As you may know from my last post, the abdominal region has several muscles that you can target with different exercises. The lower part of your abs is a bit harder to hit, as it is easy to use your lower back or hip flexors in these exercises. Therefore, form and posture are very important in these exercises. Lower abs are easier to target by moving your legs in contrast to upper abs, where you mostly move your upper body. By moving your legs, your hip flexors tend to become exhausted simultaneously with your abs. You want to try and prevent yourself from tiring out due to your legs, rather than to your abs. Thus, I would recommend doing lower abs with light training sneakers and not on your leg day in the gym. Additionally, I would not recommend doing lower abs the same day you plan to or have run. Leg day and running tire out your hip flexors, thus limiting your ability to do a good lower ab day. Here are some hip flexor stretches that will be good to do before your workout.
The workout is as follows:
Flutter kicks: 0:20 on 0:10 rest for 3 minutes
Helicopters: 0:15 on 0:15 rest for 3 minutes
100 track abs
4 sets of 20 double leg lifts
4 sets of 20 crunch ins
Chances are you don’t know what half of that meant. I will try my best to explain every exercise verbally, but it is best to just try them out yourself and get a feel for it. If you can feel your lower abs working and no strain in your lower back or neck, then you are probably doing it right.
Flutter kicks?
Put your hands under your tailbone and press your lower back to the ground. Keep your legs straight and lift them up about a foot off the ground. Then, start doing small kicks and of course, start the timer! For an added challenge, you can try a lift your head and look at your feet.
Helicopters?
Same setup as flutter kicks, but instead of small kicks, cross one leg over the other and vice versa.
Track abs?
If you don’t know what these are, you’re missing out on a good one! Check out my last post to see what these are.
Double leg lifts?
Same beginning setup as flutter kicks, but instead of lifting your legs up a foot off the ground, lift them up until the bottom of your shoes are facing the ceiling. Begin to slowly lower both your legs at the same time towards the ground without touching it. When you’re about 6 inches away from the ground, lift them back up. That counts as one.
Crunch ins?
Begin in a crunching position. Then, just like a normal crunch, you are going to engage your core and bring in both your upper and lower body. Your elbows and knees are basically going to “high five” right around the center of your torso.
Here are some well deserved abdominal stretches to finish your workout. Remember that these workouts get easier the more you do them! Best of luck!
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