Core Workouts with TRX, Calisthenics and Weights

When people think about core workouts, many just focus on the abdominal muscles for a few minutes. Maybe a set of two minutes, and you are done. However, the core is much more. Consider the core as the spine and the connections immediately branching from the spine.

When you do the core workouts, make sure you exercise the stomach muscles but do not forget the lower back, upper back, hips and rear shoulders.

Check out the circuit below for a mix of exercises. In the process, you likely will realize you have one area that is weaker than the other. Correct this imbalance and focus on the entire core to do so.

Warm up the core with a variety of ab/back exercises:

• Crunches 20
• Reverse crunches 20
• Left/right crunches 20 each
• Advanced crunches 20
• Lower-back swimmers one minute
• Plank poses: One minute each (regular, left side, right side)
• Upper-back reverse push-ups one minute
• Birds one minute
• TRX rollouts one minute
• TRX atomic push-up one minute
• Side bends one minute
• Hanging knee-ups one minute
• Bear crawl: Basically a moving plank pose -- crawling on all fours -- one minute
• Stair crawls -- An advanced version of the bear crawl -- 1 min
• Dirty dogs -- 1 min each side
• Farmer walk -- 1 min (weight in one hand -- 1 min each)

This is a 20-minute core exercise circuit focusing on stomach muscles, lower back, isometric poses for core muscles, upper back, movements of full core, lateral side movements, hips and full-body movements with core focus.

I like to do this core workout as a warmup prior to a cardio event or as a cooldown after the workout is done -- well almost done.

Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL and fitness author certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Visit his Fitness eBook store if you're looking to start a workout program to create a healthy lifestyle. Send your fitness questions to stew@stewsmith.com.

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