Strengthen Your Core: Advanced Exercises to Boost Wrestling Performance
Beast Crawl
- The Beast Crawl is a playful and more challenging version of the plank. It strengthens the core while also challenging quads, glutes, and biceps. Before we walk, we learn to crawl first. Crawling movement builds a strong foundation and engages multiple muscles of the body. As a result, joint mobility is improved, and overall body strength increases.
With the beast crawl exercise, you engage wrists, shoulders, hips, ankles, and core muscles to move against gravity. During wrestling matches, many movements are performed on the floor using all four limbs. Therefore, the beast crawl prepares wrestlers to perform explosive moves on the ground and maintain good posture to avoid injury.
Follow these moves to perform this exercise correctly.
- Begin in the crawling position, hands beneath the shoulder and knees beneath the belly. With hands on the ground, lift both legs off the floor. The feet remain planted in the ground.
- Start crawling by moving the right hand and left foot or the left hand and right foot forward. Continue crawling by moving alternate feet and hands.
- With each rep, aim to move six inches forward.
- Keep the spine in a neutral position and avoid twisting and side bending.
Hollow Hold
Hollow hold is a simple yet challenging exercise that engages the lower back muscles and abdominals simultaneously. This core-strengthening exercise utilizes the abdominals, diaphragm, quads, and hip flexors for enhanced strength and control. Consistently performing this exercise enables the body to maintain a neutral spine and prevent the back from arching when lying on the ground.
To perform this exercise correctly, do the following:
- Start by lying down on your back. Relax your ab muscles to remove any gap between your back and the floor. Push your lower back into the floor.
- Engage your core muscles to lift your feet off the floor for about two inches. Squeeze your abs to drive your lower back into the ground.
- Extend your arms backward and lift your upper body off the floor. Contract your abs.
- Squeeze your abs and glutes while holding this position. Hold this position for 15-20 seconds.
- Do three sets of 10-15 reps.
Ab Wheel Rollout
- This is a challenging exercise that engages multiple muscles, such as the rectus abdominis, lower back, obliques, upper back, and shoulders. It is performed using special fitness equipment called the ab wheel. Although similar to a plank, the ab wheel makes it more challenging and effective than a basic plank exercise.
Ab wheel rollout is an advanced-level workout that requires strenuous work from the core muscles. To perform this exercise, you should be able to hold the traditional plank for 30-60 seconds. Ab wheel rollout trains the core to remain erect and avoid arching. As the ab wheel rolls forward, the muscles work hard to keep the core in a neutral position. Regular execution of this dynamic exercise helps build a resilient core and allows wrestlers to perform different moves with strength and agility.
Ab wheel rollouts are performed as follows:
- Get in a kneeling position and hold the ab roller with both hands.
- Slowly extend your arms forward and allow the ab roller to move along. Don’t move your legs.
- While rolling the roller forward, squeeze your abs to keep the spine in a neutral position and prevent the lower back from arching.
- Start by performing 6-12 reps with 3-4 sets.
- Avoid overexerting your body and extend the rollout to whatever distance feels comfortable.
Morris County Wrestling & Martial Arts is a premier family-owned wrestling and martial arts facility. We attract top-level talent and train them to become the best wrestlers. At our facility, you will be guided and trained by nationally recognized wrestlers such as Mike and Vic Amada and many more.
We are located in Randolph, New Jersey. For more information, call us at (973) 713-3556 or visit our website.
