Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Abdominal Muscles

By Philip K. Brody


People enthusiastic about their bodies health normally wish t develop their abs more than any other muscle. Many of them do not understand that ones abs is not one single muscle. The abs is actually a group of muscles. As a result, the way to get the best work out for abdominal muscles is by using different exercise. One can find many exercises which will potential help develop ones abs.

The abs exercise with the highest popularity is the crunch. This exercise is executed by lying face up on the floor with the knees slightly bent and then lifting the upper-body off of the floor towards the thighs. To deepen this exercise, one can execute the crunch while holding an exercise ball between ones legs.

An effective deviation of the crunch exercise is to cross one leg across ones mid-section while the knees are bent laying one foot on the opposite knee. After a few repetitions, one would then switch legs and perform the crunches again. Switching between legs while crunching presents different resistant to the abdomen muscles providing a great work out.

Another variation to the crunch exercise is the reverse crunch. In this exercise, one would lie on ones back and engage the abs by lifting the lower body upwards towards the chest instead of lifting the upper torso off of the floor towards the knees. Utilize slow and controlled motion to optimize the workout. As with most exercises, the effectiveness comes from using proper form.

Another exercise which is excellent for abs is the hanging knee lift. This exercise is done by hanging from a pull-up bar and bending at the pelvis to lift your knees towards your upper torso. People sometimes execute this exercise incorrectly because they allow there upper body to sway and bend at the hip. By swaying and bending at the hip, one works out the hip flexor, not the abdomen. The way to execute this exercise correctly is to keep ones upper body as still as possible and lift at the pelvis moving the legs and knees as one unit.

Another good abdominal exercise is the bicycle. The bicycle is done by lying face-up on the floor and lifting the legs at a 45 degree angle above the ground. With hands held tightly behind the head, one would motion the legs as if riding on a bike. To get the best results form this exercise, the upper body should twist so that ones elbows can alternately touch the opposite knees as the legs contract and extend keeping the abdomen tight throughout this exercise.

One alteration to the bicycle exercise is to alternate between fast and slow speeds. This presents the abdominal muscle group with alternating resistance which helps with development. Another alteration is to pause during this exercise and then extend one fully extend one leg holding it at a 45 degree angle above the floor keeping the other leg in a crouched position. After a few seconds, switch and hold the other leg at a 45 degree angle above the floor while keeping the first leg in a couched position.

To get the best effect, the same exercise should not be executed every day. One should do different exercises to avoid working-out the same group of muscles in the exact same way on consecutive days. By using different exercises, one can potentially obtain the best work out for the abdominal muscles.




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