Love that saying!  I can meann so much:

1) Standing up for ourself

2) Resisting when tempted in a negative direction

3) Core Strength

It applies to us and will something different in every way.  In the fitness world, it means building core strength, or building from the inside out.  Your spine is your fragile protector.  It’s job is to link the body together by protecting the central nervous system that runs from the brain to the sacrum.  All our nerves diverge and energized from a specific points between in vertebrae joint.. It also links the body in movement.  It’s engineering system is designed to let bend, rotate (to a certain extent).  It’s a fine line between flexibility of movement and strength.  But the spine in essence are still linked bones that need muscle to move it.  Like any other bones in our body, the vertabraes are essentially inanimate unless we make it move and happens thru a command to the muscle,via the central nervous it protects, governed by the brain… it’s a link system… Very cool when you stop and think about it…

So let’s take a look at how we keep it strong:  it’s all about the core!!!

so, lots of crunches right?  NO!  Core strength is not about crunches!   It’s about overall strength!  Overall strength does not imply sculpting the muscle, it’s about linking the body as a whole, pulling from the mid-line..  I tell my clients that we are working core, they are surprised to see that crunches don’t come into play.  In order to build the muscles, to strengthen the spine, all body moves are what is going to get you there.  I use moves that will demand balance and a mind-body connection. I use moves that will engage all of our muscles at the mid line (front back and sides) I use unilateral moves for off balance work that fires up the central nervous system, I use isometric moves that test the endurance of the core.  And the calorie burn is HUGE!!!!

More and more fitness pros are turning to these tactics as the first phase of their client’s progression, and if they’re not, you might want to question it.  In order for my client to progress to fun combination moves, to explore exciting modalities and rev up the workout to an exciting place, they have to learn how to withstand the load, withstand the task and be prepared for the unexpected.  It can’t happen if she is not strong from the inside out.

Your posture also reflects your life attitude.  If you take a moment and take a look at someone who is being challenged, the spine straightens and stiffens.  Look at someone who is sad, the shoulders fall forward. Look at someone who is happy, the shoulders are relaxed and the spine is ready for movement… Keeping a strong posture also means working on life attitude…

I invite you to my youtube site, MyoTubeOttawa http://bit.ly/gZNeuT to view moves that you too can progress to with the proper preparation.. it’s what we are designed to do after all.

Leave me a comment, tell me what you do to build your backbone!!!