Ab training for athletes is extremely important and needs to be a focal point of your sports training. The problem with core training is that it often overlooked or when ab training is a part of a training program, most times it's not being done correctly. (I have seen some programs where athletes are performing 1000's of sit-ups and the athletes have extremely weak cores).
Whether running, jumping or throwing there's no question the core will be involved in that activity, and developing a stronger core will help you in your quest to run faster, jump higher, and throw longer.
There are 29 muscles controlling your trunk and are working together so you can maintain posture and alignment, reduce forces, dynamically stabilize and also produce force. With weak abdominals and back, you will not be able to produce force efficiently no matter how strong your other muscles are.
Basically if your trunk is weak you will be wasting energy, be slower and less powerful in your movements. Not what you want if you're looking to get faster!
Here are a few exercises to strengthen your core for your sport: (You can always change the intensity of each exercise by adding/using: physioballs, medicine balls, weighted vests, tubing, dumb bells, cables, etc. Also, the intensity also changes by using different reps, sets, tempo, frequency, and body position. Just make sure that you are always in control and you are following a logical progression.)
V-sits - Supine position. Arms out straight above your head. Bring your upper body up at the same time as your legs and try to touch your feet when you reach in the middle.
Russian Twists - Seated. Bend your knees and keep your feet up off of the ground. With your hands together, you are touching the right side then the left. That counts as 1 repetition.
Diagonal Wood Chop - Standing. Start with the medicine ball above your head on one side. Chop down across the opposite side to the knee.
Over head throw - Standing. Start with the ball overhead and throw to a partner or a wall. Knees are slightly bent.
Swedish Abs (front) - Start in the plank position (prone, on your forearms and feet) and hold that position for 45 seconds.
Ball crunches - Perform crunches on a physioball. Tube walking - Standing with your legs slightly wider than shoulder width. Take a step forward while keeping the tension on the tube.
Floor Bridging - In a supine position with your knees bent 45 degrees. Raise your hips up so that they are fully extended then comeback down and touch the ground and repeat.
Floor cobra - In a prone position, keeping your hands by your side. Now, keeping your legs anchored, extend your upper-body keeping your head aligned with your spine.
Fire hydrants - On all fours. Raise one leg up to the side while keeping your leg bent and your ankle tucked. Raise that leg/knee to hip level and comeback down and repeat.
Here is training schedule for pillar work:
Note that the truck muscles can be trained everyday only if you are not performing the same exercises in the same plane daily. After Day 3 you can start right back with Day 1.
Day 1 - Flexion/Extension
Day 2 - Rotation
Day 3 - Stabilization
Again, we want a strong pillar so our truck muscles can work synergistically, have perfect length-tension and force-couple relationships, as well as have efficient movement patterns.
Here is another source for you to look checkout more ab training exercises on video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch'v=tuTsKjaaCvY
When training for sport, a strong core is required to get more speed, strength power and endurance. Those are the muscles you are going to use to generate the muscular force and power necessary for success.
Mental Training For Athletes
The Conscious mind functions on logic. Once you can logically know something, then you become a confirmed believer in it. Once the Conscious mind believes based on logic, then it can have a much greater influence on the Unconscious Mind. Here is where pictures, affirmations and knowledge of what you want to achieve are handy. They help fix the Conscious mind on belief that a thing wanted can be done or had. The unconscious or subconscious mind does not distinguish truth or falsehood. All things are true to it. The Conscious mind discriminates between truth and falsehood and once firmly convinced of a truth can alter the perceptions of the unconscious mind.
The subconscious mind, however, has a direct access to the Universal Ocean or Sea of Consciousness. All inspiration whether religious or scientific, comes from this Ocean of Consciousness that permeates all of reality. The Conscious mind can train the Subconscious to tap into that source of inspiration and make the formless take form.
The world, indeed, the universe, functions on Laws. We may not know what they are yet, but Cause and Effect, based on Universal principles or laws, is everywhere. If we understand how these universal Laws work, we can get the effect we want in life, by controlling the causes. The Conscious mind is the source of reason and understanding of these laws.
However, conscious mind functioning on erroneous belief will influence the subconscious mind to the disaster of the person. To succeed with good results, your conscious mind must understand correctly the universal Laws involved, become convinced of the possibilities, and in turn program the subconscious mind to achieve the results desired. Affirmations and pictures of the desired results concentrated upon are one means of programming the subconscious.
The reasoning mind gives us control over fate if used correctly and in harmony with the subconscious. Concentration by the reasoning mind the conscious mind, gives us control over the subconscious. If the conscious mind does not concentrate on desired and good results, it will still be focused on something, and that something will influence the subconscious in ways that may not be beneficial.
A conscious logical understanding of Universal Laws allows you to develop a programming that will work to your benefit. Unfortunately this is not only true of the individual but of the group "mind" as well. When groups work toward a goal concentrating their mind and energy upon it, the result is like having many subconscious minds working at once. What happens to you now is not always the result of just your own bad thinking when evil occurs, it can be the result of bad reasoning influencing the sub consciousness of an entire group,
and bringing into reality something very bad indeed. This is why training not only yourself, but others as well, in the proper methods of thought, reasoning, and how to impress this upon the group subconscious is imperative.
The conscious mind must not only perceive what is wanted as a logically possible outcome, but the mind must also continually concentrate upon it. If the conscious mind does this the subconscious will use its infinite and extraordinary power to bring it into reality.
It will also do the same if what the mind is thinking upon is not beneficial. Hence, thoughts and programs continually bombarding children on TV about asteroid hits is a bad thing, it programs the group subconscious to bring about the thing which is feared. Rather the programming should be on how preventable and the ways we now have and how future methods can prevent such catastrophes.
You cannot be double minded, that is the conscious mind must entirely belief in the possibility, if unbelief is present, it will create conflict and the subconscious mind will not be programmed.
Again, both the subconscious and conscious mind need to be working together and in agreement.
Emotions are what activate to an even higher level the subconscious minds programming. Strong emotions, used consciously, in a reasonable way, increase the programming depth and speed.
Both Patrick Beith & Ian Roebuck are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Patrick Beith has sinced written about articles on various topics from Strength Training, Abdominal and Soccer. Get a FREE 35 Page Speed Training Report and Over 2 Hours of Cutting Edge Video at Speed Training Also, for more articles on training for your sport, go now to:. Patrick Beith's top article generates over 8100 views. Bookmark Patrick Beith to your Favourites.
Ian Roebuck has sinced written about articles on various topics from Dating and Romance, Alternative Medicine and Website Traffic. Ian RoeBuck is an Internet Marketer interested in marketing and in personal development. His websites include:http://thebreakthroughsite.comandhttp://iansbreakthroughbiz.com. Ian Roebuck's top article generates over 33100 views. Bookmark Ian Roebuck to your Favourites.
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