abs

[KasiaMJ]

Any suggestions on how to make the swiss ball crunch even more challenging? I did the hardest version Lou suggested, but still can do 15 reps without a problem? Would it be ok to add some more ab exercises to stage 1? I love the burn in my abs while exercising and found that doing supersets for the abs really gets them.

I can imagine what Lou would say to this (page 233)

[missjane]

I do my crunches very slowly -- about 5-10 seconds per rep. I use a long arm and make sure my arms stay glued to my ear. I make sure that my chin is up -- as if I had a tennis ball between my chin and my chest. You need to really concentrate on the contraction.

Check out the videos on this thread:

2 Questions

[GinaKina]

I asked this question too. I've been doing them with my arms over my head, slowly, like missjane suggested, and I've been able to feel them. Have you been working out for awhile previous to this?

[Natalia]

What Jane said .....also try squeezing one of them yoga block between your knees while doing the crunches - helps isolate the ab muscles.

[Ciao]

Natalia,
I loved your new avatar! I checked out your page and your transformation left me speechless! CONGRATULATIONS!
The Italian with a Russian name,
Olga.

[Deserve]

Can you do it with a dumbbell held to your chest to add some more resistance? I admit it's been awhile since I've done direct ab work.

[pursuingpurls]

I do them with my feet elevated on a step (no risers, just the step) and with my arms straight over my head holding a medicine ball. I tried many different variations, but this one challenged me the most

[Natalia]

Originally Posted by Ciao

Natalia,
I loved your new avatar! I checked out your page and your transformation left me speechless! CONGRATULATIONS!
The Italian with a Russian name,
Olga.

Hey, Olga, thanks! I got a very good friend by that name

[instantblue]

I had this same issue, too! Like everyone suggested, try holding weight with straight arms over your head. Also, make sure you're going all the way back, arching your back around the curve of the ball. Going all the way back like that makes it work my abs much more than just going "flat."

[Natalia]

Originally Posted by instantblue

I had this same issue, too! Like everyone suggested, try holding weight with straight arms over your head. Also, make sure you're going all the way back, arching your back around the curve of the ball. Going all the way back like that makes it work my abs much more than just going "flat."

Pavel Tsatsouline (a fitness instructor and a nationally ranked kettlebell competitor in the former Soviet Union) does advocate this exercise, but I wouldn't suggest it just for anyone. People, whose abs are not strong enough can definitely hurt their spine doing those. Approach with caution!

[instantblue]

Oh, wow! I didn't mean to go back that far on the ball. I meant more like what is shown in the video in this post. I have the ball farther back, more under my back and less under my butt, so I couldn't roll all the way down to the follow like that!

[missjane]

Same here....I think when people say that crunches aren't hard there are a few reasons why:

1. They are more using the ball under their butt, instead of their back, as you said

2. They are using the upward momentum of their body to pull them up instead of their abs (ie, when I see people with their hands clasped behind their head and they are really PULLING on their head to get up!)

3. They are not consciously CONTRACTING those abs and really crunching them (slowly, too).

4. Keeping my chin up and not tucked into my chest really helps as well (as I mentioned before, picture holding a tennis ball there).

[LisaC]

When these feel easy, I check myself and usually realize a form error - rolling the ball under my butt as I sit up -- this uses my legs instead of my quads.

When I'm focused, they're tough! I still do 25 at a time, but with a struggle.

[KasiaMJ]

Thank you for your suggestions. I've noticed the ball crunch works the best for me with legs up on the wall and hands placed lightly behind the neck. Next time I'll also try to add some weight. I've been exercising for a while prior to this and am sure my form is good. I guess I didn't realize how strong my abs got already.
Great forum.

[Heatrae]

In NROL and the women's version, there's only one exercise to hit abs. Are people really seeing results from just this one exercise (i.e., swiss ball at the end, or hanging legs, etc.)

There's always just one exercise prescribed and I'm wondering if people are doing just that, or adding more in there and doing several movements at teh end of their NROL wo.

Thanks!

[prof41]

Originally Posted by Heatrae

In NROL and the women's version, there's only one exercise to hit abs. Are people really seeing results from just this one exercise (i.e., swiss ball at the end, or hanging legs, etc.)

There's always just one exercise prescribed and I'm wondering if people are doing just that, or adding more in there and doing several movements at teh end of their NROL wo.

Thanks!

Hey there.

Yup, I'm doing just the prescribed abs....although I try to make them count seriously, and add weights on the swiss ball. I find that all the excercises if done with correct form and with enough weight work your abs anyway....albeit not directly.

Plus I'm sure I have fabulous abs underneath that layer of fat that I need to get rid of Working on that is my main goal!!!

[JustKim]

While there might be only one exercise that targets just the abs, most of the exercises require a lot of core strength and the abs work a lot stabilizing the exercises that I can tell. I think over time of doing the Stages you will find a lot of ab strength without having to do loads of "core" exercises.

[missjane]

There are tons of exercises in NROL4W that work the core! Crunches, jackknives, reverse crunches, planks, side flexion and all of the single leg work that requires core stability. How about squats, too. LOTS of core work in NROL4W.

[Ruthie]

There's not really anything that works the obliques in stage 1. I felt I lost a bit of definition in my abs in stage 1 (in the bits that I can see above the fat layer ), but stage 2 looks more challenging.