{"id":54931,"date":"2016-12-28T07:15:59","date_gmt":"2016-12-28T12:15:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=54931"},"modified":"2017-01-09T17:39:05","modified_gmt":"2017-01-09T22:39:05","slug":"foam-roller-exercises-core-exercises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/foam-roller-exercises-core-exercises\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Foam Roller Exercises for a Strong Core"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"5
Photo courtesy of Rove Goods<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The foam roller has been getting lots of fitness love lately. It\u2019s long been known as a stand-out recovery tool<\/a> that helps relieve tense muscles and tight fascia. Experts also recommend it as a way to warm up<\/a> and get the blood flowing before a workout.<\/p>\n

Now there\u2019s another reason to have a foam roller by your side: It can seriously strengthen your core<\/a>. \u201cThe foam roller creates an unstable surface, which means more core muscles need to work to keep you stable,\u201d says Daniel Giordano, DPT, CSCS, co-founder and director of physical therapy at Bespoke Treatments<\/a> in New York City.<\/p>\n

Make the tool your go-to workout partner by performing these five foam roller exercises. They take the roller beyond mobility<\/a> and flexibility<\/a> into core-sculpting territory.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>Are You Foam Rolling All Wrong?<\/a><\/p>\n

5 Foam Roller Exercises that Work Your Core<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Giordano, who also teaches foam rolling classes at Lululemon, chose these five moves to work your core<\/a> from every angle. Use any roller at your gym or\u00a0check\u00a0out the\u00a0soon-to-be-released\u00a0Rove Goods portable foam roller<\/a>, co-founded by Giordano, which\u00a0will ship in early 2017. Perform each exercise for one minute, with a 10 second break in between and repeat for as many rounds as your time allows. Hello, favorite new ab workout<\/a>!<\/p>\n

\"Side<\/h3>\n

1. Side Plank with Leg Raise<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Talk about hitting every midsection muscle. You\u2019ll get into the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, obliques<\/a> and quadratus lumborum. Plus, with the leg lift you\u2019ll turn on your glutes and thighs.
\nHow to: <\/strong>Lie on your side, with your left hand on the middle of the foam roller (a)<\/strong>. Lift your hips so they\u2019re in a diagonal line with your shoulders and raise your right arm straight above you at shoulder height (b)<\/strong>. Lift your right leg up to hip height, without lifting or lowering your hips (c)<\/strong>. Return your foot back to the floor and repeat (c)<\/strong>. Then switch sides.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>Ab Challenge: 5 Planks to Sculpt Your Core<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Push-Up,<\/h3>\n

2. Push-Up<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A regular push-up<\/a> \u2014 or moving plank<\/a>, as Giordano calls it \u2014 has nothing on this foam roller variation. You\u2019ll definitely feel the burn trying to keep yourself steady.
\nHow to: <\/strong>Place your hands shoulder-width apart on the middle of the foam roller and start in a high plank position (a)<\/strong>. Bend your elbows (as you keep them by your sides) and lower your chest as close to the foam roller as possible (b)<\/strong>. Push back up and repeat.<\/p>\n

\"Rolling<\/h3>\n

3. Rolling Plank<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Push forward through your core (not via your shoulders or feet) for this move that reaches your deep abdominals and spine stabilizers.
\nHow to: <\/strong>Lie on your stomach and place the tops of your feet on the middle of the foam roller (a)<\/strong>. Get in a forearm plank position, elbows in line with shoulders and body in a straight diagonal line (b)<\/strong>. Slide your body forward an inch or two, without letting your back arch or round (c)<\/strong>. Return to neutral and repeat.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The 22-Minute Workout You Need to Try Right Now<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Hip<\/h3>\n

4. Hip Raise<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The trick to really targeting those abs: Keep them engaged throughout the entire exercise. You\u2019ll also feel a nice burn in your backside.
\nHow to: <\/strong>Lie on your back, knees bent and feet placed on the middle of the foam roller. Arms at a crisscross on your chest (a)<\/strong>. Keep your pelvis in a neutral position, as you lift your hips up so you\u2019re in a straight line from shoulders to knees (b)<\/strong>. Pause for a few seconds, then lower back down to the ground (c)<\/strong>. Repeat.<\/p>\n

\"Mountain<\/h3>\n

5. Mountain Climbers<\/strong><\/h3>\n

You know mountain climbers<\/a> work your entire body, but especially your core. Throw in the foam roller and your abs will officially be on fire.
\nHow to: <\/strong>Start in a high plank position, hands in line with shoulders and placed in the middle of the foam roller (a)<\/strong>. Quickly bring your left knee into your chest, keeping your body in a straight line. Don\u2019t lift or lower your hips (b)<\/strong>. Return your foot to the starting position and repeat the action with your right leg (c)<\/strong>. Return your right foot to the floor (d)<\/strong>. Continue alternating.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Skip the crunches. Ditch the ab roller. Your new way to tone your tummy: foam roller exercises! These five core moves will get you stronger and more stable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":54964,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,6,14],"tags":[136,289,50,206,281,341,343],"class_list":["post-54931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exercise","category-fitness","category-strength-training","tag-abs","tag-exercise","tag-foam-rolling","tag-mobility","tag-strength-training","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2exercise"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54931"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54931\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54964"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}