Real World Core Strength:

Last week I was reading a blog that talked about an extraordinary achievement of real world core strength. Coach Robert dos Remedios wrote about famous surfer Laird Hamilton and an amazing feat of fitness he performed. To those of you not familiar to surfing, Hamilton is married to former volleyball star Gabrielle Reese.

Hamilton does a lot of surfing on a standup paddle board, which is a large surf board that he paddles through the surf while standing. Kind of like the gondolas in Venice Italy, only instead of using a long pole to push the boat, Hamilton uses a long paddle.

To say that this takes a lot of core strength is an understatement. Or rather, that it builds a lot of core stability in the process. Anyway, Hamilton recently paddled 43 kilometers across the English Channel!

Before this incredible feat he biked 148 kilometers, and then took an hour and a half rest before his crossing. Just a little warmup.

Then, he proceeded to ride 235 kilometers across France! Apparently he needed another challenge. While the biking is quite an achievement on it's own, to me the Channel crossing, which took 6 hours, is unbelievable. Most of us would have a hard time paddling 100 yards while standing on a surfboard.

While this kind of core stability isn't necessary for most of us, it points to the way that you should be training, and that's on your feet. Your back is tested more lifting or pulling heavy objects when standing, than it is while lying on the floor.

In other words, stop wasting your time with all those crunches.

To read a new article on real world core training, click here. I also posted a new article about how gravity affects your body.

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