How to Build Your Core Muscles

Core muscles make up the area around your pelvis and are responsible for a lot of your stability. They support your spine and control your center of gravity. When the core is strengthened, the muscles in your pelvis, back and abdomen will protect you during physical activities and will help prevent injury.

According to Mayo Clinic, there are 29 core muscles. Various exercises, most of which you can do at home, will help strengthen and build the muscles.

Things You'll Need

• Exercise mat

Instructions

1. Build core muscles with abdominal exercises. There are a number of these, but you can begin with the basic crunch. Lying on your back, put your feet up against a wall so your knees form a 90-degree angle. For added resistance, hold your feet at 90 degrees in the air. Cross your arms across your chest and raise your head and neck. Hold for three seconds as you feel your abdominals contract. Return your head to the floor and repeat.

2. Try the elbow plank. Lying on your stomach, raise yourself up and rest on your forearms. Contract your abdominals and align yourself, completely parallel to the floor. Make sure your hips align with your knees, creating a plank, and hold.

3. Strengthen multiple core muscles with the bridge position. Lie on your back with the knees bent, and keep your back flat, not arched. Tighten your abdominals and raise the hips off of the floor so your trunk is completely in the air and your knees, hips and shoulders are aligned. Hold for three seconds. Relax and repeat.

4. Do this four-part quadruped core exercise:

   Begin on all fours with your back flat, and your shoulder and hands in one line. Look down to the floor, making sure your head and neck are aligned with your back. Contracting your abdominals, lengthen one arm out to the front and hold for three seconds. Repeat with your other arm.

   Then, raise your leg off the floor and straighten it behind you. Contract your gluteus muscles and hold for three seconds. Repeat with your other leg.

   Finally, raise one arm and the opposite leg at the same time, holding for three seconds. Repeat on other side. This exercise works both the abdominal and trunk muscles.

Tips & Warnings

• Start gradually and slowly build up more repetitions. You can begin repeating each exercise five times, then work up to 10 or more repetitions.

• Find exercises that work multiple core muscles at the same time.

• Breathe slowly throughout the exercises. Don't hold your breath.

References

• Mayo Clinic
• CNN