6 Non-Bikini Reasons To Strengthen Your Core

How many times have you used bathing suit season as an excuse to start working on that flat tummy? I'm not saying that it's not solid motivation - but why not love your core year round? If you needed a better reason than just a bikini bod - here are 6 of them:

Increase Your Balance

Your pelvis the centre of your gravity. Your core supports your alignment. Better alignment helps your ability to perform tasks every day from things as simple as crossing a slipper floor to more extreme feats such as pistol squats.

Improve Your Breathing

Your diaphragm lives at the top point of your core, which plays an essential role in deep breathing. Studies have found that breathing from your diaphragm promotes relaxation and reduces stress.

Have Better Posture

Your core muscles run all the way to your spine. A strong core keeps your back stabilized, improving your posture as a result. Standing tall also protects you from common aging conditions like arthritis and degenerative joint disease.

Improve Your Heart Health

About 10 percent of the fat we carry, called visceral fat, settles in between the abdominal wall and your organs like the liver and intestines. That's the more dangerous stuff.  An excess of visceral fat can lead a plethora of problems from heart issues to dementia to breast cancer.

Better Digestion

Think of your core as a wall protecting your pelvic organs- it should be just as long as it is strong. Make sure to incorporate lengthening the abs and stretching the core. If the core is too tight, it can compress the organs and lead to poor digestion.

Reduce Risk of Injury

Abs are the foundation from which the rest of your body moves and functions. This impacts EVERY movement we make.  It's your tree trunk - everything else is the branches. A strong core prevents these other muscles from straining.