Abdominal Exercises

In case you missed my other weight-lifting posts here they are:

Today’s post is about ABs! Before getting into the actual exercises it is important to understand some “myths” about abdominal exercises. A lot of people are under the impression that in order to “trim” their waist line and get ride of the “pooch” that they should do crunches. This is note true. “You cannot spot reduce fat (except with surgery) with crunches alone”. Ab exercises will train your abdominal muscles, but you will still have fat sitting on top of your 6-pack abs unless of course you create a calorie deficit (consume less than you burn). The most effective combination to getting in shape and leading a healthy life is aerobic exercise, strength/weight training and healthy eating habits.

There are a couple of other things you should know before I begin talking about the actual exercises. Do Ab exercises SLOWLY. Going fast just increases your momentum and this in turn lowers the control you have over your muscles. Going fast will also decrease the effectiveness of the exercise and use muscles that shouldnt be used!

Another important thing to remember is…Quality NOT quantity. You want to use the correct muscles to do the work and avoid usingmuscles that allow you to cheat or do the exercise easier. Go slow and make easy rep effective.

Okay…now onto the main event…

Standard Crunch

Lie on back with knees bent. Lift your shoulders off the floor, concentrating on moving your ribs towards your hips.

Pretend an orange is under your chin so you don’t move your head. To make it easier put your hands on your chest but if you want the challenge put your hands straight out above head.

Reverse Curl

Lie on your back and bend your knees toward your chest as far as is comfortable, keeping hips on the floor. Contract your abdominal muscles to lift hips off the floor and bring knees toward chest. Don’t swing your legs! Concentrate on using your abs to lift your pelvis toward your lower rib cage. Keep your hands on the floor if you want to go easier. If you want to challenge yourself…hands over head.

Bicycle

Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground. Put your hands beside your head. Bring knees up to about 45- degree angle and slowly go through a bicycle pedal motion. Touch your left elbow to your right knee, then your right elbow to your left knee. Repeat.

Captain’s Chair Leg Raise

The key to keeping this exercise effective is to avoid swinging the legs or using momentum to bring the legs up. Second, keeping the knees bent will

help you focus more on the abdominals and less on the hip flexors.

How to:

Stand on the chair and grip handholds to stabilize your upper body.
Press your back against the pad and contract the abs to raise the legs and lift knees towards your chest.
Don’t arch the back or swing the legs up.
Slowly lower back down and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.

Plank

Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor.
Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows.
Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels.
Tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking up in the air or sagging in the middle.

if this is too difficult for you…try the modified version:

I sometimes get bored of plank so I to incorporate some variations in the mix…. I do Knee to nose, Knee to outside, Toe Tap (side to side), move my toes front and back

Scissors:

Extend your legs fully with a slight bend in your knees. Lift your heels about 6 inches off the floor. Make small, rapid up and down scissor-like motions with your legs. The key is to focus on having your midsection do the work and to keep your abs constantly contracted throughout the exercise.

Russian Twists

Begin sitting on the floor with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Hold the medicine ball and extend your arms out in front of you, and recline back so that your body is angled about 45 degrees.Keeping your lower body still, twist your body to the right and then to the left.

NOTE: The more you lean back, the more challenging this exercise becomes. To make this exercise more challenging you can lift your feet about 1-2 inches off the floor and keep you feet in the air during the entire set.

Dead Bug

Lie with back on a mat,hands by your sides, knees bent at a 90-degree angle, and feet off the floor. Tighten abs, and slowly lower left leg toward floor, straightening leg, as shown. Stop when you feel lower back coming off the floor. Return to starting position, then switch legs. Alternate for one minute.

Question: What is your favorite Abdominal exercise?

Tagged as: bicycle crunches, captain's chair leg raise, dead bug, plank, reverse crunch, russian twists, scissors, standard crunch

{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }

Caroline February 19, 2011 at 4:10 pm: I like to do a reverse crunch with a medicine ball, where your hands are on the ground in push up position and the tops of your feet are on the top of the ball and then you pull your knees into your stomach and out straight again.
For me, discovering the key to abs is to go slow has made all the difference.
Mary & Christina February 20, 2011 at 10:11 pm: thats a good one! I am going to try it at the gym tomorrow-I hope I dont loose my balance and roll off the ball and make myself look like a fool! hahah
Kaitlyn March 2, 2011 at 1:14 pm: These exercises look great! We should incorporate them into our day of lifting/swimming!
Tummy Tuck Belt June 21, 2011 at 1:14 pm: Thanks for pointing out the difference between working out your abdominals and losing stomach fat. It’s intriguing to consider how the combination of a healthy diet and exercise may aid in this regard.

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