How you can beat back pain with these core workouts under 7 minutes

Your core is the torso, including your pelvis, lower back, hips and stomach. Exercises help all the muscles in this region to stabilise and strengthen themselves so that they can work in coordination better.

What’s a core exercise and how does it help you?

Any exercise that involves the use of your stomach muscles and back muscles in a coordinated way counts as a core exercise. When this central group of muscles is strong, you can have no trouble arching up, twisting your body or bending down. In short you can continue doing physical activities without fear of pain or falls.

What are easy exercises to develop your core?

You don’t need to be at the gym. Always start with a warm-up. This includes walking, jogging, twisting and bending sideward, forward or backward.

1) If you are a beginner, start your core workout by lying down on the floor and folding your legs with your knees facing upwards. Tighten the stomach muscles and raise your hips off the ground, till they line up with your knees and shoulders, creating an arched bridge. Hold your breath, stay in position and slowly lower your hips. Do 10 or 12 sets for a minute.

2) Leg raise is a very good abdominal workout for your lower abs. Lie down on your back, raise both legs up, lift both the hands and try touching your toes. Complete as many sets as you can in a minute.

3) Plank is the best core exercise. It involves maintaining a position similar to a push-up for the maximum possible time. By keeping your belly button in and challenging your stability through your shoulder, you can focus on abdominal muscles thoroughly. Do it for 30 seconds.

4) Do squats. Squat down as if you were sitting on a chair after standing with your feet shoulder-width apart against a wall. Breathe in as you go down and breathe out as you come up. Keep your back straight and chest erect. This works the core and legs. Do it for a minute.

5) Something great for improving core strength and metabolic rate which brings down your overall body-fat ratio would be kicking. Kick-boxing, squatting and kicking are exceptionally good when it comes to increasing your basal metabolic rate or BMR, which is the number of calories your body needs to accomplish its most basic tasks at rest. When we challenge our lower extremities, it increases BMR, but squatting combined with kicking is best. A minute should work.

6) Holding on to some bar and doing knee-raises can help. Do it for 30 seconds.

7)Lie flat on your back, with your arms extended out to your sides. Lift your legs up, bring them together and bend them so that they form a 90-degree angle with your shins parallel to the floor. Your knees should be stacked up over your hips. As you exhale, drop your knees to the right, keeping your legs together. Return to the centre, breathing in and then exhale. Repeat on the left side. Keep it between 30 and 90 seconds.

End with yoga or simple stretches. Remember to support your workout routine by eating clean, drinking adequate water and resting.