The Best Core Workout: Build Stability and Power
Want a flatter stomach, better posture, more power in the gym or on the field—and fewer back niggles?
You don’t need hours of crunches or gadgets that promise a “six-pack in six minutes.” What you need is a smarter approach to core training that builds real strength where it matters most—deep in your centre.
At Neurohealth Wellness, we’re all about creating long-term resilience, not short-term gimmicks. This blog is your complete guide to functional, spine-protective core training that helps you move well, feel strong, and live pain-free.
💥 Why the Core Is the Centre of Everything
Your core isn’t just your abs. It’s a dynamic group of muscles that wrap around your spine, pelvis, and ribcage—working together to stabilise your entire body during movement.
Key muscles involved include:
- Transversus abdominis: The deepest core muscle, like a natural corset that stabilises your spine.
- Multifidus: Small but mighty muscles running along your vertebrae—crucial for spinal stability.
- Rectus abdominis: Your “six-pack” muscle, more for flexing than stability.
- Internal and external obliques: Help you twist, rotate, and resist rotational forces.
- Erector spinae and latissimus dorsi: Powerful spinal muscles that keep you upright and help with lifting.
- Glutes and hips: Often overlooked, but essential for controlling pelvic stability and lower body power.
When this deep core network is strong, you can:
- Prevent back injuries
- Generate more force in lifting and sport
- Improve balance and coordination
- Flatten your midsection
- Support your posture and spine in everyday life
🧠 Before You Train It, Learn to Activate It
Most people haven’t truly engaged their core—not in a meaningful, functional way. Here's how to do it:
- Visualise your core wrapping around you like a belt.
- Brace as if someone’s about to punch your stomach—your belly should expand out slightly, not suck in.
- Breathe into your ribs, not your belly, while maintaining that bracing tension.
🧠 Pro tip from our chiropractors: Core control is about neuromuscular awareness, not just reps. Slower, controlled movements with correct engagement beat fast, sloppy reps every time.
💪 The Best Core Exercises (That You’re Probably Not Doing)
These are spine-friendly, function-driven exercises used by elite athletes, CrossFitters, and our very own clients at Neurohealth.
Do these 2–3 times per week, picking 3–4 exercises per session.
1. Plank with Hip Extension
A total-body challenge that fires up your glutes, spine stabilisers, and deep abdominals.
2. Stability Ball Plank
Adds instability to challenge your core even further—great for developing reflexive strength.
3. Bird Dog
Perfect for spinal control and coordination. Often used in back rehab for its safety and effectiveness.
4. Russian Twists
Rotational control is often missed in core training. Start grounded, and progress to feet lifted or with a med ball.
5. Plank Taps
Train anti-rotation and shoulder stability. Focus on minimising movement through the hips.
6. Spider Mountain Climbers
A dynamic core cardio hybrid. Excellent for obliques and hip mobility.
7. Side Plank Variations
Start with knees down, progress to kicks. Targets the often-ignored lateral chain of the body.
8. Plank Rows
Use dumbbells to challenge shoulder stability and anti-rotational core control.
9. Bridge with Leg Extension
Activates the glutes while forcing your pelvis and spine to stabilise—essential for runners, lifters, and office workers alike.
🧠 The Neurohealth Approach to Core Training
Our chiropractors don't just treat pain—we retrain movement.
Whether you’re a CrossFitter with an aching back, a desk worker battling poor posture, or an athlete wanting more rotational power, we can guide your recovery and performance with:
- Chiropractic adjustments to restore spinal alignment and nerve function
- Myotherapy and massage to release tension and optimise muscle recruitment
- Individualised rehab exercises targeting your weakest links
- Education and coaching so you understand how to move better—not just harder
➡️ Learn more about how our team of chiropractors and soft tissue therapists work together to help you move strong and pain-free:
Meet the team
👟 Real Core Strength > Six-Pack Abs
We’ll be honest: your abs don’t define your health.
What matters more is how you move, lift, run, twist, and stand.
Core training should:
✅ Support your spine
✅ Integrate with full-body movement
✅ Make your everyday life easier and pain-free
Let’s train for life—not just for aesthetics.
🧭 Ready to Build a Better Core?
If you’re tired of guessing what to do, or you’re recovering from injury and want to do things right—we’re here to help.
💻 Book your initial consultation with our experienced chiropractors today:
👉 Book Online
📍Located at 33-35 Kentwell Rd, Allambie Heights – proudly serving the Northern Beaches community.
📞 Or call us at (02) 9905 9099
“Strength doesn’t come from what you can do—it comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t.”
— Rikki Rogers
🧠 Want More?
Check out our other blogs to support your movement journey:
- Why You Need Resilient Feet (and How to Rebuild Them)
- Stretching That Works: Huberman’s Protocol Explained
- Disc Injury Recovery: What We Wish You Knew
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