Congratulations on completing the first week of the program and welcome back for week 2. This week we progress the introductory exercises to harder version and use your maximum plank time to increase your core endurance using the plank. 
Before starting the new exercises for week 2 let’s do a quick revision of the week 1 principles of activating the TA & finding neutral pelvis. Tilt your pelvis forward & back 6 times each way to mobilise your back & hips. Enjoy it & stretch out any tight spots. Now complete 10 TA activations (by now hopefully these are 2nd nature) so you’re ready to go.
Your exercises for Week 2 are;
- Leg lowers
- Marching Hip Extension
- Reverse sit-ups
- Superman
- Core Endurance
Core Endurance
Take your max plank time from last week and halve it. This is how long you’ll be doing the plank for in Week 2. We will be doing 3-4 planks (with perfect form) with only 10sec rest between planks. So if your maximum plank time was 2mins 30sec, then your planks for this week will be 75s. 
Only complete a 4th plank if you can maintain good form, properly activate the TA & your other core muscles and don’t get back pain. For more info on how to activate your core muscles head to our earlier blogs, or for more detail on abdominal & core anatomy look here.
There’s an option to do the ‘full arm plank’, where you’re in the push-up position, for every 2nd plank (as long as you don’t have a fractured wrist). This will be useful as we add in the slow mountain climbers in week 3
Leg lowers progress from the week 1 Leg Lifts. This is a similar exercise, only harder, because by starting with your knees & hips bent at 90degrees so your feet are in the air (in table top position). This requires greater core strength to maintain neutral spine as your lower 1 leg down (& back up again). Move through the 20 leg lowers (each leg) slowly and again take a break after 5 or 10 if you need to reset the core. Maintaining good form & control is key.
The Marching Hip Extension is another progression from week 1. Once you’re up in the Hip Extension slowly lift 1 foot off the ground (just an inch or so) & back down and then repeat on the other side. Make sure your hips stay level, so one side isn’t dropping lower as you lift a leg off the ground. You should feel your gluts & hamstrings (on the leg contacting the ground) working hard to stabilise your core. Go slowly & place your feet back down softly (& silently). Take a break & reset if you find your hips sinking lower or your pelvis tilting. Complete 20-30 leg lifts (as if you’re marching).
Reverse Sit-ups are another slow & controlled move. Start in the sitting position with knees bent & your feet flat on the floor, and then slowly lower back (for approx. 5-8sec) down towards the ground. The ‘reverse’ movement where you descend is the focus for this exercises so move with control. The movement back up can be at a normal pace. Complete 20-30 reverse sit-ups.
A variation for anyone with lower back pain could be reverse curls. Again focusing on a slow reverse movement but the curl keeps the lower back on the ground, as opposed to the sit up where the whole torso moves up & down off the ground.
The Superman move is for the kid in all of us. Lying on your stomach with arms stretched out in front, slowly raise 1 arm & the opposite leg, pause, hold & slowly lower again. If this feels easy extend the length of the pause. For a harder version channel your superman skills & pretend your flying along weaving between buildings with a lean left or right. Start with a 10sec hold with the tilting & leaning & progress. The kids will love this one DT, Kristene, Amy, Serena, Cass, Tanzim, Jon…
Once again complete this program 3 times through week 2 (with a day between). Please let me know how you go and if you have any questions at all.
TA Activations
If the TA activations are still challenging or you don’t feel like you have good control with these yet, please continue you them each week through the program. With continued use you will become better at activating the correct muscles and therefore develop greater strength & endurance of those core muscles. Consistency is key so keep working on it!
Thanks again to Laura, Rachel & Ewan for their contributions.
Speak Your Mind