New Core Exercises

The two exercises below are ones developed based around DNS principles. We've used these, or some variation, quite a bit in our off-season programs this Summer.

In both cases, the goal is to elongate through the spine, and maintain optimal spinal/rib alignment. In the "Wide Stance Quadruped Plank" this is facilitated by cuing a slight posterior pelvic tilt of the pelvis (you can cue this by gently pushing the sacrum back and telling them to get "long"), and actively engaging the gound through the forearms to prevent the chest collapsing down and the scapulae flaring off the rib cage. This exercise can be regressed by shortening the distance between the elbows and knees (shorter lever), and progressed by adding a 1-arm reach.

Wide Stance Quadruped Plank

In the "Frozen Bear Rotations w/ Stability Ball" exercise, the ball is used to help facilitate intraabdominal pressure by cuing a light push into the ball with the knees and hands. This can also be accomplished without a ball by just placing the hands on the knees. From here, the goal is to rotate the entire body as a unit, meaning the back hip and shoulder should leave the ground together, while the head/eyes simultaneously turn in the same direction. We'll cue people to initiate the movement with their belly button to help drive an "inside out" strategy, opposed to simply swinging the legs off to the side. There are several variations of this exercise that can also be used, including just compressing the ball and breathing without any rotation, performing "deadbug" movements, and a simple 1-leg or 1-arm reach.

Frozen Bear Rotations w/ Stability Ball