Your Best Body Ever

15 Sep 2009

A Few of My Favorite Ab Blasting Moves.

Yesterday I wrote about the abdominals, how they function, what it’s important to remember when training them. I think it’s also important to remember that while you can have very strong abs, they may not achieve that “6 pack” look. Most people have a difficult time getting this way, and a large part of it is really due to genetics. I’ve trained a lot of people at the Diversified Health and Fitness gyms whose bodies just like to store fat in that area.

So while I know that you’d like to have a great 6 pack, in reality, let’s look at just making the abs stronger and more firm. These support your everyday movements, along with your core muscles, and over time and as you age, they’re vitally important for preventing back pain and other body structure issues.

After the “Captain’s Chair” exercise (see yesterday’s post), my next favorite move for your abs would be with the exercise ball. Here’s a rundown of the fun things you can do with this handy piece of equipment:

1. The Basic Ball Crunch: Start by sitting on top of the ball, and then roll your body down until your thighs are perpendicular to the floor. Your knees should be at a 90 degree angle. If you’re already got strong abs, you can roll your body back a little more so more of your back is extended off the ball. If you’re just starting out, almost your whole back should be lying on top of the ball. Place your hands gently behind the neck, in a traditional crunch way, but lightly. Look straight up to the ceiling, don’t bring your chin into your chest. (This is the number one thing I see people doing wrong in every crunch move.) Imagine that there’s an orange between your chin and your chest, and you’re trying to keep it balance there. Then, slowly, sit up slightly, and you’ll feel the abs working. This should be a small, controlled movement. Lower back down, and repeat at least 20 times.
2. The Lying Ball Lift: Lie down on the floor, with the ball between your lower legs and knees. Then lift the ball up, squeezing as you go. Lift your legs up perpendicular to the ground, then lower them slowly back down. This is great for your lower rectus abdominals, and it’s a toughie! Keep repeating until you get to 20 or need to stop.

Ok, now let’s hit those obliques and rectus abdominis muscles again. The “Bicycle” is just the move to do this. So lie down on you back, place your fingers behind your head. Bring the knees into the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground at the same time. Straighten the left leg out while simultaneously twisting the right side of the body, bringing the right elbow to the left knee. Switch sides, bringing the left elbow to the right knee. Continue alternating sides in a “pedaling motion” for 12 -16 reps. The American College of Sports Medicine counts this as its number one move in your quest for a 6 pack, and it really does work.

I’ve got some clients coming into 123Fit, so I need to go…give these a shot and I’ll be giving more advanced abdominal moves in the near future!

14 Sep 2009

The Elusive 6 Pack…

One of the most common requests I hear at Diversified Health and Fitness gym is the request for “6 Pack Abs”. These, besides the perfect butt, seem to be the Holy Grail of working out. And while there are many things you can do to get your abs in gear, it’s important to understand the abs and how to best acheive results.

Your abs are not just the space between your chest and your bikini line. Your abdominal muscles are a part of your core muscles, which is the group that supports your entire middle zone. That’s pretty much the neck down to the mid part of your thigh. You core is vitally important in almost every exercise you perform, so strengthening this entire area is, without a doubt, a very important goal. You engage your entire core in everyday movements, all the time.

But let’s focus on your front abdominal muscles, the ones that you’d like to look like a washboard. A lot of my clients think that if they just do 100 crunches a day, they’ll be well on their way. And while this can help a little, it’s not going to help if you have a layer of fat over your muscles, and if you’re only doing crunches. So it’s important to attack this from all sides: proper nutrition, smart exercise, and minimizing stress. Why the last one? Studies have shown that increased stress packs on the midsection pounds.

It’s also important to know that some abdominal exercises are much more effective than others. It’s also better to really work out your abs in a short amount of time with highly effective exercises than to waste time and energy on the aforementioned 100 daily crunches.

According to research, the single best move you can do for your abs is the device in your gym called “The Captain’s Chair.” This is a great piece of equipment that you hoist yourself between the two side supports on your elbows and forearms, which will cause your legs to dangle. Now bring your legs up from the waist for as long as you can to work those rectus abdominals, and then turn to the side and work those obliques. This is an AB KILLER, and believe me, yours will be burning in no time! My clients hate it when I put them on here, but they’re not paying me to not get them results. You’ll see some results too when you’re on here for awhile, I promise!

The second best thing you can do is use an inflatable exercise ball. Besides being a lot of fun, these work on your stabilizer muscles as well, and those sometimes get less use than they should. For core work, the ball is a must, and it’s very versatile. Tomorrow I’ll go over some more exercises on the ball, but most gyms have them and they should not be ignored.

The traditional crunch can still work wonders, it’s true. However, it’s important to switch up that crunch a little so you get the most out of the exercise (we’ll also touch on form for crunches tomorrow) and also work all the various areas of your abdominals. And unlike the others, the crunch is easy to do in a hotel room or when you’re at home, during TV commercials (hint, hint!)

So tune in tomorrow for my favorite ab blasting exercises!