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What is it for?
This exercise of course works the stomach muscles and is fairly similar to the reverse crunches in the way it works the abdominals. Its main focus is on the transverse abdominals (the belt-like stomach muscle that holds us in at the waist as is responsible for supporting our bodies in all movements – Beeble). It also works the rectus abdominus (your 6 pack – Beeble) better than the majority of other exercises I know. The reason for this is that where the majority of stomach exercises focus on a specific area, and whether they mean to or not, they ignore other areas, this exercise works the 6 pack from the very base all the way to the top. It manages to achieve this by creating pressure lower down in the muscle with the static leg control and focus on the upper portion with the actual crunch movement. This will become more apparent when you watch the video and try it out for yourself.
Remember though that if you have body fat that is giving you a larger stomach than you want this exercise will not get rid of the excess fat, nor will any other stomach exercise. You will need to combine the stomach exercises with a good all over exercise program and a good healthy diet.
Technique
You will need to lie on your back with your legs in the air at 90 degrees. Now slowly lower your legs (keeping them straight – Beeble) until you feel the stomach start to work. Be very careful here; do not let your back arch up of the ground. To prevent this you need to tighten your stomach muscles by drawing your belly button in. This will help keep your back on the ground and prevent any injuries. The stronger your stomach gets the lower you will be able to take your legs but at the start just move them about 5 to 10 degrees. If your back starts to arch up then you have gone to far and just raise the legs to the point where you can control it. Now hold your legs in this position and crunch up. For the different crunch levels look at the crunch exercise video. Crunch up to the point that your shoulder blades are off the ground and then lower yourself back down. Keep this whole movement slow and controlled as this will work your muscles more effectively. Do this exercise right and you will really benefit from it. Aim for about 20 repetitions per set you do.
Video Guide
You will be able to see from the video (press the play button on the screen below – Beeble) that I do not lower my legs too far. This is because you don’t need to. It’s not a competition and the technique is the most important aspect to this exercise. Once I have my legs in position and I can keep my lower back firmly on the ground I start the crunch movement. The crunch movement is also done fairly slowly to maximise the benefit to the muscles. The longer you spend on the movement the more the muscle is used.
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The Do’s
Keep the movement slow and controlled
Keep the lower back firmly on the ground when you lower your legs
Breathe (stop holding your breath – Beeble)
Only move/lift your legs as far as your stomach can keep your lower back on the ground
Only use your stomach muscles to complete the movement
The Don’ts
Don’t hold your breath
Don’t move too quickly (steady there! - Beeble)
Don’t arch your back
Don’t lower your legs too much
Don’t use your arms to help with the movement
Don’t hold your head
Don’t do this if you have a bad back
Be Careful!
As you can probably tell from what you have read already this is an exercise where technique is very important. If you have a bad back or are a novice to exercise I would advise you to try the stomach exercises you find easier. Trial and error will tell you which ones these are but as a guide if the exercise involves more than one movement or body part the more complicated it is. Go for the ones that have just one basic movement. With this exercise if you lower your legs too much you will pull your back off the ground which will put a lot of pressure on it. If there is a weakness there or the muscles are weak or not used regularly there will be a greater possibility of injury. When your body becomes stronger it will be exercises like this that will help protect your back and create a really strong core to your body .
Adding it to Your Workout
Personally I would pick 4 to 6 different stomach exercises and complete 20 repetitions of each and do a total of 1 to 2 sets each. So that would be a total of 80 – 240 abdominal repetitions in total (Oh, help! – Beeble). May sound a lot to some and may sound like not enough to others but remember it is quality that matters, not quantity. People who are doing over 240 abdominal crunches are potentially just wasting time. With this actual exercise you should find 20 plenty enough. It should be harder than it looks.
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