The Worst Ab Exercises: What to Avoid in Your Quest for Perfect Abs

The Worst Ab Exercises: What to Avoid in Your Quest for Perfect Abs
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Wasting Your Time With Ineffective Exercises

Getting six-pack abs takes work. It’s a combination of good diet, cardio workouts, and abdominal and back exercises.

Many people think they know how to get washboard abs, but so often waste time on abdominal exercises that are either ineffective or dangerous. Avoid the worst ab exercises so you can focus your time and energy on performing only the best abdominal exercises.

What to Avoid: The Worst Ab Exercises

  • Old-fashioned sit-ups. Old-fashioned sit-ups involve moving your torso from the floor up to your knees, usually with your hands pulling on your head. These sit-ups are a waste of time because they work the hip flexors mainly, not the abs. Besides targeting the wrong area, these sit-ups can also put stress on the lower back.

  • Standing twists with a weight bar. Twists with a weight bar are only good for warming up your core muscles. Because there’s no resistance, the twisting motion only stretches your core. The abs won’t get stronger or firmer with this exercise.

  • Straight leg lift. The straight leg lift is meant to tone lower abdominals, but when done correctly this exercise uses mainly leg and lower back strength. In addition, it poses a risk of lower back injury because it puts so much stress on that area.

  • Excessive crunch reps. Your abs are like any other muscle group in your body, and they need the proper balance of exercise and rest. Yet when it comes to the abs many people think more reps are better. But that’s not the case. You wouldn’t do 1,000 leg presses, so why consider 1,000 crunches? The truth is that when it comes to abdominal exercises, quality counts for more than quantity. If you’re doing more than 50 crunches in a session, you’re probably not getting any extra benefit out of the repetition.

  • Crunches with your knees dropped to one side. If you have a bad back, crunches with your knees dropped to one side can aggrevate or create back pain. Because the legs are dropped, the spine is twisted. When you crunch, you are compressing the vertebrae in this position. There are other ab exercises that are just as effective, yet don’t put so much stress on your spine.

Burn Belly Fat Effectively: The Best Ab Exercises

Now that you know what not to do, burn belly fat using the best, most effective ab exercises. The most effective ab exercises place little stress on delicate areas of the body while targeting the core.

  • The bicycle exercise. The bicycle exercise is one of the best abdominal exercises because it engages the rectus abdominus and obliques.

  • Captain’s Chair leg raise. A captain’s chair is a rack with two arm rests. You’ll hoist yourself up onto the arm rests, leaving your legs free to dangle. In this position, you’ll engage upper body strength to hold you in the rack while you lower and raise your legs to work the abs.

  • Crunches on an exercise ball. Crunches on an exercise ball engage the rectus abdominus. As you crunch, you will be forced to stabilize yourself on the ball, engaging the entire core.

  • Long arm crunch. The long arm crunch focuses on working your upper abs. With knees bent and flat on the floor, you’ll extend your arms straight out behind your head. Keeping the arms straight, engage your upper abs to lift your shoulders off the floor.

  • Plank position. The plank exercise is one of the best ab exercises because it works both your abs and back. The plank forces you stabilize yourself as you maintain a straight body position on your toes and forearms. Hold the plank for 20 to 60 seconds, and you’ll feel the burn in your midsection.

  • Remember that even the most effective ab exercises only tone abdominal muscles. They don’t burn belly fat. If you want to lose your belly fat, you’ll have to do cardio exercise and eat a healthy diet.

  • To strengthen your abs effectively, you’ll also have to train your back. Your back and core work as a group, so you can’t neglect one and focus solely on the other.

Source

“New Study Puts the Crunch on Ineffective Ab Exercises” – ACE Fitness Matters