The story of the "Weak Core"

This was originally sent to my subscribers as a Saturday Love Letter on 14 March 2026.
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For the longest time I thought core was equal to abs.

I thought that a strong core meant tight abs.

What do you think of when you hear the term core?

In my clinic, quite often women comment on their expanding core muscles as weak. They find it hard to adapt to the changes in the core of their bodies. My job is to help you find balance in an ever expanding body.

When we start to think about the core in terms of balance, we can regulate the pressure inside it. This supports your baby’s positioning for birth, which in turn supports you in giving birth. 

You see, this is entirely reciprocal. You and your baby work in unison.

Your core is defined not just by the muscles in your abdomen but by your respiratory diaphragm at the top and by your pelvic floor muscles (sometimes called the pelvic diaphragm) at the bottom. 

And guess what?

The pressure inside your core is regulated by the breath!

Enter deep connected breathing! 

Mindful, mind-body connected deep breathing. You can foster this by focusing on your solar plexus area just below the ribs. This will shift it from being a hypnobirthing technique to being a holistic practice.

And pardon the pun, this is also the core of the work that I do. 

So here’s a core exercise that you quite possibly would never have guessed:

Each morning, before you do anything else, stand in mountain pose for just a minute. Close your eyes and let the weight settle through your spine. This will help you find your centre of gravity for the day. This is great in pregnancy and postpartum but also at any stage in life. 

Now breathe deeply into the base of the ribs. Perhaps count to three on the inhale and exhale to a count of six. Do this three times.

This helps your ribs expand and recoil, relieving back pain, and it keeps your two diaphragms nice and elastic, exercising your pelvic floor in a gentle way that invites balance rather than strength. Watch as it calms your central nervous system.

Moving forward is much easier with a calm mind and comfortable body.

If you would like help restoring balance to your core and breath in pregnancy, I offer one-to-one sessions tailored entirely to you. We work with diaphragm, pelvic floor and fascia to create space and regulation from the inside out.

I have two spaces available for home visit packages in April. These work beautifully in the final weeks of pregnancy, or earlier if you would like ongoing support.

My clinics in Belfast and Draperstown are also open for 60- and 90-minute sessions.

Simply email me to [email protected], and we’ll find what suits you best.

Love,

Nicole

p.s. oh and for a fun day out with your birth partner learning about all of this, why not join us for our Born Through Yoga workshop in April?