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Writer's pictureKatharine Moustakes

Types of Core Exercises for Your Core Workout

Updated: Apr 27, 2023


Garage 1880 owner and fitness trainer, Allie Knobbe, demonstrating core exercises such as side planks.
Core Fitness Exercises include side planks

You often see two views of core workouts on social media: either those who encourage abs everyday or those who claim they don’t need to do abs because they use their core in all of their lifts.

Neither are wrong, but there’s a middle ground.


CORE DURING LIFTS

You might have heard the terms “bracing your core” before. Bracing your core involves breathing through your diaphragm and expanding through all 360-degrees of your midsection. Bracing your core allows you to stabilize and protect your spine through a movement. Although it’s most common to hear the phrase in squats, deadlifts, and other compound exercises, bracing is essential in most exercises in general.


TYPES OF CORE OUTSIDE OF LIFTS

Supplemental core to your main lifts is beneficial if you would like to gain strength, build muscle, or increase endurance. We recommend treating abdominal muscles just like every other muscle in your body; they all need a little TLC.


Supine

A supine position means you will be with your belly toward the ceiling.

Examples of this include:

  • Dead bug variations

  • Sit ups


Core workouts can include Plank exercises
Core Exercises: Planks

Prone

A prone position means you will be with your belly toward the ground.

Examples of this include:

  • Plank variations

  • Bird dogs

  • Supermans


Rotational

A rotational exercise will result in your obliques being the prime mover with your transverse abs used secondarily.

Examples of this include:

  • Wood chops

  • Russian twist


Anti-rotational

An anti-rotational exercise means just that – using your core to avoid or minimize rotation.

Examples of this include:


Core workout such as Pallof Press
Core Exercise: Pallof Press

  • Pallof press

  • Half-kneeling press

  • Renegade row

We include each of these forms of core to encourage strength in all planes of motion. A person doesn’t just move in forward motion in everyday life. We twist, turn, bend, and extend around throughout the day, so addressing strength in these forms will produce a positive outcome. All four types of core exercises outside of lifting are important to include and are found as a component of many fitness training programs here at Garage 1880.


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