Why work the core? 

The core is often mistaken for being just your abdominal muscles when it actually encompasses your abs, back and pelvic muscles also. The core is just that, it is the centre of your body for all physical activity. A strong core is essential for any cyclist, to not only help with fitness, but also strength, and injury prevention.

Floor exercises are brilliant for building up your core strength, and many of these can be coupled with a mini-band to provide a slightly stronger burn and full body movements that gradually strengthen your muscles without having to use weights.

Mini Band Exercises

Here are a few floor exercises you can do with a mini band which focus on all body movements to help strengthen your core, shoulders and legs. You can do them anywhere, at home, at the gym, even on your lunch break at the office if your colleagues are understanding!

Always start with a mini band that has the lowest resistance, and build up gradually to higher resistances once you find it getting easier.

Press-Up’s

Another brilliant mini band exercise for working the core is the press-up. With a mini-band, the press-up will work your arms, shoulders, abs, chest and core all at the same time.

Slip your arms through the mini band and plant it between your wrist and your elbow. The closer to your elbow, the easier the movement will be. Assume the press-up position as you usually would:

• Hands shoulder width apart and placed directly underneath your shoulders
• Body in a straight line from head to toe
• Keep tension in the mini band and perform a press-up, dropping your chest as close to the ground as possible
• Keep your back straight throughout the set

Rotational Crunches

Another name for these is “Bicycles” because it requires rotational leg movements whilst doing stomach crunches. This movement is brilliant for your quads, core and hip muscles and because the exercise replicates pedalling motion, it’s great for us cyclists!

Plant the band around the tops of your feet, and lie down flat on the floor. Keeping your back to the ground, raise your legs.

• Pull one knee towards you, whilst extending the other and keeping the mini band taught
• Keep alternating legs in a pedalling fashion
• Keep your black flat to the floor with your arms flat at your sides

To take this exercise to the next level of workout, you can bring in some upper body movement by rotating into the knee you’re pulling to your chest with the opposite elbow. Engage your abs and repeat this alternating movement.

We’d advise you to train in front of a mirror, or with a buddy so you can keep an eye on your form to ensure you don’t put undue strain on any part of your body. 

The great thing about mini bands is that they allow you to keep it simple – which at the end of the day means you’re much more likely to maintain a routine. 

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