7 façons simples de transformer la marche en un entraînement pour vos abdominaux

Alors que la plupart des gens considèrent généralement la marche comme une forme d’exercice cardio pour renforcer le cœur et potentiellement augmenter la force des jambes, la marche peut en réalité être un entraînement complet du corps si vous adoptez la bonne approche.

En particulier, en tant qu’entraîneur personnel certifié depuis près de 16 ans, j’ai découvert que l’une des questions les plus fréquemment posées par mes clients à propos de la marche pour faire de l’exercice est de savoir comment rendre leurs promenades quotidiennes plus efficaces pour renforcer leurs abdominaux. Tout d’abord, je partage la mauvaise nouvelle : la marche ne sera jamais un exercice ciblé pour les abdominaux comme le sont les planches ou les torsions russes avec un médecine-ball. Mais il y a aussi un côté positif : les muscles abdominaux sont utilisé dans presque tous les exercices verticaux pour aider à stabiliser le tronc et à soutenir la colonne vertébrale. Et chaque pas que vous faites lorsque vous marchez active le psoas, un muscle profond qui relie le bas du dos/le bassin au fémur (os de la cuisse). De plus, il existe des stratégies que vous pouvez intégrer à vos promenades pour stimuler vos abdominaux.

How to strengthen your abs while you walk

Ready to engage your abs on your walk? Follow these tips the next time you get your saunter (or all-out strut) on:

1. Pump your arms

Pumping your arms more vigorously when you walk increases the intensity of your workout by activating more muscle groups—including your abdominal muscles.

Keep in mind that the entire function of the core is to provide a stable base of support for your arms and legs. When you walk, your arms and legs are each working in a reciprocal pattern in opposition to one another: You swing your right arm when your left leg steps forward, and vice versa. The core is designed to function as a strong, stable pillar so that your hips/pelvis and shoulder girdle have a reliable anchor upon which the muscles can pull as you swing them when you walk.

Balancer vigoureusement vos bras nécessite que vos abdominaux se contractent afin que votre torse ne tourne pas avec l’élan de vos bras, mais aide plutôt à maintenir votre bassin et vos hanches stables.

Pour aller plus loin dans cette idée, vous pouvez même envisager d’utiliser des bâtons de marche, comme ceux qu’utilisent de nombreux randonneurs. Planter fermement vos bâtons de marche, puis tirer votre corps vers l’avant pendant que vous marchez, vous aidera à solliciter davantage les muscles du haut du corps, y compris les abdominaux.

2. Montez la pente

Nous entendons souvent parler des avantages de la marche inclinée, qui se concentrent sur la combustion de plus de calories et l’augmentation de la fréquence cardiaque. Une astuce moins connue est que monter une pente est également un moyen efficace de mieux solliciter vos abdominaux.

When you walk up a hill, you have to engage your core muscles (mainly the rectus abdominis as well as the internal and external obliques, pelvic floor muscles, and hip flexors) to help you draw your leg higher up towards your chest for each step. Otherwise, you would trip and catch your foot on the inclined slope.

To get even more bang for your buck (or stride), think about using a marching step so that you are hiking your knees up towards your chest. This is essentially like doing a standing bicycle crunch, squeezing the abs and hip flexors to help pull your leg up.

3. Wear weights

Wearing or carrying weights while walking has its pros and cons. Ankle weights and hand weights can help you better work your abs while you walk because you have more resistance to work against.

However, walking with ankle weights, in particular, can put excessive stress on your knees and hips because the weight pulls on your joint capsules from a distance (the longer the lever arm, the greater the torque on the joint). So, this tip should be used with caution. Only try it if you don’t have joint issues, and ditch the weights if you start to feel negative effects.

Generally, a weighted vest is the best way to add resistance to increase the intensity of walking workouts. However, this won’t necessarily help you work your abs more when you walk.

For wrist weights, I like the Bala Bangles ($55) because they are light enough that they don’t really cause any shoulder or elbow strain and they keep your hands free since the wrist weight is a flexible, attractive bracelet cuff that wraps around your wrist instead of being a dumbbell you’ll have to hold.

4. Support the mind-body connection with a waist pack

Wearing a little waist pack for walking can help bring your awareness to your core. And this matters because much of the abs workout you will get from walking (or any form of exercise) is contingent upon properly activating the abs.

Most people—not just beginners—struggle to engage the abs consciously, but a physical waist pack, or placing your hands on your belly, can help draw awareness to these muscles and help you build the mind-body connection to use your abs when you walk. Since you’re supposed to be swinging your arms when you walk, the pack is a great option!

I recommend a hydration pack like the ergonomic Thule Rail Hip Pack ($55). Not only will it help you consciously think about using your abs, it provides a convenient way to carry water to stay on top of your hydration needs for longer walking workouts. Win-win!

5. Maintain good posture

Remember to use good walking form with an upright posture, tight core, shoulders back and down, and gaze forward. This will help engage your abs, protect your lower back, and improve the efficiency of your walking stride. And watch your pace: Walking faster will increase trunk muscle activation compared to a slow shuffle.

6. Try belly breathing

Every so often while you walk, perform “abdominal drawing in,” which refers to sucking in your stomach as tight as possible while continuing to breathe. This helps engage the transversus abdominis, a deep core muscle that encircles your entire abdomen like a corset. You can try it for 10 to 20 seconds every five or 10 minutes while you walk.

7. Walk on trails

Hiking trails or walking on grass or sand can be a way to add a bit of an abdominal workout while you walk. These unstable surfaces require greater activation of your core muscles to help stabilize your hips and pelvis.

Remember, while walking is never going to be a targeted abs workout, you are using your core muscles in a functional way as you walk. While we rarely need to do a crunch in day-to-day life, most of us do walk, so building abdominals that can support the motion naturally will only come in handy.