muscle groups to work together to respond to the demands on the body.” Technogym’s Sian Baker adds that
core or balance training has different, functional advantages for everyone, commenting: “An elderly lady will have more confi dence in her ability to avoid falls if her balance is better; a carpenter would be able to hold himself in a particularly awkward position for
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a longer period of time with increased core strength and balance; a footballer could improve his stability in contact, withstand tackles better and improve his ability to receive and offl oad the ball.” However, while core or balance
training is benefi cial for everyone – from the sportsperson keen to improve stamina and performance to the older person looking to minimise injury risks – Pearson warns that instructors should guard against adopting a ‘one size fi ts all’ approach, instead using different training methods and equipment that will effectively integrate this training into their clients’ workouts. Hardy notes that the increase
in popularity of functional training has given rise to a whole new set of equipment, including Escape’s TRX suspension training kit, FitPro’s ViPR and The CoreStick. On the next two pages, we take a look at a selection of equipment that’s particularly well- suited to core or balance training.
june 2010 © cybertrek 2010
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