4 Expert Tips to Help You Engage Your Core Better Throughout Your Day

If you’re wondering how to engage your core properly, this article has you covered.

In it, I’m going over:

Why having core strength matters (*hint* it’s not just for having a flatter, more toned midsection)
How to properly engage your core (with video demonstrations)
Four expert tips to help you engage your core better
And my top seven core stabilization moves as a NASM-Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Coach.

Before we get to all of that though, I want to first stress why this is even worth your time to begin with:

Why You Should Engage Your Core Throughout the Day

I want to be clear: I’m not suggesting that you engage your core literally every second of every day. That would be insane and a quick way to overwork (read: injure) your muscles.

What I’m suggesting instead is that you start weaving some core work in throughout your day — don’t worry, it’s easier to do than you’d think.

Doing so also has some great benefits.

When you engage your core, you:

Protect your back
Support your spine and posture
Set yourself up for safe movements that won’t injure your back
Improve your workouts — engaging the core means you’ll work it even during non-ab-specific exercises which leads to better results and faster progress

On the flipside, if you’re struggling to support and engage your core, you could be unknowingly setting yourself up for low back pain.

According to my NASM Women’s Specialization course, not having enough core strength can lead to chronic low back pain which is only exacerbated when you also sit at a desk job all day or you’re more sedentary than not in your spare time.

That same course also mentions that older women with a weaker core are also more prone to falls, which just gives you another reason to give this important area more of your attention.

So, how do you do that?

How to Properly Engage Your Core (And How to Check If You’re Doing It Right)

Engaging your core does not mean you’re sucking in your stomach as hard as you can and you holding your breath.

Please don’t do that.

Instead it’s about learning how to draw in your belly.

You’ve probably heard people say “bringing your belly button into your spine” or similar statements like that, which can be sort of hard to imagine.

A good visual is to think about actively pulling your belly button in just like you would flex other muscles.

But instead of flexing, or sucking in as mentioned earlier, you’re breathing through the motion.

So, on the inhale, you’d fill your belly up with air, let it expand, and then, on the exhale, you’d draw your belly and belly button up and in, in one swift motion (see the video demonstration below).

In this position, your core is so engaged that you’d essentially be ready to take a punch to the gut.

This is core engagement.

But it doesn’t stop there.

Unlike sucking in, you’d continue breathing in and out and relaxing and drawing your stomach out and in, depending on the breath you’re taking.

It’s this movement that helps you brace your core safely while activating your core muscles all at once. And it’s what’s going to get you results in your midsection (sans low back pain), among other things (diet being a big factor of course).

When you’re starting to get back to exercise, you’re working on postpartum healing, or you’re just ready to reconnect with your core again, begin with stabilization exercises — such as the seven mentioned below — to help you reinforce how to engage your core properly before moving on to harder strength moves.

For postpartum healing, gentle core exercises are enough to help you rebuild the mind-body connection and your core all at once. Moves like bridges, pelvic tilts, side lying leg lifts, and deadbugs are great starter options that can help you build a solid foundation.

I’ll go over some of those plus some more great options next.

4 Tips for Engaging Your Core Throughout Your Day

These four strategies will help you reconnect with your core, build a solid foundation that can reduce back pain, and hopefully make some progress in your midsection if that’s what you’re hoping for.

Here’s how to do all of that:

1. Check in With Your Form to Set Yourself Up for Success

Whether you’re struggling to reconnect with your core or you’re someone who works out regularly, it’s always a good idea to check in with your form.

If your form is even slightly off, you won’t reap the full benefits of working out and it will likely take you longer to reach your goals. It can also lead to injuries.

A better approach is to check in with your core form regularly even if you don’t think you need to.

There’s two easy ways you can do this (as seen in the video demonstration below) in the comfort and privacy of your home.

First, while standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, take an inhale where you fill your belly up with air.

As you exhale, draw or pull your belly in and up so that your belly button moves up and in towards your spine.

Another way to do this is to try this on all fours, which I find helps me see and make the connection better.

This time, while on all fours, fill and expand your belly (let your stomach hang down, it’s okay! Mine does it too).

On the exhale, pull your belly up and in and hold it tight until you then relax on the inhale.

Repeat this as you go through each move.

Check in with your form like this as often as you can to ensure you’re set up for success and try to engage your core throughout the day as you’ll see in just a few.

2. Practice Deep Breathing Throughout the Day

Deep breathing is similar to engaging your core but it takes things a step further.

While you technically won’t be breathing in so deeply every time you engage your core, it helps to understand this move since it’s the foundation of reconnecting to your core.

As my aunt and I recently discussed, improving your core all starts with breathing.

And deep breathing can help you do that.

Plus, it’s always a good idea to pause and practice a few deep breaths (anywhere from 5 to 15 are a great place to start) to help clear stagnant energy, get fresh oxygen flowing, and reconnect with yourself throughout your day.

You can practice deep breathing when you first wake up, before your work day, just before a meeting, after you leave work for the day, or before bed.

No matter when you choose to do it, you’ll feel better and you’ll find that it makes it that much easier to connect with your core.

On top of taking some deep breaths, it’s also a good idea to:

3. Use These Pockets of Time Throughout Your Day

You can engage your core all throughout the day and people around you will likely have no clue you’re doing it

So even if you can’t get a workout in for the day, you can still improve and rehab your core. Isn’t that amazing?

To do that, practice engaging your core when you do these activities throughout your day:

Sitting at your desk
Walking around the office
In line shopping
Brushing your teeth
Walking up and down stairs
When you bend down to pick something or someone up (there’s plenty of parents reading this, even pet parents!)
While in the car waiting for pick up

You get the point.

The takeaway is to get in your core engagement whenever you can throughout the day and you’ll reap the rewards in no time.

4. Practice These 7 Core Stabilization Moves to Reinforce Your Core

On top of those three tips, it’s also good to practice the following core stabilization moves throughout your workouts to support and reinforce your core as best as possible.

Simply follow the moves and my breath in the videos to see when to inhale or exhale (you’ll see my stomach fill up on the inhale). You can always reach out if you have any questions too!