Sheathing is not just an exercise to muscle your abs!

Sheathing is not just an exercise to muscle your abs!

Sheathing is effective to build up your abs, but not only! It is a much broader concept that is of real use for our entire body. Presentation and benefits of sheathing, we tell you everything in this article!

What is sheathing?

For many people, cladding is associated with the exercise of the board, which consists of positioning on the ground in support of the forearms and toes, with the segment "thighs-pelvis-trunk" aligned, and then maintaining the position without moving.

But sheathing is actually a much broader concept, which is not simply to maintain a static position to strengthen his abdominals. The concept of cladding can be defined by simultaneously contracting a set of muscles to protect the body and optimize the transmission of forces during a movement.

Most often sheathing mobilizes the muscle groups of the center of the body (abdominals, glutes, lumbar ...) to allow a better transfer of force between the top and the bottom of the body, and vice versa. However, some movements may also require sheathing involving other parts of the body, such as the muscles of the shoulder girdle for example. Sheathing does not focus only on the abdominals, it is a concept much larger.

During our sports practice as in everyday life, it is essential to properly wrap parts of your body to avoid injury and gain efficiency. This is for example the case when you lift and you wear your (heavy) shopping bags, or when you do rowing or trampoline ...

To read also: Sheathing: presentation and exercises

The main benefits of sheathing

1. Get a more toned body quickly

When we do sheathing, we simultaneously strengthen several muscles in depth. Indeed, the interest of this type of training is both to act together on several muscle groups through poly-joint exercises, and also to solicit the deep muscles of the body, those who act on the maintenance joints and spine.

Therefore, 20 minutes of sheathing is enough to effectively strengthen all of his muscles, and thus to carve a firm and toned body.

To go further: Sheathing program over 6 weeks to have a toned body!

2. Prevent or overcome back pain

Whether it's abdominal sheathing, slanting or lumbar sheathing, most cladding exercises work on the trunk muscles and help strengthen the back muscles. Performed in static or dynamic, these exercises have a role of stabilization and protection of the spine. Thus, to get a strong back and overcoming back pain, always think of incorporating cladding exercises in your training program, and especially to vary your movements, including including dynamic sheathing.

As O. Allain points out in Back pain and low back pain: actions and truth, "in the reeducative or preventive logic, it may be interesting to consider the series of dynamic sheathing in terms of repetitions or number of movements". These statements are supported by other scientific studies (see here for example), where we learn that muscle building methods such as cladding are effective in reducing pain and improving functional abilities in a person with chronic low back pain.

If you have back pain, inactivity is not the best option. Rather than relieve pain through medication, treat it with a suitable training program. To benefit from a tailor-made program, do not hesitate to call on a professional sports coach.

3. Improve your posture

As we have explained, sheathing does not only allow you to build up your abdominals, depending on the exercises you use it can act on the whole body, strengthening the muscles in depth. The sheath is thus of formidable efficiency to correct bad postures. Thanks to a suitable program, it will allow you to straighten your body, especially through a strengthening of the muscles of the posterior chain.

4. Get a flat stomach

A flat stomach is not only obtained by dislodging fat stored in the abdomen. The simple fact of improving your posture and strengthening your deep abdominals will allow you to have a flatter belly.

Side abs, the muscle on which you will have to focus is the transverse abdomen. This stabilizing muscle of the trunk also acts to maintain our viscera in place. When distended, it gives an impression of round belly. Conversely, a transverse regularly solicited with targeted cladding exercises will be more toned and promote a better maintenance of the viscera, which will allow you to get a flatter belly.

To read also: How to have a flat stomach?

5. Improve your sports performance

Whatever your level and favorite sport, regularly incorporating cladding exercises into your training program can only be beneficial. In addition to significantly reducing the risk of injury, the sheathing allows for a stronger body and thus a better transmission of forces between the upper and lower body. This is explained by the fact that when you gain, you limit considerably the loss of energy. The transfer of force from one muscle group to another is thus more efficient.

In his book "Posture and Gainage: Health and Performance", Olivier Pauly reminds us of the importance of sheathing for his posture and his sports results. Whether you are a tennis player, runner, handball player, swimmer or simple sportsman "jack-of-all-trades", regular practice of cladding exercises will have a positive impact on your health and your performance.

For maximum benefits, do not hesitate to make different types of sheathing, while gradually increasing the difficulty. This progression can be based on:

An increase in the static hold time.

A decrease in rest time.

An increase in the number of series.

The integration of movements.

Increased instability.

...

So, do not limit yourself to practicing the same static "board" type exercises, gradually orient yourself towards dynamic sheathing exercises, and do not hesitate to use material such as Swiss-Ball, Bosu, TRX ... in order to add to your postures and push your limits. It is by varying your movements and increasing the difficulty that you will continue to progress.