Supine TA Breath
Begin lying on your back with your knees bent, feet resting on the floor, and your fingers resting on your stomach just inside your hip bones. Tighten your abdominals, drawing your belly button in towards your spine. You should feel your muscle contract under your fingers. Hold this position, then relax and repeat. Beginners keep your back flat against the floor and breath throughout the exercise.
Seated TA Breath
Using the same technique as Supine TA Breath, think about lifting the pelvic floor. A great cue for lifting the pelvic floor is sitting on a Swiss ball on the sitz bones.
Sidelying TA Breath
Begin lying on your side with your knees bent, feet resting on the floor, and the fingers of your top hand resting on your stomach just inside your hip bone. Tighten your abdominals, drawing your belly button in towards your spine. You should feel your muscle contract under your fingers. Hold this position, then relax and repeat. Breathe.
TA Crunch
Activate your transverse abdominis by using the TA breath and the concentric phase of the crunch (exhale as you crunch up).
Quadruped TA Bracing
Begin on all fours. Let your stomach relax down towards the ground, keeping your spine in neutral. Tighten your abdominals by drawing your belly button up towards your spine and away from the floor. Hold this position, then relax and repeat. Breathe.
Bent Knee Fallout
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet resting flat on the floor. Tighten your abdominals. Without letting your hip bones move, slowly lower one knee out towards the floor only as far as you can without your pelvis moving. Slowly return to starting position. Alternate with other leg. Do not let your pelvis move.
TA March
Begin lying on your back with your knees bent and feet resting on the floor. Tighten abdominals and lift one foot off the floor a few inches, keeping knees bent, then lower it back slowly. Repeat with other leg. Do not let your pelvis move.
Dead Bug
Begin lying on your back with legs bent. Lift your legs and arms off the ground, keeping your knees bent. Lower one arm to the ground and lower your opposite leg at the same time. Repeat with your opposite arm and leg. Continue to alternate. Maintain your low back on the floor and keep abdominals drawn down towards your spine. If you cannot maintain lower back, start by alternating arms only. As you become stronger alternate legs only. Then progress to opposite arm and leg.
Modified Plank
Begin by lying on your stomach with elbows on the ground directly under shoulders. Tighten your abdominals, tuck your toes and press yourself up into a modified plank position keeping knees on the ground. Hold 10 seconds and then return to starting position and repeat. Keep your back straight.
Bridge with Alternating Leg Extension
Begin lying on your back with your arms resting at your sides, your knees bent and feet flat on ground. Tighten abdominals and lift your hips off the floor into a bridge position. Slowly straighten one leg, lower and alternate with other leg. Keep back straight at top of bridge. Keep hips level throughout the exercise.
Clamshell
Begin by lying on your side with your knees bent ~90 degrees and your hips and shoulders stacked. Tighten abdominals. Keeping your heels together, rotate top leg up towards ceiling and slowly lower. Do not let your pelvis move.
Seated TA Breath with Tension
Using the same technique as Supine TA Breath, pull tension in the towel on the exhale.
TA March on Foam Roll
Lie on the foam roll with knees bent and arms flat on floor. Tighten abdominals. Slowly lift one foot off the floor a few inches and lower. Repeat with other leg. Alternate. Keep your low back flat against foam roll. Use your arms as much as needed but as little as possible.
Dead Bug on Foam Roll
Begin lying on foam roll with knees bent and feet flat on floor. Tighten your abdominals, lift one leg off the ground, keeping your knee bent, at the same time lift one arm overhead. Repeat with other arm and leg. Keep your low back flat against the foam roll.
