@laurie386 I'm guessing the atrophy may be from nerves not working that service those muscles from your doctor's comment. You won't know unless you try, right? I went through cervical spine surgery and built core strength back riding my horse at a walk. I have talked about that before on Connect. It helps me have good posture which in turn supports my spine and probably prevents some issues. My surgeon recommended maintaining core strength when I asked how I could avoid needing his services in the future.