Core Training – Why No Crunches?

Zach — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 02:27:53 +0000

Performance training for athletes has come full circle over the last few years and the debate about what constitutes “core training” has not subsided. Athletes who are used to doing laborious sets of crunch after crunch have complained about the change from those type of core exercises to a more functional continuum of anti-flexion exercises.

The function of the anterior core muscles (transverse abdominus and rectus abdominus) isn’t to produce flexion (forward bending) but to resist flexion and dynamically stabilize the human torso. In a society notorious for bad posture, performing mindless sets of forward bending crunches does nothing to help athletes perform on the field or court. If anything, it’s a recipe for low back pain and spinal dysfunction in the future.

Athletes are always striving to run faster, throw harder, and swing with more speed. Research has told us that in order for athletes to perform at their highest level they must push the envelope to move with better efficiency. Good posture and core stability is critical to an athletes success. At DeLuca’s, we take athletes through a core continuum of progressively more difficult anti-flexion exercises. Once an athlete demonstrates strong postural control, they graduate to the next level of core exercises.

DeLuca’s Anti-Flexion Core Continuum:

Front Plank
Front Plank Walk-up
Front Plank w/ Arm Reach
Front Plank w/ Opposite Arm & Leg Reach
Front Plank on Stability Ball
Front Plank on Stability Ball w/ 1-Leg Reach
Front Plank on Stability Ball w/ Little Circles
Stability Ball Rollout From Floor
Stability Ball Rollout From 24” Matts
Slideboard Rollout
Barbell Rollouts

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Core Training – Why No Crunches?