Abdominal Bracing
A lot of people do strength training for their abdominals, but are you really doing any good? All of the sit-ups and crunches in the world aren’t going to train your body as much as this one simple exercise:
Abdominal bracing strengthens the transverse abdominous muscle which is an overlooked and undertrained muscle, yet it is very important for strengthening, especially in someone who has back pain.
The transverse abdominous runs around our bodies like a corset. Have you ever worn a girdle? Or a lumbar support brace? This is the body’s internal girdle. Learning how to engage your transverse abdominous is like tightening the cords of a girdle. It makes us stronger, stand up taller and supports our backs from injury.
The beginnings of the muscle run from the front of the inside part of the hip to the last rib of the rib cage. It also is connected to the diaphragm which helps with inhalation. The muscle inserts onto the middle of the “six pack” abs. Because of the way that the muscle is attached to bones, tightening up the muscle properly can initially cause us to hold our breath. It takes some practice to tightening up the muscles while breathing normally, but it can be done.
• Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. If you have back pain this should limited or no back pain in this position. Your low back should maintain its natural arch or “lordosis.” Feel how you can flatten your back into the table or arch your back would increase this arch. Find your own “neutral spine” position that is where your body naturally falls between these two extremes
• Once in your neutral position place your hands on your abdomen and feel your stomach rise and fall as you breathe.
• Now begin to engage the muscles that are under your hands – these muscles are in the area of where you would zipper up your jeans and between your two hip bones.
• To fully engage these muscles, engage your pelvic floor muscles with a kegel contraction using the muscles that you would use to stop a flow of urine.
• Practice. At first you may only be able to quickly contract the muscles. As you get better at it you will be able to hold it for longer and longer – but here is the kicker – you have to BREATHE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• As you get better, increase the amount of time that you hold it with a goal of 5x second holds, increasing to 10x 10 second holds and working up to 20x20second holds. Eventually it should become second nature and you can hold it all day long!
As you can start to hold the abdominal brace longer and longer you can challenge the brace with arm and leg motions:
