You do the planks. You suffer through the crunches. You eat clean. Yet, when you look in the mirror, your core still looks weak, your lower stomach distends, and your lower back aches constantly.
You assume you just need to lose more weight, or maybe work out harder. But what if the problem has nothing to do with fat or laziness?
What if the problem is your bones?
There is a structural condition called "Rib Flare" that is rampant in modern bodies. It effectively disconnects your abs from your skeleton. If you have it, it is physically impossible to have a flat stomach, no matter how many salads you eat, because your ribcage is literally pushing your abdominal wall outward.
Your core isn't weak. It’s just turned off.
The Mirror Check
You can’t feel Rib Flare, but you can see it instantly. Go find a mirror. Lift your shirt or wear something tight. We are going to look at the bottom edge of your ribcage.
Step 1: Stand naturally. Take a deep breath in.
Step 2: Raise both arms straight up over your head, reaching for the ceiling.
Step 3: Look at your lower ribs. Do they poke out aggressively? Do they look like two wings trying to escape from your chest skin?
Step 4: The Real Test. Keep looking at those ribs and slowly lower your arms back to your sides. Did the ribs drop down and blend into your stomach, or did they stay popped out?
The Diagnosis
If your lower ribs are jutting out past your chest muscles—creating a visible ridge or a "shelf" above your stomach—you have Rib Flare.
This isn't just a cosmetic annoyance. This is a mechanical failure.
Ideally, your ribcage (diaphragm) and your pelvis should be stacked directly on top of each other, like a canister. When they are stacked, your core works automatically.
When your ribs flare up, that canister breaks open. We call this "Open Scissors" posture. Your back arches excessively to compensate, and your diaphragm is now pointing forward instead of down.
Here is the scary part: When your ribs are flared, your core is paralyzed.
Why Your Abs "Quit"
Your "internal corset"—the Transverse Abdominis muscle that wraps around your waist and makes you look slim—attaches to your lower ribs.
When your ribs flare up and out, they stretch that muscle to its limit. Imagine stretching a rubber band until it’s taut; it loses all its elasticity and power. Because the muscle is over-stretched, it cannot contract. It cannot pull your stomach in.
This is why you have that "pooch" in your lower belly. It’s not fat; it’s your organs pushing out against an abdominal wall that has been structurally disabled.
Furthermore, because your core is offline, your lower back has to take 100% of the load. That "tired back" feeling you get after standing for 20 minutes? That is Rib Flare crushing your lumbar spine.
Knit The Ribs Back Together
You cannot diet your way out of a skeletal position. You have to mechanically realign the ribcage to point down.
Physical therapists call this "knitting the ribs." It involves retraining the oblique muscles to pull the ribcage back into a stacked position. But doing this on your own is incredibly difficult because your brain has forgotten what "neutral" feels like.
You need tactile feedback. You need The Posture Bar.
The Posture Bar acts as an external guide for your internal alignment. It applies gentle, consistent compression to the lower ribcage, giving your body the sensory cue it needs to drop the ribs and engage the deep core.
It forces the "canister" to close.
The moment your ribs drop into the correct position, two things happen instantly:
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Your lower back tension vanishes because the core turns back "on."
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Your waistline instantly shrinks as the Transverse Abdominis is finally able to contract and pull everything in.
Stop doing crunches on a broken foundation. Fix the flare first.
