If you ask anybody who is even remotely interested in strength and conditioning what core strength is, they will almost assuredly provide you with an answer, no matter how misinformed it may be. Whether the rise of “core training” to a position of prominence is a blessing or a curse is beside the point. A strong and stable core musculature is absolutely essential for all athletic performance, but more importantly, it’s the foundation on which all basic human movement is built. Without a properly-functioning core, you create a gateway for a multitude of injuries and disfunctions that can be irritated by normal, everyday tasks.
So the first question we should ask is, what exactly is the core? Most people would respond with the abs (and follow with recommendations as to the best way to inflate a pink stability-ball) and maybe a few of the more knowledgeable in the group would mention the erector spinae muscles of the lower back, but this would be a gross oversimplification of what the core truly is an what its function entails. In simple terms, the core is the entire musculature of the trunk, independent of the limbs. These muscles are the workhorses of the body’s major kinetic chains as they transfer force from the trunk to the extremities. They include not only the muscles of the abdominals and the lower back, but also the muscles surrounding the hips (gluteus maximus and minimus, iliopsoas) and upper back (latissimus dorsii, Rhomboids, Trapezius). Any weakness along these groups of muscles will negatively affect the transfer of strength and power to the extremities. A strong punch is much less a product of strong arms than it is dependent on proper functioning of the hips, trunk and shoulder-girdle. Any lack of stability in these areas will result in a loss of limit power to the arm, which will manifest as a weakness at the fist. In relation to Parkour performance, jumping and landing are largely dependent on the hips, abs and lower back. Climbing out of a cat leap depends as much on the abs, low-back and shoulder girdle as it does on the more-obvious pulling and pressing muscles. Stated simply, without a properly functioning core you will never realize your full athletic potential. Period.
With that in mind, the next question we should ask is, how do I ensure a strong and stable core? The first surprise in store for many of us is that it doesn’t take a stability-ball overhead press with one leg extended and your head turned to the right (or left, depending on where the mirror is oriented) to accomplish functional core training. Looking at that exercise, the word functional should be a huge clue as to its efficacy. When will you ever be sitting on a ball with one foot, pressing weight overhead? I have to confess that I have actually tried similar programs, but I have yet to figure out the practical or functional carry-over into real-life core-strength needs. Now, if the stability-ball happens to match your spandex shorts, that’s another story altogether. The truth is, any movement that mirrors natural human function (full-body oriented and irreducible) that forces you to stabilize the load (whether weights or bodyweight) will work your core to an extent. So burpees work your core, while preacher-curls…not so much. The nature of isolation exercises is the minimization of needed stabilizers along with a reduction in the total muscular activation along natural kinetic chains (which is essential for healthy and functional performance). This means that by dropping the bodybuilding-based fitness models (including the spandex and tanning oil) in exchange for full-body movements, you will making a huge step towards shoring-up core weaknesses that could be hampering your health and performance.
So the first step to a maximally functioning core is to cut any semblance of isolation from your workout. Switch to full-body, functional movements and you will instantly be miles ahead of the majority of the population. That being said, as traceurs, better than average shouldn’t be enough, so we’ll move on to step two, which is absolute perfection of technique, or virtuosity. Yes, I have made it this far into the article and only mentioned a single exercise (and I know how much you all love burpees!), but don’t worry, step three gets to that. A solid foundation is what assures that your hard work won’t be in vain. Virtuosity in this context is simply performing the basics exceptionally well, referring to the “tightness” or “sloppiness” of your exercise techniques. To illustrate this concept, I’ll use two movements that are rarely perceived as core exercises, the push-up and the handstand. Yes, the lowly push-up is an excellent core-stability trainer, as it requires activation of your entire core musculature in an isometric contraction. The catch is that it’s easy to cheat and use bad technique, not only making the movement easier (and thus negating any comparison in context with those who stick to proper form), but also defeating any functional stabilization that it may possess (quick hint, with a few exceptions, if you make a movement easier, you are usually subtracting from its impact on your overall fitness…but I digress). In a proper push-up the abs, back, hips, butt and shoulders remain tight throughout the move. Your torso, legs and head will remain in a straight line, and the goal is to delay any portion of your body that reaches the ground first so that your nose, chest, stomach and hips all touch together. This ensures that you’re taking advantage of the true benefits of the movement, while also ensuring the activation of your core for stabilization. The handstand falls among the same realm, and it perfectly illustrates the ability of an isometric contraction in a static movement to expose (and consequently, improve) any weakness in your core. Without a perfectly tight core, your handstand will look sloppy, at best, or send you tumbling at worst. An overly-arched back, loose legs, or bent elbows all signal some weakness in your shoulder, abs, back or hips. Though you’re balancing on your hands, the transference of power to do so comes from your core, and by working the “hollow” position to strengthen your entire mid-section, you will improve both your handstands and your everyday function immensely.
So, now that we’ve discussed what the core is exactly, the concepts that will helps us ensure its proper function and given some examples of both, it’s time to get into a few of my favorite exercises for real core-strength. You might notice that quite a few of them are weight-lifting movements. A good portion of the Parkour community performs strictly bodyweight training. Though this can lead to some great fitness (I create a bodyweight program for APK myself) it will always be lacking some essential elements when compared to a weight program. To quickly sum it up; no, you won’t get huge just from lifting weights, yes, you can become fit with bodyweight but not as fit as you could become with bodyweight and weights combined correctly, and no, lifting weights will not necessarily make you slower…only if you do it wrong. So with that being said, here are 10 excellent core-exercises that I think any capable traceur should incorporate into their program immediately:
1. The Clean and Jerk-
 
 
The king of all lifts. This works the explosive power of the hips and back like nothing else. It’s a directly correlative movement to a good, strong jump. It also requires some study and training to get it right, so either find an Olympic weightlifting coach or order some of the excellent videos from World Class Coaching LLC. It is also possible to find some great tips online. If I could only recommend one site for information (including core-strength, nutrition, all-around fitness…) it would be www.crossfit.com
2. The L-Sit - This static hold is a hugely-unappreciated “movement”. It trains the low-abs and hip-flexors to an extent rarely seen in the commercial gym “abs classes” that are currently available. Building up to extended L-sits and an eventual V-sit will go a long way towards shoring up any lingering core weaknesses you may have.
3. The Deadlift-
 
 This classic strength move works every single muscle in your entire body simultaneously. It also is absolutely and completely functional: you’re picking up something heavy off the ground. Nuff’ said.
4. The Hanging Leg Lift - This beginning gymnastics movement can be incredibly hard for regular people to perform cleanly. A good leg lift raises slowly and makes no use of momentum. It ends with your instep touching the bar. If this becomes easy (as in 10 perfect reps for 3 sets) then you can find a free-standing bar and practice pullovers with the same standards, slow, controlled and tight. For some great tips on this movement, check out coach Summer's excellent article HERE.
5. The Overhead Squat-
 
 This movement, which is a foundation for the snatch, requires immense stabilization throughout your entire core. Whether performed with a broomstick or a heavy, weighted barbell, this should become a staple exercise in your regimen.
6. The Hollow Rock - Yet another move that takes advantage of your low-ab/hip-flexor weakness and puts the abdominals in their place as static stabilizers. Merely holding the starting position can be a challenge, but when the rock/hold gets too easy, add a V-up after each set of rocks.
7. Planches and Front-Levers- I will include the different press-handstands in this too. Great static and active core strength in these quintessential gymnastic basics. Once again, Coach Summer brings the goods HERE
8. Dumbell/Kettlebell/Small Child swings-
 
This exercise is somewhat similar to a clean & jerk, but nowhere near as effective for maximal power-output. Where it does shine is in the realm of high-rep lifting for endurance. Adding sets of swings to a workout involving sprints and pull-ups is a killer combination.
9. The Sit-Up - Yes, the sit-up is towards the bottom of the list (though I hesitate to say this in any accurate order) but this is because of its huge list of misconceptions. Simply stated: crunches suck, “real” sit-ups rule. Any exercise that you purposefully restrict the range of motion has just entered the realm of limited functionality, and a blunted trunk flexion falls squarely within this category. Full range-of-motion sit-ups are good, with braced feet (assuming proper training) are better, with an added support under the back to ensure full extension, better yet, and off the edge of a glute-ham-developer may be the king of them all. Needless to say this is an advanced movement that requires proper coaching, but it’s the most-functional extent to which the sit-up can be taken. Of course, the back-extension (and ensuing glute-ham extension ) is the situp's counterpart.
10. The Front /Side Plank - Yes, I have a bias towards static ab exercises. This one is innocuous, coming on as simple when its effect can be devastating to the ego. There is a good argument for the fact that the abs are meant for stabilization, while the stronger hip-flexors should play a much-greater roll in trunk flexion than we might have assumed. Needless to say, this is a great test of your static abdominal strength, and it can be used by even the most untrained individual if they start from their knees. If you consider yourself advanced, shoot for five minutes in a perfectly-straight plank-position.
So there you have it, my core-strength manifesto. I hope that you have finished this article with a little more knowledge of the importance in proper core-function to athletic performance, and with a handful of useful methods to ensure you’re addressing it in your everyday training. By shoring up the weaknesses in your center of strength, you will improve all aspects of your fitness. Just think of the body as “one piece” and shoot for exercises that require functional stabilization to perform with perfect technique and you will be well on your way to a strong and stable core that will carry-over to your Parkour training, your fitness and your everyday life.
Many thanks goes out to Don from Crossfit for the great lifting pics as well as Coach Summer, Robb Wolfe, and Michael Rutherford for their help with images/input on this article.
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