Core Purpose

By Rachel Brahinsky

There's a lot of talk about building "core strength" in the yoga world these days, though different
traditions have a variety of ways of approaching the task. Some teachers talk about the core as
the abdominal region of the body, the literal center of our balance and strength. Others go
beyond the physical to look at the ways in which our physical center is linked to emotional and
spiritual elements of life.
However they frame it, most yogis seem to look at the core as both a precise physical and an
energetic space, a place to be worked with both asana and attention. Learning how to
incorporate a strong focus on the core in your teaching, they say, can help free your students
from common injuries and will cultivate intelligence and strength beyond the mat.
The core, says senior Anusara teacher Desire Rumbaugh, "is what supports us spiritually in our
lives, and physically in our yoga practice. If our core is weak, the ups and downs of life are
much harder to take. A strong core makes us more resilient."
The Core of Health
In terms of asana practice, core abdominal strength improves nearly every pose, offering a sense
of balance and ease. When you step off of the mat, there are lots of other good reasons to be
strong in the core, perhaps most obviously to support the lower back. Weakness in the core can
result in "overrotations in the vertebrae of the lower back, which leads to degenerative disk
disease and arthritis," according to physical therapist Harvey Deutch.
Limp abs often contribute to trouble in the sacroiliac joint, Deutch adds, explaining that the joint
where the sacrum meets the illium, the large pelvic bonecan be subject to strain when the core
isn't sufficiently toned. And, says Deutch, if you begin overstressing one joint, you may start to
misuse another, causing further injury.
"If we're weak in the core, our digestive fire is weak," adds Ana Forrest, founder of the Forrest
Yoga Institute in Santa Monica, California. This can cause constipation, which then brings on
"chronic exhaustion, because we're not absorbing nutrients," and which pollutes the blood
stream and can muddy the mind, leading to unclear thinking and gloomy moods. Core work, on
the other hand, "quickens the blood and gets oxygen moving" throughout the body.

And, Forrest adds, core work connects students to their feelings. "Working with the core during
the first 15 minutes of class turns on a student's innate intelligence and gets them feeling more
accurately," she says. Such intelligence is essential both in class, as your students decide how
deeply to move into more challenging poses in ways that avoid injury, and when they step into
the world. "If we don't know how to get centered in our core, we're basically doormats for
whoever's a stronger personality," Forrest says. "We become susceptible to anyone who wants
to push us off balance, whether it's a controlling mother or a government that controls by fear."
Method
To build the abs in a healthy way, Forrest says abdominal exercises should typically be followed
by Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose). This releases the belly and teaches
muscles to become responsive and flexible. Pranayama and kriya practices
including Uddiyana Bandha(Upward Abdominal Lock), Nauli (Abdominal Churning), and Agni
Sara Dhauti (Cleansing through Fire)are a great, safe way to develop resilient core strength.
Other core builders are describedhere.
For Rumbaugh, every asana is potentially a core-strengthening exercise. "I build my poses from
the foundation and take my muscular energy into my core and then back out again," she says.
"So I am always accessing and strengthening my core, no matter what pose I am doing." She
devotes a section of her practice to abdominal-intensive poses but contends that the core can
also be built through meditation and quieter poses.
In between poses, Forrest recommends teaching your students to move from the core. In any
variation of Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation), try slowing down the class and getting students
to begin to feel the core activating. You'll know they're getting the lesson when you stop hearing
that telltale thud when students step or jump forward in the sequence. In other poses, including
twists or Warrior poses, cue your students to expand the core area with their breath to create
space for the organs and joints.
The belly region is also central for healing emotionally bound problems, such as eating disorders,
and core work can dredge up difficult food-related feelings. Forrest emphasizes that when you
deal with students with such concerns, be aware that they will need support. "When you start
working on the abs and you begin to feel in there, it makes people feel out of balance. This is an
important part of the healing process. It's important to be able to accurately assess the damage
without drowning in it. Start by teaching how to feel and how to breathe, move, and process
those feelings: feel, digest, and move though."
Preach What You Practice
Before you bring new core awareness to students, try emphasizing the core in your personal
practice and notice how it affects you. Deutch strongly encourages educating yourself about
anatomy to learn about "the correlation between the muscles and the yogic terms we're taught.
It's fantastic to be able to take anatomy off the page and put it into function."

Similarly, while teaching, try drawing your attention to your own breath and belly as much as you
encourage your students to do so. Says Forrest, "As a new teacher is walking around in her or
his class, if every time they exhale, they pull their abs back toward the spine, they will be a
stronger teacher and will have more vocal power. If they are staying connected to the abs, they
have a better chance of teaching from an authentic place rather than from a memory place."