Basic Core Stability Exercise

My  favourite core stability exercise is the ‘suck it in’, otherwise known as the ‘Abdominal Draw-In Manoeuvre’ (ADIM). This exercise is easy to learn and perform, and unlike plank exercises can be done without putting strain on your arms or back. 

The ADIM exercise strengthens the deep muscles supporting the spine, and improves how they are switched on at the right time by the brain (neuromuscular control). Research has shown that back pain sufferers often have problems with activating their core muscles at the right time to protect their backs. 

In particular, the exercise works both the thin sheet-like transversus abdominis muscle at the front of the body, and the multifidus muscle at the back of the body. These two muscles act together like a muscular corset and brace the spine during movement and load bearing. 

The Transverse Abdominis & Multifidus Muscles

How to do the exercise

Step 1 - Lay on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor.

Step 2 - Take a deep breath in and then as you breath out, concentrate on sucking your belly button down towards the floor. If you haven’t done this before, you may feel some tugging of the deep muscles in your back, or even under your lower ribs.

Step 2 - Pull your belly button down towards the floor (towards your spine).

Step 3 - Keep breathing slowly in and out whilst trying to keep your belly button sucked in. Don’t hold your breath. To start with you will lose a bit of the contraction as you breathe in again, but just gather the belly button back down with each out-breath. 

Step 4 - Depending on how easy you find the exercise, you can hold the contraction for about 10 to 30 seconds and then after a brief rest, repeat it 10 times. If possible, try not to flatten or arch your lower back too much when doing the exercise, but don’t worry too much about whether you are ‘doing it right’. If you are getting your belly button moving and holding it in the new position, then it’s doing some good. 

Alternative Step 4 - Whilst most research has focussed on doing the exercise for  around 10 to 30 seconds at a time , and doing multiple sets, I prefer a different version of the exercise.

I remember reading years ago (sorry I can’t find the reference) that the ideal length of time for building muscle endurance with the ADIM was 3.5 minutes. Having also done the exercise myself for many years, I now recommend doing it once a day for as long as you can manage, with a target of 3.5 minutes. Set a timer on your phone and focus on breathing in and out as you hold the contraction. 

If you can only manage 30 seconds the first time, no problem, just build up your endurance. In the grand scheme of things, 3.5 minutes is not that long when you consider that the world record for holding the plank position is around 9.5 hours!. See the video below.

Cliff Russell, Registered Osteopath

Osteostudio Serving the areas of East Grinstead, Forest Row, Lingfield and the Wider West Sussex area.