What is core stability and why should you want it?
Your "core" is made up of your pelvic girdle and trunk, and the deep muscles of your spine and abdomen. When properly trained, these muscles provide a stable base for generating force and power. As a tennis player, you can enhance your performance on the court by training your core stabilizing muscles.

How can this help you and your Game?

Research says that by developing a stable base, you can:

• Increase strength
• Increase momentum
• Increase control and endurance of your extremity muscles (arms and legs)
• Improve posture
• Increase racquet head acceleration
• Prevent Injury

Without a stable "core," your muscles are not balanced optimally to provide support and control so your body creates substitution patterns that can lead to injuries (your shoulder, arm and wrist are overworked, because they generate the power instead of your trunk). The "core" is commonly a weak area in athletes because it is often ignored in conditioning programs. Or, you may be performing stability exercises, but they may be too advanced for your level or just too general.

A Physical Therapist or Certified Athletic Trainer can evaluate you and determine which core stability exercises are best for you. They can also help you progress safely and effectively through each stage of exercises when you are ready to advance.

Important Points to remember when performing core stability exercises:

• Learn how to effectively ACTIVATE and CONTROL your deep stabilizing muscles, THEN incorporate stabilizing these muscles into your normal strength training activities.
• The quality of movement is most important ... you want a "submaximal" contraction.
• You want to ACTIVATE the muscles, not increase their strength.

The two key muscles to activate for core stability are 1) Transversus Abdominus (TA): This muscle acts like a corset, stabilizing deep inside your abdomen. 2) Multifidus: Deep low back stabilizing muscle. These muscles work together to stabilize the front and back of your spine.

The following exercises are just a few of many you can perform to enhance your core stability. When learning these exercises initially, it is best if you perform them under the supervision of a Physical Therapist or Certified Athletic Trainer to make sure you are performing them correctly and safely and don't progress too quickly.

Getting Started:
Step I: Lie on your back with your hips and knees bent and your feet placed flat on the floor. Place your fingertips on the inside of your hip bones, just below your ribcage. This is where you will feel the Transversus Abdominus (TA) muscle contract. You will feel a slight buldge under your fingers when you are correctly contracting this muscle.

Step II: Flatten your stomach by PULLING your belly-button in towards your spine. Your belly-button should go straight down, and NOT up towards your ribs. You should be able to hold this position for 10 seconds and continue breathing while contracting your TA. If you're performing this correctly, your stomach will look skinny!

*** You should perform Steps I and II during all of the exercises listed below. This will be the "primer" to the exercises. they will ensure that your deep muscles are activated first. You can repeat the exercises until your muscles become fatigued (5-10 repetitions).

Exercise 1

Keeping your belly-button pulled into your spine, slowly lift one leg into the air. Make sure you lift your leg so that your knee is at a 90-degree angle, as shown in the picture. Keep breathing while contracting your Transverses Abdominus (TA) muscle. Be sure not to let your pelvis (hips) rotate and keep them in a straight plane. Don't forget to Breathe! Slowly lower your leg, keeping your hips in a straight plane. Continue to lower your leg until your foot touches the ground. Alternate by lifting your opposite leg.

Exercise 2

Get on your hands and knees with your head, shoulders and hips aligned straight. Your knees should be at a 90 degree angle. Pull your belly-button in towards your spine to activate your TA muscle and maintain the contraction throughout this exercise. Slowly lift your opposite arm and leg. Make sure to keep your pelvis (hips) in a straight line and don't allow them to rotate. Don't forget to Breathe! Slowly lower your arm and leg, and alternate by raising the opposite arm and leg. This exercises your multifidus muscle to help strengthen your low back.

Exercise 3

Sit on a therapy ball with your hips and knees at a 90 degree angle. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart. Imagine a string being pulled up towards the ceiling from the top of your head and sit up tall. Pull your belly-button in towards your spine to activate your TA muscle. Place your hands on your hips to monitor your abdominal muscle contraction. While maintaining this sub-maximal contraction, slowly stand from the ball. Try not to lean forward off the ball, rather keep your spine straight when getting up. Don't let the ball get away from you. Don't forget to breathe!

Exercise 4

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Again, imagine the string on top of your head, pulling you so you are standing up tall. Keep your shoulders down and back. Pull your belly-button in towards your spine to activate your TA muscle, and keep it contracted throughout the entire exercise. Start by holding a ball in front of you, then move the ball up and across your body so that it is up near your ear. Make sure not to let your trunk and pelvis rotate! Once you've reached this position, Slowly lower the ball down and across your body towards your opposite hip. Eventually, you can progress this exercise by increasing the speed and frequency. Don't forget to Breathe!

Kathleen A. Stroia, MS, PT, A.T.,C. is the Associate Vice President of Sports Sciences and Medicine for the SanexWTA Tour. Miss Stroia earned a B.A. in Athletic Training from Purdue University, an M.S. in Athletic Training from West Virginia University and a B.S. in Physical Therapy from Chicago Medical School. Her position with the WTA includes setting standards for tournament physicians and overseeing the tour's Player Development Program. Michelle Gebrian, P.T.,A.T., C. is the Primary Health Care Provider for the SanexWTA Tour, working as both a licensed physical therapist and certified athletic trainer. Miss Gebrian earned her B.S. from Grand Valley State University and a Masters in Physical Therapy from Shenandoah University.

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