4-Minute Abs, Neck, and Back Fix

If you’ve ever woken up with a stiff back or neck, then you know how bad posture can ruin your day.

For a while, back in my late 20’s, I was making the big mistake of sleeping on my stomach. I couldn’t figure out why my back was killing me.

Eventually I had so much discomfort that I couldn’t even run 30 yards without a shooting pain running up my back.

Fortunately I knew the right exercises to do, and so each day I’d go through this 3 exercise mini-circuit to build my core strength and endurance.

1A) Plank
1B) Side Plank
1C) Bird Dog

  You can watch me demonstrate these exercises here.

Please watch that video…you’ll also help me get to 100,000 views!

Here’s why the plank is so important. According to my friend and low-back pain expert, Dr. Stuart McGill, we need to be able to hold a plank for 2-minutes straight if we want to avoid chronic low-back pain.

When I was injured, I could barely do a minute. But within a few weeks I was back up to 2-minutes. And I still do a 2-minute plank every week for safety.

So if you’re a beginner, start with that circuit. But if you have 6-pack abs, like Bally the Easter Dog, you’re getting a more challenging workout below these funny photos from the weekend…

Bally the Grinch stealing Easter!

4-Minute Core Workout to Fix Your Abs, Back, and Neck

1A) Mountain Climber – 30 seconds
*1B) Iron Cross – 30 second hold
**1C) Stability Ball “Stir-the-Pot” Exercise – 30 seconds
1D) Spiderman Climb (alternating sides) – 30 seconds

*For the Iron Cross: Stand up straight. Hold your arms out to your sides at shoulder height. Palms are open and facing forward. Squeeze the heck out of the muscles in your upper back, rear deltoids, and rhomboids (between your shoulder blades). Hold for 20-30 seconds.

  **Find out how to stir the pot here.

Oh, and one more thing… the Iron Cross is a great exercise for people that are really stiff from sitting in a chair all day or that spend too much time looking down at their phones or laptops.

If that sounds like you, then you’ll love this article on:

  How to get rid of the PAIN in your neck

Taking care of your core and giving you a pain free body,

Craig Ballantyne, CTT
Certified Turbulence Trainer

PS – Double dose of “pain relief”…

Sometimes we learn the best when we learn the hard way…So don’t be too disappointed in yourself if you’re struggling. What’s done is done. LEARN and move on. Never forget the lesson. Keep getting better every day and never, ever, EVER give up on what is important to you. Make today better than yesterday. Plan for an even better tomorrow, today. Do this every day for rest of your life & amazing things will happen.

You must plan, prepare, and ACT.

“Be an ACTION TAKER, not just an info gatherer. Don’t talk. Do. Get out of your comfort zone. Fail forward. Take personal responsibility. Those that don’t take action will be in the same place a year from now, only older. You are different. You take action. You want a better life, and you deserve it, now go out and get it.” – Bedros Keuilian