The benefits of core strength for running

While your lower-body strength might feel like the most obvious place to focus when it comes to running, building your core strength can help you to perform and recover more easily.

“When it comes to running, a strong core is one of the main foundations,” Imo Boddy, a personal trainer and founder of the online coaching service Lift and Run, previously told Strong Women.

“A strong core keeps you dynamic but stable and upright in the torso, which helps with power, efficiency, form and injury prevention.”

The benefits of core strength for pilates and yoga

Pilates and yoga may be great for building core strength, but having core strength can improve your practice too.

Because pilates in particular is so focused on core functionality, working your core in other ways will make the exercises easier; for example, these three core-strengthening exercises are designed to help you hold the plank position for longer.

The benefits of core strength for weightlifting

As the centre of your body’s muscular system, your core can have a knock-on effect on your overall strength, making it important for weightlifting.

“To get the best you can out of your weightlifting experience, it’s really important to strengthen your core muscles,” Lucy Arnold, a former personal trainer and founder of Lucy Locket Loves, previously told Strong Women. “Strengthening those muscles helps you to manage sudden and heavy forces on this area of your body.”

6 non-aesthetic benefits of a strong core, according to a personal trainer