If you’ve ever felt like your workouts are missing something even with planks, crunches, or heavy lifts it’s probably deep core training. These lesser-known muscles lie beneath the surface, supporting your spine, stabilizing your pelvis, and even helping with posture and breathing. Let’s dive into ten powerful exercises that target your deep core and explain exactly how to do them right.
What Are Deep Core Muscles and Why Do They Matter?
Your deep core includes muscles like the transverse abdominis, pelvic floor, diaphragm, and multifidus. Unlike the “six-pack” muscles, these are more about stability than aesthetics. They’re key for:
- Maintaining good posture
- Reducing back pain
- Preventing injuries
- Supporting your pelvic floor (especially important post-pregnancy or with age)
- Enhancing athletic performance
When you train these muscles intentionally, you’re investing in long-term strength and function.
How to Add Deep Core Exercises to Your Routine
You have two options:
- As a finisher or warm-up: Pick 3 exercises, perform 10–12 reps (or 30–60 seconds for static moves), rest, and repeat for 2 rounds.
- As a full core session: Select 5–6 moves and go for 3 rounds total. This can be done 2–3 times per week, ideally after a strength session.
Now, let’s look at the ten best exercises for hitting these deep stabilizers.
1. Banded Bird-Dog
This move adds a band for extra resistance and forces your core to stay steady while your limbs move training cross-body coordination and glute activation.
How to do it:
- Start on all fours, knees under hips, hands under shoulders.
- Loop a resistance band around your feet.
- Extend your right arm forward and left leg back.
- Touch elbow to knee under the body.
- Repeat on the other side.
Tip: Keep your hips square and don’t let your lower back arch. The control is more important than speed.
2. Glute Bridge March
It strengthens your deep core, especially the lower abs and obliques, while challenging your ability to resist rotation key for real-life movements like walking or running.
How to do it:
- Lie on your back, feet flat, knees bent.
- Lift hips into a bridge.
- Raise one leg, keeping it bent at 90 degrees.
- Lower it and switch sides.
Tip: Don’t let your hips drop or twist. Squeeze your glutes and keep your abs tight.
3. Deadbug
Absolutely. The deadbug teaches you to move your limbs while keeping your core and spine stable. It’s a must-have for anyone recovering from back pain or working on posture.
How to do it:
- Lie on your back, arms straight up, knees over hips.
- Extend one arm overhead and opposite leg down, just above the floor.
- Return and switch sides.
Tip: Keep your lower back glued to the floor. Go slow it’s all about control.
4. Hollow Body Hold
This static hold lights up your transverse abdominis and demands full-body tension.
How to do it:
- Start sitting, knees bent.
- Lift legs and shoulders off the floor, calves parallel.
- Squeeze a yoga block between your knees for extra work.
- Hold for 30 seconds or as long as you can with good form.
Tip: Press your lower back into the ground if it arches, reset.
5. Bear Crawl
Not at all. The bear crawl is accessible to everyone and surprisingly effective at working your deep core, pelvic floor, and even shoulder stabilizers.
How to do it:
- Start on all fours, then hover knees a few inches above the floor.
- Move opposite hand and foot forward four times.
- Then reverse the movement to return.
Tip: Keep hips low and don’t twist pretend you’ve got a glass of water on your back.
6. Forearm Side Plank
Side planks recruit your deep obliques and glute medius, both essential for walking, running, and hip stability.
How to do it:
- Lie on your side, elbow under shoulder.
- Stack or stagger your feet.
- Lift hips into a straight line.
- Hold for 30 seconds per side.
Tip: Keep your ribs lifted and avoid collapsing into your shoulder.
Final Thoughts:
Deep core training isn’t flashy, but it pays off big time. Whether you’re chasing better posture, stronger lifts, or just a body that feels stable and pain-free, these exercises are your go-to. They don’t take much time just intention and consistency.
Pro tip to remember: quality always beats quantity here. Stay focused, move slow, and your core will thank you.
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