Effective Ab Exercises.
One should not forget the three components, for working out one’s abs to get that sculptured look—nutrition, aerobic exercise and abdominal training. You should not have a splashboard stomach with an 8-inch layer of fat over it. For getting a good six-pack, you have to remove the fat that covers your abdominal muscles, and that takes a nutritionally balanced weight-loss diet and aerobic exercise. Your abs can be strengthened even before you lose the fat. The abdominals are core muscles and strong abs stabilizes your spine, give you good posture and balance and help you move smoothly and gracefully.
Anatomy
There are three layers of abdominal muscles. They run in three different directions. The outermost layer contains the outer oblique muscles, which run diagonally along the sides of your abdomen, connecting the posterior ribs, spine and pelvis. The middle layer contains the internal oblique, which run just under the external ones, and the “ rectus “ abdominal. The “rectus” is a broad, flat muscle that runs vertically down the front of your abdomen from the ribs to your pelvis. It is crossed by several horizontal tendons. These give you that six-pack look. The bottom layer contains the transverse abdominal, which runs horizontally across your abdomen from side to side.
By way of general knowledge, you should know what the function of each of the muscles is:
• The rectus flexes your spine.
• The transverse abdominal is primarily used for abdominal breathing.
• The external oblique rotates your body toward the opposite side (contracting the left external oblique causes you to rotate toward the right.)
• The internal oblique rotates your body toward the same side.
Protect Your Spine
While doing abs training, you should not forget that these muscles are attached to your spine. Make sure that you are doing exercises correctly; consult with a trainer if you’re not sure how to perform them.
Full sit ups are not recommended anymore by anyone because they 1) aren’t necessary for exercising your abs and 2) can injure your spine. Doing crunches instead is the most welcome one.
Whenever you are doing ab training, place your hands behind your neck and press your back toward the floor. Keep your knees bent. This protects the natural curves of your spine.
THE MOST IMPORTANT: If you have osteoporosis or a previous back injury, do not forget to check with your doctor before attempting any abs training exercises.
Crunches
The entire abs training exercises are a variation on the basic crunch. You can raise your hips or your shoulders. But the object is to contract the abdominal muscles. The following are a few crunch pointers:
• Save crunches for the end of your workout. Remember, the abdominal muscles are involved in respiration, and you should not exhaust them early in the workout.
• Pull your stomach in—press your belly button into your back to contract the transverse muscle. Remember, you should not hold your breath while you’re doing this.
• Keep your abdominals tightened throughout a series of reps. Make your movements slow and controlled, and pause briefly at the top of each rep.
• Don’t raise your hips or shoulders more than 4-6 inches off the floor—that’s all you need for full contraction of the muscles.
• Do lateral crunches to work the oblique—pointing your left shoulder at your right knee.
Do not forget this! Crunches are the key to strong abs—regular crunches, oblique crunches, hip raises, crunches with added weight. Keep crunching and soon you’ll have great abs.
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