![]() ![]() Planks are considered one of the best ab exercises, as nearly every inch of the abdominals is being activated, along with the entire front side of the body. So how do we do this? By keeping it simple and using mostly bodyweight exercises (there are some exceptions, like the Pallof press, below) that work our core as it was designed to work: as a stabilizer. The goal is to avoid contorting the body into unnatural positions while working muscles as they were meant to be worked: together, not in isolation. When it comes to exercise, the most complicated is usually the least effective in terms of results. A rule of thumb regarding abdominal exercises is to create and mimic movements that are natural to the body. ![]() It is only slightly more effective when the pelvis is able to tip forward to aid in lifting the legs, but most of us aren’t strong enough to do this and end up causing even more strain on our hip flexors. The hanging knee raise is another exercise that not only puts extreme stress on the hip flexors but also doesn’t even work the full range of the abdominals. It’s important to mention that regardless of the amount of crunching, whether standard or reverse, it won’t result in the elimination of stubborn love handles. Additionally, there’s a glaring lack of stability in this approach – a crucial aspect that forms the bedrock of all core strength. The potential for the discs to slip due to the fast-paced motion is a real concern. This is essentially a disc injury in the making. The problem with this exercise is usually in the way it’s performed, by slowly lowering the body down to the ground, legs locked in, then shooting up quickly to achieve a contraction in the lower back muscles. ![]() ![]() The back extension is usually performed to work the low back (which is actually the back of your abs) or the rear “love handles,” along with the hamstrings and glutes. Roman Chair Hyperextension (Back Extensions) Importantly, no scientific evidence supports the sauna belt’s effectiveness. Given that spot training is a myth, the notion of localized fat melting by heat is unfounded. Despite the benefits of perspiration, such as detoxification and better circulation, using a belt won’t yield abs. However, this mechanism, far from being beneficial, results in added strain on your hip flexors, thus possibly exacerbating potential injuries ( 3 ).Ī typical “quick weight loss” tactic, the sauna belt claims to trim abdominal fat through enhanced sweating. It incorporates a support system that merely allows you to rock back and forth, primarily utilizing your arms. Unfortunately, the Ab Roller intensifies the inefficacy of an already ineffective Ab exercise – the crunch. The Ab Roller’s manufacturer claims the machine’s head support and arms cradle take the pressure off those body parts. It’s tempting to defend the theory behind the contraption since many of us have experienced neck and upper back pain while doing crunches. The Ab Roller is another piece of equipment millions of viewers of infomercials have (regrettably) been coerced into buying. This incident emphasizes the imperative need for genuine and honest marketing in the fitness industry ( 2 ). They ended up paying a hefty sum of $3 million in civil penalties for their “deceptive weight-loss claims”. Aside from the dangers of this unnatural twisting, most of the tension is pushed onto the hip flexors to drag the torso along (even while facing forward), while the rest is in the arms to hold on to the handles of the machine.Ī crucial point to highlight is that back in 2014, the marketers of the prominent fitness product, Pro-Form Ab Glider, faced severe repercussions. The Ab Glider is reminiscent of the seated spinal twist machine, which causes the spine and discs to swivel while rocking from side to side. Ironically, the twisting motion of these moves – especially by machines such as the seated spinal twist machine –is one of the worst movements for the lumbar spine, which acts as a body stabilizer and is not designed for excessive and unnatural twisting, especially when loaded with weights. Twisting to “engage the obliques” is a practice that has been around since the advent of ab exercises. The sheer pressure of this gravitational force can alone suffice to set up the conditions conducive to a potentially debilitating back injury. Indeed, with the considerable potential risk of tearing one of these crucial flexor muscles, the situation becomes even more severe when we take into account the substantial load that gravity inevitably places on our lower backs. Incline sit-ups are one of the most deceptive of ab machine workouts, not only because they tend to look extremely effective (like an enhanced super-crunch), but also take quite a bit of effort, which makes many believe they’ve gotten an effective ab workout. Unfortunately, the burn induced by incline sit-ups is concentrated in the hip flexors and is especially taxing on their connection point to the upper legs. ![]()
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