Floor Crunches
By Ronald Abvajee
| *
consult
your general practitioner before attempting these
recommendations |
 For many people a layer of fat covers the abdominal muscles. In addition, no matter how many crunches they do, they will not see those powerful muscles until that healthy roll around the midsection is gone and their body fat percentage reaches the single digits for men or the lowers teens for women. Only then will they uncover those muscles they have worked so hard to build.
Nothing beats floor exercises for developing firm, muscular abs.
| Starting position: |
 · Lie flat on your back with your feet flat on the ground, or resting on a bench with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle
·
If you are resting your feet on a bench, place them three to four inches apart, and point your toes inward so that they touch.
·
Place your hands slightly on either side of your ears, keeping your elbows in. |
| The Exercise: |
 ·
Push the small of your back down into the floor to isolate your abdominal muscle.
·
Begin to roll your shoulders up, keeping your knees and hips stationary and contracting your abs to lift your shoulders off the floor.
·
Continue to push down as hard as you can with lower back.
·
Your shoulders should come up off the floor only about four inches, and your lower back should remain on the floor.
·
Focus on slow, controlled movement-don't cheat yourself by using momentum |
| Tip: Remember, to get the maximum intensity from the exercise, you must focus on the contraction of the abdominal muscles during each repetition. |
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