EXERCISE OF THE WEEK: TRANSVERSUS ABDOMINIS CONTRACTIONS!
The transversus abdominis is a muscle that lies deep in your abdomen and acts as a corset to support and stabilize your trunk. This is one of the very important core muscles that help to maintain your trunk stability during daily activities including lifting, reaching, carrying, bending, twisting, you name it. Improving the activation and strength of the transversus abdominis and teaching it to fire at the correct times can help improve low back and pelvic pain, spinal instability, post-partum recovery, and ability to perform functional activities.
As you become more comfortable with the transversus abdominis contraction, you can increase the difficulty of the exercise by performing it in different positions (ie sitting, standing) or with movement (ie arm reaches, leg reaches, walking). Remember, it is key to make sure that you are doing the exercise correctly before increasing the difficulty level.
If you want to increase your abdominal strength to improve your daily function with less pain, contact Life Changes Physical Therapy for your initial evaluation today!