Are Your Ab Workouts Working? Ask Your Back!
Are Your Ab Workouts Working? Ask Your Back!
When most people think about strengthening their core to protect their back, they picture endless crunches, sit-ups, or other abdominal exercises. While these moves might make your abs burn, they don’t necessarily provide the support your back needs. In fact, they can sometimes do more harm than good if not paired with proper form and functional stability practices.
To truly manage back pain and develop a functional core, it’s time to focus on what really works: understanding neutral spine and mastering stabilization.
The Myth of Ab Workouts and Back Protection
Abdominal exercises often target just the 6 pack abs. While these muscles are important for many movements of the spine, they’re only part of the abdominal wall and only one piece of the “core”. Your core also includes deeper muscles like the transverse abdominis (your body’s natural corset), pelvic floor muscles, and spinal stabilizers and require the support from the pelvic muscles (aka gluteal muscles).
Signs that you are not engaging your deep core system:
- A Pooch even though you do a ton of abs. This is not a sign of a fat stomach. This is the sign of serious muscle imbalance
- Your back hurts and it’s not getting better. Easy. If your back hurts, you’re doing it wrong!
- Your single leg balance either stinks OR you have to hike a hip or lean back to stand on leg. Believe me, this is one of the biggest tellers of stable spine.
- Your hips click like crazy during your ab workouts. This, my friends, is the sign that your midline cannot move your leg through space. Our legs our heavy and when it clicks, there are little micromovements happening instead of spinal stability.
The Real Key: Neutral Spine and Stabilization
The secret to a functional core lies in achieving and maintaining a neutral spine—a position where the natural curves of your spine are in alignment. This is the posture that allows your core muscles to engage properly and support your back during movement.
Stabilization exercises train the entire core to work as a team to support your spine and pelvis, whether you’re sitting, lifting, or twisting. This functional strength is what prevents injuries and reduces strain on the back.
Stabilization Exercises to Try
Bottom Line
Protecting your back isn’t about how many crunches you can do; it’s about building functional strength through stabilization and maintaining a neutral spine. When your core muscles work together to support your spine, you’ll feel stronger, move better, and finally kick back pain to the curb.
Ready to trade crunches for real results? Focus on stabilization by utilizing our Portal tools and your back won’t lie!