Core Stability

One element of balance is the ability to maintain a steady “core” or trunk (Middle steadiness involving the muscles of back, abdominal region and bottom). When we want to sit without leaning back, reach out an arm or take a step, we use our “core muscles” to provide the stability we need so that we do not lose our balance when we move. This is commonly known as 'core stability'.

Listen to Professor Helen Dawes explain what core stability is, why it’s important and how you can start doing activities to improve your core stability.

Any activity we do in daily life will in one way or another require our “core” muscles to work – but there are certain activities which require these muscles to work harder such as reaching out or up far in front of us, to take a tin out of a kitchen cupboard, reaching down to pick up something from the floor and then sitting back up again.

Below you will find individual activities and programmes of core stability exercises that you might want to try.

If you want to specifically focus on strengthening your “core” muscles there are programmes of activities which you can try: