This is Fitness Life By Design Core Challenge Part 2. Last week we reviewed why it is important to strengthen your core muscles.

Reasons to Include Core Exercises:

• Helps to improve balance and stability which is important especially as you age.
• Can strengthen and tone your ab muscles
• Core muscles may help with good posture and improve back pain

The fitness challenge is to add core exercise to your weekly routine or to increase your core exercise. Here are 3 additional core exercises to choose from.

Remember:

• Pick 2-3 exercises to start with
• Start with few reps and increase as you get stronger. Start out with 6-8 reps of each exercise.  Work up to 10-12 reps.  I would not recommend that you do 10 or more reps of all 5 exercises on the first day.  This can lead to ab muscle pain the next few days since your muscles might not be used to these movements.  Gradually work up to doing the 10 reps over the next couple of weeks.
• Develop a new routine of when you will do them.  As an example, do them first thing M-W-F after drinking your morning water.
• Core exercises do not take long.  A 10 to 15 min session can make a difference. (again, work up to this amount of time).
• Turn the challenge into a habit, make core exercises part of your life.

This is Fitness Life By Design Core Challenge Part 2.  How is it going? Send me an update or message on your progress!