15: Core Stability It’s More Than Just Abs

Ask someone about core training, and you’ll likely hear about planks, crunches or six-pack goals. But real core stability goes far beyond visible abs it’s about how well your body maintains control under pressure.

Your core is the link between your upper and lower body. It stabilises the spine, supports the pelvis and allows your limbs to generate force efficiently. Without core control, everything else becomes harder and riskier.

What Is Core Stability?

Core stability is your body’s ability to maintain alignment, resist unwanted movement and transfer force through the trunk. It’s not just about bracing; it’s about coordination.

It involves a deep system of muscles working together:

• Transverse abdominis

• Internal and external obliques

• Multifidus

• Diaphragm and pelvic floor

• Erector spinae and QL

These muscles don’t just flex or extend the trunk they stabilise it, dynamically, during everything from walking to lifting.

Why It Matters

Strong arms and legs mean little if the core can’t support the load. Without core stability, you’re more likely to:

• Lose balance or coordination during movement

• Overuse the lower back during lifting or running

• Struggle with knee or shoulder control

• Develop postural dysfunction over time

• Experience repeated injury or tightness

The core’s job is to resist movement, not just create it. It’s your body’s internal stabiliser.

Signs of Poor Core Stability

• Lower back tightness during or after exercise

• Trouble balancing on one leg

• Hips or ribs shifting during squats, lunges or pressing movements

• Difficulty bracing under load (e.g. in deadlifts)

• “Hollow” feeling during planks or side planks

• Breath holding or rib flaring during effort

How to Build True Core Stability

1. Start with breath
Diaphragmatic breathing lays the foundation. It engages the deep stabilisers and sets up proper intra-abdominal pressure.

• Crocodile breathing

• Wall breathing

• 90-90 supine breath work

2. Add static holds
These build awareness, alignment and foundational control:

• Dead bugs and bird dogs

• Front, side and reverse planks

• Pallof press holds

3. Introduce anti-movement work
Train the core to resist rotation, extension or lateral flexion:

• Half-kneeling chops/lifts

• Landmine anti-rotation presses

• Farmers carries

• Plank variations with limb movement

4. Progress to dynamic control
Once stability is built, add movement to challenge the core:

• Turkish get ups

• Rollouts and sliders

• Controlled overhead presses with strict bracing

• Offset loaded squats and carries

Core Stability vs Core Strength

Strength is how much force your core can produce.
Stability is how well it can control and resist force under pressure.

You need both but stability should come first. It’s the foundation everything else builds on.

Final Thought

Your core isn’t just for aesthetics it’s for function. It’s your body’s anchor during movement, and its shield during stress. Build core stability first, and you’ll lift better, move stronger, and stay injury free.

Control always comes before power.