Abdominal Exercises

Your abdominal muscles are a group of six muscles – the transverse abdominals, the internal obliques, the external obliques, and the rectus abdominus – which wrap from your back all the way around your body, performing as a built-in “girdle” to support your organs and hold comfortable, upright posture. These muscles work together and individually, improving equilibrium and stability. Keeping your abdominals toned and solid is the key to avoiding back pain and injury. Healthy abs also play a leading role in excelling at competitive and individual sports, providing the keystone axis for other muscle groups. Abdominal exercises usually work more than one of the six muscles at once, helping each muscle to improve its strength and as part of a healthy, well interconnected muscle group.

Perhaps the most familiar of the ab exercises is the basic sit-up. Once the linchpin of phys ed classes and qym exercises worldwide, it’s been established that the full sit-up, performed in the traditional way, is actually not very effective in pin pointing and strengthening the ab muscles – and it can cause significant risk of back and neck pain . Today, the old-fashioned sit-up has been replaced by the ab crunch. Depending upon which way the crunch is performed , different abdominal muscle groups can be toned . For instance, adding torsion to the crunch works your oblique muscles – the muscles that stretch along the side of your abdomen, creating your waistline. Exercis ing your ab muscles can do more than make you look fit and trim – strong, toned abdominals are an necessary? part of a healthy body, preventing back pain and injury and improving your overall endurance and staying power. Popular and proven exercises for improving abdominal strength and conditioning include the following. Air Bicycling – This tried-and-true favorite among exercise physiologists is a surefire way to target your obliques, as well as the central rectus abdominus, or “six-pack” muscle. Exercise Ball Crunch – Another great exercise for the rectus abdominus, the addition of an exercise ball to a regular crunch gives the move the extra leverage needed to really stretch and tone those central abdominal muscles. Long Arm Crunch – Similar to a regular crunch, but performed with the arms extended over the head, this exercise focuses on the often difficult upper abs. Oblique Crunches – A variation on the traditional ab crunch, the side-to-side motion of this exercise is intended to firm and tone the oblique muscles. Using a resistance band or medicine ball can increase the torsion effect of some exercises designed for the obliques. Hand weights can be added to abdominal exercise routines for added resistance, especially for exercises which target the central muscles of the abdomen.

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