HARDCORE

3. SCORE THE CORE

Now that we have dealt with fixing a bit of the form by maximizing the range of motion, and utilizing the muscles correctly, we can move on to discovering a potent power source - The core muscles! 

I used to think that the core would consist of your abs, the lower back, and the obliques. I used to do situps, leg raises, dead lifts, side bends. I then went on to doing swings with cables, still doing things separately. As mentioned before, you may do those to work on the individual muscles, but solely doing so would be insufficient for total improvement. As it turned out, I forgot to work on my hip flexors, and all those other core muscles in the area. I was able to appreciate the power of the core when I got into boxing. Having a great neural connection throughout all those muscles can create the snap needed to transfer your weight and load them into your power punch. Some people might think that the power of a punch would come from the chest, arms, shoulders, and even from the pivot of the legs. Yes, all of those are sources of power. It is true that as more muscles are involved, the merrier the punch would be. However, the most significant one in my opinion (and from my still limited experience) would be the core. That is what shoots your weight in your punch. It is the core that connects the force from the ground to the whip of your fists (or kicks). The legs are a big boost for the power too, but the pivot simply removes the constraint so that your cannons may fire away. It is actually the core that loads those cannons up. Thus, never forget to train the core group as a whole. Simple adjustments can help the core. You may simply recognize them and flex them right while you are doing squats, dead lifts, back exercises, chest exercises, or basically everything. You will notice that as your core strengthens, you will be able to increase your beast mode on other exercises too. You will be able to feel that the right parts are doing the right things. A good illustration is as follows - a tightening of your core (as you do during planks) while you do your stuff such as the bench press. And speaking of planks, they are good too as long as you are doing them right (with good effort). Slight tweaks on regular exercises can also tighten your core. You can contract the abs and do pullups with your legs raised parallel to the ground. You can get into power lifting too as that is good for everything including your core. A fun and fairly easy exercise that i enjoy is the dumbbell snatch (or kettle bell, or barbell), and an even easier one will be the kettle bell swing. In short, a healthy core is a healthy body (more often than not). Keep your core in shape, and you will feel much quicker, much lighter, and much stronger!

SUMMARY

+ A strong core improves overall strength

+ A strong core improves power ( power = speed + strength)

+ A happy core makes a happy person! :)

Clean N' Mean