Muscle fibre orientation of the internal and external obliques
Many people would have heard the term 'core' previously. Too be honest it gets thrown around without a proper understanding of what it is but more importantly what it is meant to do.
So first of all core is just not your abdominals. It is made up of your internal and external obliques, rectus and transverse abdominis, quadratus lumborum and diaphragm.
Great I hear you say but what does all that mean ? Well these muscles all act in unison with one another to create spinal stability. In other words, they help to control fine movement of the back bones of your low back relative to one another. So no stability = dysfunction = poor movement patterns = pain
Now to get just a little techy. If your external obliques switch off ( refer to the diagram for where they are) your low back will naturally went to extend/arch while causing the ribs flare out and elevate. This could lead to stress on the joints of the low back. If your abdominals are overly contracted that will cause your pelvis to tilt underneath. This slouched posture puts extra pressure on your discs, something you don't want when sitting.
End of the day these muscles need to work together to provide a neutral spine to provide an even distribution of forces throughout your spine.
Now it makes sense why so often you hear people say they went to pick a pen up from the floor and their back went or they got their child's toy and couldn't move. The problem was not the pen or toy but their body's ability to stabilise itself.
If you have back pain, hip tightness and have tried treatment in the past with no little or no change we would love to talk to you see if we may be able to help.
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Kinetic Healthcare