7 September

I’d be sceptical about the fitness industry’s claims about ‘core strength’. The core is not a group of muscles (usually they mean the abdominals). That part of our body is a sophisticated interplay of a range of things, most fundamentally your breathing too. The movement of the diaphragm and pelvic floor are integral to how the ‘core’ operates. It’s the dynamic interplay between all of those components of the core which leads to healthy functioning. Almost never is anything there too weak. Trying to strengthen parts of it, like the abdominal muscles, is more likely to throw the relationship between all the parts of the core even further out of whack. Often something like slow breathing a few times a day is the healthiest thing you can do for your core, if it’s out of balance. Not stretches and building muscle.