How To Train Your Lower Abs - Is This Even Possible?

I've been involved with exercise and fitness training in some form or another for 22 years. It has become a passion and a way of life for me. So it's no wonder that I get so miffed when I read an article or hear people giving bad information about it.

I understand that some people are only trying to help, but others are doing it to sound important or who knows why. There is one in particular that bothers me the most, exercising your lower abs to get rid of belly fat.

According to the American Council on Exercise, the American Fitness and Aerobics Association and countless others, there is no such thing as lower abdomina's or abs in terms of exercise and muscle grouping. Therefore, it would be impossible to work your lower abs.

Let's look at this scientifically. The abdominals consist of six muscles. The transverse abdominal muscle, which is closest to the spine and responsible for correct spinal posture.

The internal and external obliques (one each on each side of the torso) running from the rib cage down to the pelvis. These are involved in rotation and lateral flexion of the spine or bending from side to side.

And lastly, the rectus abdominus muscle or the six pack muscle which runs from the bottom of the sternum to the middle of the pelvis. This muscle also helps with maintaining, among other things, correct posture.

As you can see, there was no mention of lower abs. I believe the term comes from the fact that belly fat accumulates on the lower portion of our abdominal area and that it has long been thought by many unknowing people that you could reduce body fat in certain areas of the body by working that area.

The muscle everybody is talking about when they refer to upper and lower abs is the rectus abdominus. This muscle is responsible for the six pack that everyone is after.

Something I need to point out, when a skeletal muscle contracts, it does so using the whole muscle. This is important because this explains why we can not work one part of a muscle and not the other. It's as simple as all or nothing.

The second reason for the misinformation besides lack of scientific knowledge, is that many people have the understanding that the abdominals are responsible for hip flexion, or bending at the hip. This however, is not the case. The abs are for spinal flexion and the hip flexors are for hip flexion.

One common exercise people use for targeting the so called "lower abs" is some form of supine leg lift. The muscles that cause the legs to lift or flex are the group of muscles called the hip flexors. You can also feel the muscles in the stomach tighten because of the pelvic tilt. This is a stabilization contraction for the hip flexors.

The muscles that are worked the most during hip flexion are the hip flexors which attach to the spine directly under the abdominal muscles. This is why you may feel sore in the area that would be you lower abdominals after exercising the hip flexors. Exercising these muscles will have no effect on the abs accept possibly help make you stand straight, with good posture.

So now that I have dispelled the myth about spot reducing fat, and the mystery muscles called the lower abs, what can you do to get a stronger, leaner, sculpted set of abdominal muscles?

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Chris Bower
http://2fit2quitonline.com

Effective Abs Exercises - Part II

It is important that you combine the following ab workouts with the others we have previously discussed for more intense results.Alternate exercises which target the front midsection with ab workouts that target the sides.The most common ab workouts revolve around the basic crunches, though variations are made to target nuance areas around the abdomen.

A great thing about the abdominal crunch in exercises is that it focuses the strain all in one small area - that is, the midsection, by controlling contractions.The following ab workouts are designed for a better-rounded abdomen, and also to expose those enviable muscles called the six-pack.

Intense exercises, coupled with an over-all body shaping program, will give proportion to the entire body.Try the following ab workouts to burn that beer belly and reveal that six pack.

Wood chop ab workouts are exercises designed to target your side abdominals.This is a great way for beginners to try out since it involves simple movements while giving great contractions to your abdominals.You begin your exercises by attaching one end of an exercise rubber band to something stationary and sturdy, and then wrap your hand around the other end for increased tension.

Continue your exercises by grasping the end of the rubber band with both hands, and then begin a lunging position, reaching down with the arms.Keep your arms straight the entire time you do your workout, rotate and lift your body sideways while doing a diagonal motion.

Repeat your exercises by returning to starting position and moving to the other side.Trying out this workout tightens your side abdominals if done properly, and preferably regularly.In addition, these ab workouts must not be overdone as it may cause possible irreversible damage to your abdominal muscles.Overdoing your regimen may cause muscle damage and other injuries.

The recommended regimen for your ab workouts would be to perform several exercises, at least three to five at a time, two to three times a week with a day's rest in between ab workouts.The purpose of this is to make sure your abdominals get the most contractions during your regimen while giving them time to relax, thereby reducing muscle tear and other injuries which may be experienced when overdoing ab workouts.

You can start your ab workouts by doing two sets of ten to fifteen repetitions per exercise.As you progress in your exercises, you can move to three sets of twenty repetitions, and so on as you become accustomed to the increasing strain.

Remember, you should not do all of the available exercises in your regimen as there may be strain to your muscles; too much of it results to tissue damage.You can try out these simple exercises and incorporate them in your ab workouts.

In the "Alternating superman" workout, you begin by lying face down on an exercise mat with your arms stretched way above your head, just like superman.You continue your regimen by raising your right arm and left leg about five to six inches off of the floor, or preferably as far as you comfortable can.Hold this position in your exercises for three seconds and then relax your body.Repeat your ab workouts by doing the exact same process with the other arm and leg. In side bend ab workouts, you begin by holding a dumbbell with your hand, then stand with your feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent.Continue your ab workouts by placing your left hand behind your head and slowly bend sideways to your right side while lowering the weights to your knees.Finish your regimen by returning to first position and repeating with the other side.

James never thought he would be a personal gym trainer when he once weighed 311 lbs.He is now a total fanatic about muscle-building and crunches his way through his CSI. Now doing freelance teaching to people who require proper healthy diets, he always advocate his motto of "not giving up".

Get to know more about Ab Workouts Here!

Your Abs Workout Is The Key To Your Six Pack

Your abs workout is one half of a two part "attack plan" for six pack abs. An abs workout coupled with an abs diet is what gives you super defined flat abs. The diet's main function is to reduce the amount of bodyfat you carry so that your ab muscles can poke through and become visible. Your abs workout is designed to strengthen your ab muscles and increase their size and separation so you get the ripped "six pack of beer" look. If you don't want rippling abs, keep up the abs diet but lower the intensity of your abs workout.

To get the best definition possible, the best separation of individual muscle groups (note: your rectus abdominis is actually one single muscle, but has several mini-muscle groups within it. That's what forms your six pack. They'll all part of the same muscle, but they are separated by small areas of tendons and ligaments) and the best overall look, you must follow 3 key principles.

1. Increase strength. Improving overall core strength is a very important part of your abs workout. Having a stable and powerful mid-section will give you the base that you need to perform more advanced exercises to target the other two key principles.

To develop your strength, perform exercises more quickly but still with as much control as you can. If you're already quite strong, you can use weights to boost the difficulty of the exercises. For example, if you're doing sit ups, put a few potatoes in a pillow case and hold it to your chest while you do each repetition. If you're doing vertical leg crunches, strap some ankle weights on and see if you feel the difference.

2. Increase size. If your abs workout increases the strength of your abs, you will see an increase in size too. Bigger abs means they're more likely to show through your body fat, and once you get the separation down, they'll really pop out. To gain size, go for slow reps of the difficult exercises. This is a traditional bodybuilding technique, using heavy weights and controlled repetitions to engage as many muscle fibers as possible for each exercise.

As mentioned above, you can use weights to increase the difficulty, but there are also many natural bodyweight exercises which you can do without weights.

3. Increase separation. Definition comes through two factors in your abs workout - low bodyfat and well separated ab muscles. To ensure you get proper separation and maximum definition, do plenty of cardio so that your bodyfat is low and your skin is tight over your ab muscles, and then make sure you target the abs from many angles within your abs workout. Do lots of different types of abs exercise, and do larger numbers of repetitions to improve overall tone and shape.

A basic abs workout should be planned around your daily routine, and should aim to attack each of the three principles above throughout the week. Go for one of the principles each day to keep yourself interested and motivated, and to keep your body reacting to the new ab exercises you're throwing at it.

Having six pack abs is all about a proper abs workout. If you want to discover how easy it is to organise your abs workout and exactly which exercises you should be including for the best results, check out the The Truth About Six Pack Abs.

David Spencer is a fitness and six pack abs nutcase. He's spent years learning about weight loss and improving muscle definition, and working on his own six pack abs. Start your abs workout today, and have your very own six pack abs in no time.

4 Tips For Developing Incredible Six-Pack Abs

If developing six pack abs is something you’re interested in, then learning the correct way to go about it is essential if you hope to get results.

Thousands of people waste their time with useless ab exercises which do nothing to develop six-pack abs. Thankfully, with a little research you can avoid being another one of these people, and learn the secrets to having a six-pack stomach.

To help you in your quest for six-pack abs, here’s 4 tips on developing a six-pack.

Tip 1 – Don’t waste your time with ab exercises. It’s actually quite possible to develop six pack abs without doing any ab exercises at all. You see, developing a six-pack is about burning off the layer of fat that is currently covering your abdominals. Countless crunches and similar exercises to very little to burn this fat away.

Tip 2 – Nutrition is one of the major factors when it comes to developing six pack abs. You’re diet needs to be carefully designed to make sure you’re not piling on extra body fat to your abdominal area. Some quick research online will uncover plenty of good quality information in this area.

Tip 3 – Add cardiovascular training to your fitness plan. As I mentioned earlier, burning fat from your body is the key to developing six pack abs. Unfortunately, its nearly impossible to burn fat away from a single area of your body – which is why you need an whole-body workout to lower your body’s fat percentage.

Tip 4 – Remember that there’s no quick and easy way for you to get that fitness commercial six-pack. You need an all-round exercise and nutritional program that will allow you to gradually lower your fat percentage, and uncover the six-pack abdominals underneath. You won’t be able to have six-pack abs overnight. But with persistence and the right program, you can see results in a few weeks or months.

Chris Reach is owner of the Truth About Six Pack Abs Review website, where he offers free advice and information on developing six-pack abs. You can find his website here: http://www.truth-about-six-pack-abs-review.com