HARD CORE

To crunch or not to crunch, that is the question. MAXIM fitness guru, Alexa, gives you the lowdown on all things abs and your core…

- ALEXA TOWERSEY

Contrary to popular belief, your abs and your core are not one and the same. Your abs are that set of superficial muscles that, when bodyfat is low enough, typically grant you the elusive six-pack. Your core, on the other hand, while encompassing your abs, is the term that refers to the 360 degrees of stability around your spine including your hips and lower back.

Sadly, having great abs doesn’t mean you have a strong core. And on the flip side, having a strong core won’t guarantee that you’ll be able to see it. But it is possible to have both – a six-pack to make you look like a God and a strong core to make you perform like one.

1 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW 

The reason a lot of people fail to develop abs can often be down to a lack of understanding of basic anatomy. Starting with the outer muscles, we have the Rectus Abdominus which is primarily responsible for Spinal Flexion or moving your ribs towards your hips (and the six pack look), and the External Obliques whose main jobs are rotation and lateral flexion i.e. bending your torso towards one side or the other. The deep inner unit has the Internal Obliques aiding their external brethren from underneath, the Transverse Abdominus (TA) which is responsible for stabilising your spine and works to pull your midsection in, and the lumbar multifidus (kind of like the TA of the lower back).

FUN FACT: THE NUMBER OF BANDS WITHIN THE RECTUS ABDOMINUS CAN VARY WITH GENETICS, SO NOT EVERYONE HAS A SIX PACK OF THREE UPPER BANDS ON EACH SIDE.