Abdominal Training – a Double-Edged Sword?
by Yuri in Truth About Abs
Ask any fitness buff about their goals and you are sure to hear them say that they want a 6-pack or a trim waistline. After all, who wouldn’t want stronger and more defined abs?
But what most people don’t realize is that traditional abdominal training, which involves lots of crunches, sit ups, and leg lifts, puts a great deal of stress on the spine. Our anatomy is such that “hip flexion†(bending forward from the waist or raising the legs towards the torso) creates an unforgiving pulling and compressing effect on the vertebrae.
The irony is that any dynamic movement about the hips that provides great rectus abdominus stimulation can also be dangerous for the back. Professor Stuart McGill, professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo, was one of the first to demonstrate this fact.
His work eventually led to the necessity of core/abdominal training whereby a neutral spine is maintained. This means performing exercises where the spine upholds its natural curvature (ie. no bending back and forth).
His work showed that traditional crunches impose large amounts of strain on the lower back. Furthermore, crunches on the stability ball, which elicit even greater abdominal muscle activation, imparted even more stress on the lower back.
So, the reality is that any ab/core exercise that involves forward bending strains the lower back, and the more activation created in the abdominal muscles, the more the lower back is at risk.
Ok, so how do you train your core effectively without compromising the health of your spine and low back? It’s simple – use stability exercises that ensure a neutral spine while recruiting greater amounts of the deeper abdominal muscles.
Here are 3 highly effective and back-friendly ab exercises:
1. Side Plank – On your right side, stack your feet and place your right forearm underneath your armpit. Now, using the muscles on the side of your abdominal wall, push your hips up so that your feet and forearm support your body. Hold for 30 seconds and then repeat on other side.
2. Prone Stability Ball Roll Out – Position yourself in a push-up position overtop the stability ball with your legs straight, toes on the floor, and hands holding near the sides of the ball. Ensure a neutral spine and tuck your tailbone under. Now, keeping your body completely still, roll the ball forward a few inches, and then back, so that only your arms are moving. Repeat for 10-15 reps.
3. Stability Ball Plank with Feet on Bench – Position your forearms on the ball as if doing a regular plank and raise your feet onto a bench so that your body is parallel to the floor. Ensure that you tuck in your abdominals and keep your spine neutral. No arching of the lower back. Hold for 30-60 seconds.
Learn how to train your abs properly here…
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