MOBO
Core Exercises

The Role of Posture in Health and Sports Performance

Your core and upper body are integral to posture, health, and performance. But posture isn't just about standing up straight. Rather, it's building awareness and alignment to prevents over-stressing your body and maintain efficiency.

Our daily habits leave most of us slumped and hunched, reinforcing poor positions. It's time to break the cycle and build the postural endurance you need to breathe better, feel better, and perform better.

This series links your core and upper body with your foundation below. The goal isn't just to master an exercise—it's to build the SKILL of postural control that transfers into the activities and sports you love.

How to integrate these exercises: Pick 1-3 exercises each session, focusing on two things:

  1. Keep your torso stacked over your hips. When aligned, you'll feel equal weight between your heel and ball of foot, and your MOBO will stay quiet through each rep. Wobbling? Reduce your range of motion until you master smaller movements. Your body learns by finding and feeling the right position.

  2. Build awareness in your arms, shoulder blades, and spine. Your sport doesn't care how many crunches you can rep out—it cares how well you integrate control throughout your entire body.

Posture isn't about standing straight. It's about building awareness and endurance to maintain your best position for everything you love to do.

Overhead Press

Grab a 5-15 lb weight, or a full milk jug from the fridge and stand on your MOBO. Hold the weight in your left hand, and press it overhead for 5 reps, then pass the weight to the right hand for 5 reps, back to the left for 5 reps, and then finish with 5 more reps on the right hand. Your goal is to keep your posture centered (no arching as the weight goes overhead) and the MOBO stable. Now flip the MOBO over and work the left foot in the same way.

Empty hexagonal pattern background

Mobo Planks

place fins in the EVEN slots, and set the board in front of your so that it tilts right/left. Place both hands on the board and aim to keep it as quiet as possible as you perform the following sequence: Left leg up, Right leg up, Left knee to chest, Right knee to chest. Repeat this for 3 sets of 30 seconds.

Press + Row

Attach a band in front of you and grab the end in one hand, and hold a weight in your opposite hand. Aim to keep your MOBO still and quiet as your row the band into your hips and press the weight overhead at the same time. Ensure your ribs stay stacked over your hips as you row and you don’t flare your ribs and arch your back on each rep. Do 25 reps on each leg.

Barband Twist

Lots going on here to challenge rotational control through the foot, hips, and trunk….all layered onto a squat pattern. Anchor your resistance band behind you and wrap the opposite end around a ski pole or broom. The band should be coming from your left side. Now step up onto your MOBO with your right leg and your left leg elevated behind you. Next, drop down into a lunge keeping your knee and foot pointing straight ahead, and twist your trunk to the right, and then back to center and up. This is one full rep. Do 2 sets of 15 each foot.

Tippy Lat Row

Attach a resistance band to something in front of you approximately shoulder height and grab the ends with both hands. Space your MOBO appropriate distance from the wall so that you can hinge into a tippy bird position with some tension on the band to start. Aim to keep your hips LEVEL as you row your elbows into your hips and then straight again. Perform 2 sets of 15 reps on each foot.

Three Point Star

Tie a loop into one side of your band and thread it through the open fin slot in your board. Step onto your board, and with straight arms, aim to keep your MOBO quiet as you hinge. forward while extending your arms overhead. Ensure hips stay level as you hinge. Perform 25 reps on each foot.

Clean + Press

This single leg clean variation covers a lot of bases in one move. Step onto your MOBO with your left foot and a weight or gallon of water in your right hand. Now push your hips back into a lunge, and drive back up again, bringing your weight up to your chest and then up overhead. Aim to keep the MOBO quiet, your hips and shoulders level, and avoid arching your low back as you drive the weight overhead. Lots of coordination going on! Do 2 sets of 15 each foot.

Shoulder Extension

Attach a resistance band to something in front of you approximately shoulder height and grab the ends with both hands. Stand on your MOBO, and aim to keep the board quiet as you keep elbows straight and row from front to back. Your weight should be felt evenly split through your entire foot as you row. Perform 2 sets of 15 reps on each foot.

Posture Drill

Your posture matters in terms of durability and performance. This simple sequence will teach you to FEEL the skill of better position for a better run! Practice early and often to ensure your core training TRANSFERS into your sport.

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