Crunches are done by lying on the floor, either on a mat or not, with your arms crossed in front of your chest. Many people do crunches with their hands behind their heads, but this can create lower back problems due to the pull on the head and neck. A slightly different position is to place your fingertips behind your ears rather than crossing them on your chest. It’s important not to pull on the neck or ears for assistance in rising off the floor. Instead, suck the abdomen back toward the spine and inhale through the nose at the same time. Raise the shoulders toward the knees using only the abdominal muscles. The entire back should not be lifted from the floor, as this is likely to create back strain. No additional benefit to the abdomen is gained by raising the entire torso. The key part of the crunch is the initial flexing of the abdominal muscles as the shoulders are lifted off the floor. As the shoulders clear the floor, exhale through your mouth. Complete the exhalation with a gasp to expel the last of the air from the lungs as your shoulders stay clear of the floor. Lower the shoulders back to the point where the shoulder blade touches the ground while inhaling. It’s important to maintain proper breathing control and muscle flexing to get maximum benefit from crunches.

Sit-Ups

Once again, start in a position on the floor with your feet flat and your knees bent. The fingers should be placed behind the ears, or you can cross your arms on your chest. Slowly raise the entire back off the floor while inhaling deeply and exhale as you reverse the move. This exercise can be made more challenging in several ways. For instance, you can do sit-ups from an incline with your head lower than your lower body. You can then add weights on the chest to lift while you are sitting up. Weights can become heavier on an incline bench. The next difficult step can be attained by holding the feet off the ground while doing sit-ups or making a bicycle pedaling motion while doing sit-ups with your legs. These exercises may not be easy but are very beneficial to the abdominal area.

Leg Lifts

Leg lifts begin with the legs straight and the hands at your sides while lying on the floor. Lift both legs up at the same time without bending the knees until the legs are at a ninety-degree angle or as close as possible. Not everyone is flexible enough to reach the ninety-degree angle. Lower the legs as close as possible to the floor without actually touching and repeat several times. Increase the challenge of this exercise by adding weights to the legs while lifting them. Another challenging exercise for improving definition and musculature in the abdomen is to hang from a pull-up bar while lifting both legs to a ninety-degree position. As with most other exercises, try to stay conscious of breathing while slowly doing the routines.

Jackknife Sit-Ups

This exercise begins by lying flat on the floor with the hands at your sides to provide better balance. At the same time, you raise your knees, bring your torso up slowly till the face and knees meet. Return slowly to the original position while in full control of the movement. The jackknife name comes from the natural tendency of the legs to bend at the knee with the feet dropping to the hips presenting the shape of a jackknife. The difficulty level of this position can be increased by holding a weight between the feet while performing the sit-ups.

V-Ups

This exercise begins with you on your back on the floor with the arms extended over your head. Bring both legs and torso up at the same time without bending the knees or the arms. Keep the pace slow and steady and reach for your feet with your extended hands at the top of the arc. If possible, try to touch your feet, but this move can be tricky until your level of flexibility increases. As with other exercises, adding weight between the feet increases the difficulty level.

By incorporating these exercises into your fitness routine, you can target your abdominal muscles effectively. Remember to maintain proper form and breathing control to maximize the benefits and avoid injury. Consistency and dedication are key to achieving those coveted six-pack abs.

Published by May Healthy Lifestyle