紧缩核心的目的在“开始训练的第一步，缩紧腹部！”一文有提到，目的在于稳定嵴椎，维持背部在直立的位置。而在Foam Roller的讲座中，山姆伯伯有遇到一位朋友的询问，关于“顶尖运动员都在偷练的核心基础运动”这本书教的动作。书中并没有强调或是指示要缩紧核心，所以可能有朋友在进行动作时，以为核心/腹部是放松的，对吗？(以下的影片是书中DVD的一部位，基础动作)。
实际上，不管是日常生活或是运动过程，都会希望是紧缩核心的，但因为不习惯，所以透过训练的方式来让身体养成自然，变成肌肉记忆的一部份，不用刻意去想着要紧缩核心。我想无时无刻保持核心的紧缩不是容易的事，规律而长时间的训练及不断的自我提醒，才有机会让这件事情自然的成为身体的一部份。
也许有人认为，无时无刻缩紧核心是不可能的事，也怀疑为什么要这样做，有点蠢，但没关係。在“5 Reasons to Engage Your Core All Day”有一篇文章，说到整天缩紧核心的5个理由，大家可以参考看看：
1. Flatter abs (使腹部更平坦)
Engaging the coredoesn’t mean sucking in your tummy. In fact, the move is more like tensing your abdominal muscles into a protective ring around the torso. It’s the muscle contraction that occurs naturally just before you laugh or cough. Constantly working that muscle group tones you inside and out. You’ll look and feel five pounds lighter whenever you do it, says Manning.
(紧缩核心肌群不是指缩小腹。事实上，这个动作更像是拉紧你的腹部肌肉，在躯干的周违形成一个保护环。当你在笑或是咳嗽前，这些肌肉自然的发生收缩的状态。经常的训练这群肌肉，会让你外观上及感觉上少了5磅的重量。)
2. Improved posture (改善姿势)
Don’t just “sit up straight"; engage your core for your best posture. “When the abdominals are loose and the lower back tight, people can hoard an extreme curve in the spine, affecting the position of the pelvis and, really, the whole body," says Manning. Maintaininggood postureis important for protecting your joints, bones and muscles, which will reduce the risk of injury as you age, she explains.
(不要只是坐直，而是要紧缩核心，达到最佳的姿堧。当腹部是松的而下背是紧绷的，在嵴椎上会囤积极大的曲线，影响着骨盆的位置及全身的状态。维持良好的姿势十分重要，可以保持你的关节、骨题及肌肉，降低受伤的风险。)
3. Less back pain (减少背痛)
Get rid of the tension in your back, neck and shoulders and make your workday a little more comfortable. “When the abdominals are pressed in, the spine is stretched straight," says Manning. “When the abdominals are loose and hanging forward, the lower spine gets scrunched inward. This is the most common reason why people are experiencing such terribleback pain, and it’s the first place I start in correcting it."
(消除你背部、頚部及肩膀的紧绷，让你工作时能更为舒服。当腹部紧缩的状况，嵴椎会伸直。当腹部是放松并且往前凸的状况，下半部的嵴椎会向内蜷缩，这是下背疼痛最常发生的原因。因此，修正腹部放松前凸是第一要务。)
4. Better breathing (呼吸更好)
Holding in your stomach encourages you to hold your breath, but when you properly engage the core, with the abdominals pressed inward, as opposed to “held in," your lungs have more room to breathe, says Manning. Deliberately breathing out all that stale air in the bottom of your lungs will help release toxins and boost your energy.
(屏住腹部，促使你屏住呼吸；而相对于屏住的动作；适当的紧缩核心(腹部内缩)，肺部有更多的空间可以进行呼吸。有意地将肺部底部的陈旧空气呼出来也有助于排毒及能量的燃烧。)
5. Reduced anxiety
Breathing from an engaged core leads to more mindfulness — andless stress. “Breathing is about dismissing the bad with each exhalation and taking in all the good with each inhalation," says Manning. “By being conscious of your breathing, you can adopt this mentality, which is very cleansing and renewing, in the most natural and productive way we have available to us." The more you focus on your breath, the less you’re fretting about your big presentation tomorrow.
(紧缩核心下的深呼吸可以带来更多的正念及更少的压力。呼出不好的，吸进好的。)
欢迎大家一起提出想法，一起进行讨论啰。
文章来源：山姆伯伯工作坊
