Fit to Print Volume 24 Issue 3 September 2015 | Page 12

Group EX

By Kelly Wallace

Hard, Nasty Sliders
Build Your Core and More

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re you tired of crunches? Do you
want real abdominal strength?
Just when you thought you have
done it all, here come THE
SLIDERS! Recently the Fitness Incentive
purchased Super Sliders—yes the same
things that will move your furniture and
not scratch your floor. They are smooth
plastic on one side and have black foam
on the other side. With the smooth side
down you place your foot half way on,
and let your heel hang off the back,
using your heel as your “break”. Sliders
engage your core muscles throughout the
full range of motion of an exercise all
the while challenging your balance. They
can work your upper and lower body but
ALWAYS work your core. The amount of
core strength gained by regularly using
them is incredible! It's total body work
that's low impact but most of all
effective.
These small pieces of equipment can
broaden your range of exercise while
reducing your risk of injury. Sliders
improve stability because all the core
and leg muscles must synchronize to
keep you from falling. Compared to
lunges on your feet 10 sliding lunges are
much more effective due to the lack of
stability, making a sliding lunge a more
worthwhile lunge. Adding just a few
sliding exercises into your weekly routine
can make a real difference.
Here's what the members and instructors
have to say about their experiences
sliding:
“I was so excited when we got the
sliders. Having used them in the past, I
know how challenging they are. I also

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knew that everyone at Fitness
Incentive would welcome that
challenge. What makes them so
challenging? Instability. By using the
sliders, you will work hard to keep
your balance. The difficulty in
maintaining your balance requires your
muscles to work harder and recruits
other muscles to help stabilize you,
thereby increasing the intensity on
each move. The sliders can also be
used to take the impact out of an
exercise. Mountain climbers are a
great example of this. Instead of
hopping from one foot to another [