Do you tighten your abdominal muscles too much? Here are 3 exercises that will help you achieve balance

- If you've spent any time in the gym, you've probably heard this phrase, "tighten your core." The idea behind this advice is sound, as the trunk muscles need to stabilize the spine while moving and lifting weights.

But when tightening becomes your style - when you forcefully tighten your abdominal muscles during every exercise and throughout the day in an effort to improve your posture or appearance - this strategy may backfire. Instead of building more strength or endurance, excessive tension in the trunk muscles can limit movement, restrict breathing, and stimulate the nervous system's stress response.

Dana Santas, a certified strength and conditioning specialist and mind-body coach in professional sports, points out that the strongest and most endurance athletes are not those who maintain the greatest amount of muscle tension, but rather those who have dynamic trunk stability that adapts to changing demands without restricting breathing or movement. Want to build a strong, stable torso that provides responsive support without causing stiffness that restricts movement?

Here's how to avoid over-stretching and train your core muscles for functional strength. فهم الفرق بين ثبات الجذع وتيبّسه لا تقتصر عضلات الجذع على عضلات البطن فقط.

It includes the abdominal wall, the muscles of the lower and middle back, the diaphragm, and the pelvic floor. These muscles work together to form a base that helps transmit force through the body, while simultaneously supporting the spine, pelvis, and rib cage.

The trunk muscles are designed to work together to adjust the level of tension, so that the rib cage can move with breathing, while the body bends, extends and rotates as needed. To be clear, tightening the trunk muscles itself is not the problem; it is useful when the task requires greater spinal rigidity, such as when lifting a heavy weight.

The problem begins when working your trunk muscles as hard as you can becomes your default mode. When you constantly over-tense your core muscles, you trade their control and response for stiffness.

وشد عضلات البطن بأقصى قوة قد يجعل جذعك يبدو وكأنه كتلة جامدة لا تتحرك. Then every step or movement to reach something or rotation of the body becomes forced to work against this stiff torso, which may lead to chronic stiffness and pain, no matter how many stretching exercises you do.

ترتبط آليات التنفس وثبات الجذع ارتباطًا متبادلًا. In addition to the role of the diaphragm in breathing, it also works as a muscle that helps stabilize the body’s position in coordination with the rest of the muscles of the torso system.

When the diaphragm contracts during breathing, the pelvic floor muscles relax, and vice versa. The diaphragm and abdominal wall also work together to regulate intra-abdominal pressure, which contributes to supporting the spine and transmitting force.

Recent research indicates that the ability of the diaphragm to perform its function as a respiratory muscle declines during active tension of the trunk muscles to stabilize the spine. Excessive and chronic tension of the trunk muscles leads to shallow breathing and holding the breath, which enhances the activity of the sympathetic nervous system, that is, the fight-or-flight response, and increases muscle tension.

This additional stress can further restrict breathing, creating a vicious cycle that continues to reinforce itself. Achieving stability without stiffness in everyday life Instead of trying to keep your stomach tight all the time and increasing stress on your abdominal muscles, try to make the amount of work your muscles proportional to the task at hand.

For example, carrying grocery bags requires strength and stability, but less intense tension than a dead lift. Activities such as shoveling snow require dynamic stability that supports rotational movements.

Use the following guidelines to realign the way you use your core muscles during everyday activities: 3 Exercises to Train Dynamic Core Stability The following exercises help develop core control across different planes of motion, from lying down to standing. It can be added to a regular exercise program or performed as a circuit training two to three times a week, prioritizing quality of movement and breathing rather than speed. 1.

Dead bug exercise: Lie on your back, raise your arms toward the ceiling, bending your hips and knees at a 90-degree angle. As you exhale, activate your core muscles naturally, then slowly lower your right arm back and your left foot toward the floor, keeping the knee bent.

Keeping the ribs and lower back still, inhale as you return to the starting position and repeat the movement on the other side. This exercise helps learn to coordinate breathing with trunk support and movement.

If you find yourself holding your breath or your lower back lifting off the floor, reduce the range of motion and readjust your breathing. 2. Sideways bear crawl: Start on your hands and knees, so that your wrists are below your shoulders and your knees are below your hips, then lift your knees slightly off the ground.

Move sideways by moving your right hand and right foot, then your left hand and left foot, keeping your hips straight and your spine elongated. Move in one direction and then back in the opposite direction until you have completed 12 to 20 steps on each side.

Maintain regular breathing and avoid holding your breath or excessively stretching your torso. This exercise helps train the trunk to respond to changing body weight distribution during limb movement, rather than holding the body in a rigid position. 3.

Split-stance rotation Stand with one foot in front of the other, 30 to 46 centimeters apart, with the front knee slightly bent and the heel of the back foot raised. Extend your arms in front of your chest, then inhale and open one arm out to the side, rotating your torso.

It is recommended to perform 8 to 10 repetitions, then change the position of the feet and repeat on the other side. This exercise improves the torso's ability to control rotational forces while maintaining balance and alignment, which are important skills for walking, throwing, and various athletic movements.