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What is the core and why is it important?

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We’ve all heard about our ‘core’ and that we should exercise it, but what is the ‘core’ and why is it important? The core is responsible for the stability of the lumbar spine (low back) and impacts our biomechanical function and how much force we can generate in various movements; in simple terms, it is used in all of our daily movements and helps to reduce our risks of falls and injuries, control our posture and balance, and improve our overall function. Many studies show that strengthening your core muscles can also help to effectively reduce non-specific low back pain. The core consists of many muscles and can be divided into two groups: Group one (major core muscles) ·         Diaphragm ·         Transverse abdominis ·         Lumbar intrinsic musculature (most notably the multifidus) ·         Internal and external obliqu...
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Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

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Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) is a type of vertigo that is brought on with certain movements of the head in relation to gravity, and is a disorder caused by problems within the inner ear. First, let's explain the major differences between vertigo and other types of 'dizziness': Vertigo The feeling of spinning or movement while you are not actually moving. This can be felt as either yourself moving (subjective vertigo), or the room moving around you (objective vertigo). Dizziness Can be described as feelings of unsteadiness (feeling a loss of balance while standing or walking), lightheadedness (feeling as though you might faint), and weakness. To understand how this specific type of vertigo known as BPPV occurs, we need to have a look at the anatomy & physiology of the inner ear. As can be seen in the picture above there is a snail-like shape known as the 'cochlea', and at the top of it are three 'semicircular canals'.  T...
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Diaphragm Breathing

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Everyone knows how to breathe right? After all, we’ve been doing it our whole lives! For the majority of us however, we’re not activating the ideal muscles or motor (movement) patterns to assist us in breathing. There are a large number of potential causes for why we aren’t utilising our breathing muscles in the ideal way; perhaps it’s because society tells us from a young age to suck our stomach in and hold it tight, maybe it’s our posture at work and home, or maybe it’s all the stresses that we encounter in our day-to-day lives. Whatever the cause is (and there are many potential causes), the end result remains the same; when we don’t use the ideal muscles and movement patterns for breathing, it can cause numerous issues including tight and sore muscles, fatigue, poor concentration, stress, digestive disturbances and many other problems. Conversely, when we begin to use the correct muscles in the correct motor pattern, we start to notice some significant benefits. These include: ...
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