Can a Weak Core Cause Poor Posture?
If you have a poor posture you may have tried to correct it at some or the other time to find yourself slouching again after a few minutes or hours of not paying attention to your posture. When you correct it again this cycle continues and it seems like an impossible task to break out of a poor posture. A poor posture can be caused due to many reasons, one of them being a weak core. If we know how to correct this basic cause, it is easier to transition towards a good posture. In addition to this, a poor core can also cause other issues such as back pain, neck pain, balance problems, etc. In this blog let's discuss how a weak core contributes to a poor posture. 
 
Core is a term that has been used very loosely to describe well toned abdominal muscles. However these are superficial muscles while core muscles are the deepest layer of muscles that is present within your body. When you look at a person from the surface, and you are looking at the movement muscles, or the more superficial muscles. However, when you peel off these layers of muscle and you go right to the level of the spine, the muscles that are present at the level of the spine stabilise the spine and hold it like a corset these are known as the core muscles or the stabiliser muscles. Watch this video (@2.22 minutes) to learn more about core muscles:  



The same analogy (from the video) is applicable to the rest of the spine and all the other joints of the body. Example: In the lumbar spine, the core is like a corset or a cylinder. The top of the corset is made of the diaphragm and base is the pelvic floor muscles. The side are made of the deepest layer of your abdominals, transverse abdominus. And the multifidus muscles run from one vertebra to another. 

The core muscles are the stabilisers of the spine while the superficial muscles are the movement muscles. They are both made of different kinds of muscle fibres. The core muscles are type one or slow twitch fibres, which basically lets them stay on switched on all the time without getting fatigued. Its like a light switch that you leave on and it stays on all the time so your core muscles are activated or switched on all the time to keep your spine stabilised. The movement muscles are made up of type two or fast twitch fibres that are like a light switch that can be switched on or off as needed as they get fatigues with constant activity.
 
Going back to when you sit in a good posture, if your core is weak they are not able to stabilize the spine. You will be able to put yourself in a good posture with the movement muscles. But you cannot sustain the good posture for a long time as the movement muscles are made of type two fibres that will get fatigued with constant work and you will eventually fall back into a poor posture or a slumped posture. 
 
If you want to learn some simple solutions to achieve and maintain a good posture, I have done a free training on this in my community. You can access that once you join my free community HERE.

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