I’m not ambivalent about having abdominal muscles – I’m much obliged to mine to for holding me upright lo these 30 years – but rather I’m ambivalent about doing ab work. I rediscovered my ab issues today during Sharing Time – not just for Kindergartners anymore! – at the gym. Gym Buddy Lisseth brought in an ab workout that she got from her brother who got it from some “DVD” (street speak, I’m sure, for a rogue Jamie Kennedy experiment on people’s pain thresholds) called 16 Minutes of Hell. Okay, that’s not the exact name but it’s close enough. Lisseth promised us that the first time she did it, she was so sore she couldn’t even laugh the next day (which we made up for by laughing an extra amount today, especially when a woman walked by in ultra-short “cheekies” and Lisseth proclaimed “There was so much lady business on display, I think I might have just had sex with her.”)
But back to my abs. For years as a gymnast we did all kinds of wicked ab exercises but never did my coaches tell us we were doing them to “flatten our tummies” or “tighten and tone” or even “take off inches” which strangely are the selling points for all major commercial ab workouts. I find this strange because ab work alone will not do any of those things. It is one of the saddest and yet most overlooked fitness facts: doing situps will not get you a six pack.
There are two keys to washboard abs (or if you prefer current magazine speak – “long and lean abs”):
1. Genetics. Can’t be helped but it’s true. People’s bodies are programmed to distribute and store fat in locations specific to the individual. For instance, I can’t pay my body to store those extra jelly beans anywhere up top (tangentially, did you know they make padded sports bras?) but my thighs think they are the only thing between me and certain death during the next famine.
2. Low body fat. It’s the body builder maxim! Get your body fat percentage low enough and you can coax out the most recalcitrant of muscles, even those hard-to-find lower abs. Although I think that is somewhat related to #1 as well. I was told by several prominent fitness gurus that if I could get my bodyfat down to 16%, I’d see abs. Well, I never have despite getting considerably lower than that. But it is true that the lower your body fat, the more abs you will see.
2.5. I would add a third semi category for the women – childbirth. While I do have some mommy friends whose tummies went back to their pre-pregnancy flatness with in mere minutes of extruding their precious children, most of us retain some damage usually evident in the below-the-bellybutton bulge. You know, the “mummy tummy.” It’s real. And it has nothing to do with Brendan Fraser. Although he’s plenty scary too – for a whole host of other reasons.
You will notice that you can change none of the above points by doing extra ab work. In fact many body builders do no ab work at all, choosing instead to focus on muscles they have more control over. And yet, there are other reasons to work the abs besides just appearance. (Wait, what? “Getting Healthy” isn’t all about bikini season??)
Anybody else pee when they air jack? Have bad posture? Chronic back pain? Shoulder pain when running? All of these problems and more can be ameliorated by strengthening your core. Some practitioners of the core-centric Pilates method even claim it can make you taller (Holla shorties!). So there are plenty of good reasons for me to keep doing my ab work, even if it does nothing for me aesthetically. But I still have a hard time getting really excited about it (and I’m not talk about this issue, thank you very much).
How do you feel about ab work? Love it or hate it, do you do it? What’s your favorite killer ab move?
I hate ab work but it’s the one thing I can never get enough of. As in, I can always find a new ab workout that find some muscle deep down in that tummy of mine that has never been used, much less strengthened. It’s like they “reset” every day…back to *not* strong.
But I don’t really care about washboard abs. My stomach never sees the light of day as is. I just want it to look relatively smooth in normal clothing.
(Also, please note this comment doesn’t mean anything. As I look down my lap is halfway gone…disappearing behind a protruding belly. Thank goodness there’s a baby in there…)
I hate/love ab works. It can be a killer, but I love when it feels sore from a hard workout. My abs are my easiest area to tone, so I try my best to give it a good workout.
I tend to neglect my ab workouts, but I have seen how important they are to stability and endurance. Strangely, my core strength has improved with all the pool work that I have been doing. Also, I find it entertaining to rotate standing on one foot and then the other while brushing my teeth…
I do it because I honestly can see the results when I do it…as long as my diet is going well and my cardio is, too. Flat, lean abs are most definitely not in my genetics. I’ve had to battle that my whole life. My abs are actually the area where I can see the quickest results, but also the area where I can hold weight quickly.
Hate it! but my tummy is fairly flat, so I don’t do them very much anyway (go on and hate me, my thighs hate you :). I do try to do core work in other ways – hanging raises, doing other exercises standing up, etc.
I dont feel either way about it but never do it. I will add in CORE (finally :)) but only because it helps my BACK not to hurt by building a base to support my low back via my abdominal wall.
even when I competed I found, FOR ME, that it was all genetics (no 6packhere) and food.
I find my “upper” abs and obliques are more visible than my “lower” abs which just can’t seem to get rid of the baby fat. I’m in no way overweight, but it’s there, stretch marks and all. But still I just want that tight look so I keep on keepin’ on and love to feel my abs a bit sore knowing I’ve really worked them. Running hill repeats kills my abs, I feel happy sore for about two days afterwards!
I have been dedicated to doing ab workouts almost daily for years, but you are so right about not getting the six pack. Even when I was in high school dancing an average of 3 1/2 hours a day after school (and at one point weighing 102 lbs) I still had a “pooch.” Now after 4 kids, my husband challenged me to a sit up contest…I mopped the floor with him. But you can SEE his ab muscles and I just always look 4 months pregnant. No, it isn’t fair, but what can you do?
what i wouldnt give for 6-pack abs… i once met a girl who did absolutely nothing to achieve her perfect 6-pack. now, i dont like it when women hate on other women for being skinny and whatnot, but dang.
From what I’ve seen in women, they tend to do way too much quantity with abs. and way too little quality. It’s almost like “cardio” abs. will be the next aerobic class. Really, if two or three sets of bench presses are enough, why the 200+ sit ups/crunches/hydrants, etc?
I used to see Ruthie Bolton, who played for the Sacramento Monarchs, at my fitness center, who would school the guys on the basketball court during the off-season. Now that lady had six-pack abs!!
I do it. I’ve got the genes that let me see a good part of my abs, so I feel like I’m not living up to my potential when I don’t.
The sea-witch crawls you talked about are my favorite. Both for making people stare and destroying my abs for 2 days.
whoa, whoa, what are the sea-witch crawls? please explain!
I’ve always felt that getting a healthy body, where you can bend over and pick up, put socks on by bringing your knee to your chest and being able to turn your head down to see your toes (no leaning over) will keep your core in shape. Once you reach the age of 40, the washboard look is way overrated that most of us only pay attention on that one or two days we pile everyone into a car and go to the beach. The other 99% of the time the stomach area is covered, so who cares?
I’m lucky enough to have a relatively flat stomach, even when I was overweight, even after two kids. Thighs are another matter however!
My body fat is way low and my abs are strong. I doubt I’ll ever see a 6 pack but you never know. For me it’s not a top goal, just lagniappe as we say in Nola.
I love core work however and I view core as another muscle group when strength training (i.e. work hard for a short of amount time).
Lower back, the other side of abs, is a huge deal that gets so much less press but let me tell you the strength I’ve gained in my lower back has improved my appearance much more than losing weight has. Unexpectedly my posture has improved and my bum doesn’t look so flat anymore. Yay pilates, yoga and AbRipperX!
You’re not going to post the ab workout!? Hook us up!
I didn’t mean to be anonymous on that last post. To answer your question: I love a good ab workout. I don’t have flat, six-pack, or enviable abs. Somewhere deep inside where no one can see, I do have some very strong core muscles.
I hated ab work until I started doing pilates. I would do hours of sit-ups, crunches, etc, and have never had a flat stomach. Even when I was anorexic, going to grad school and working out 20 hours a week I had a poochy tummy. (And I’ve NEVER had a coregasm!)
Even now, when I teach 5 (or more) pilates classes a week, my stomach is not flat. But I am stronger and healthier than ever. And I haven’t thrown my back out in years!
I do not like crunches, but I love me some plank holds. That being said, no matter how long I hold those things, I will never have washboard abs. I like to joke that I do indeed have a six-pack. It’s just wearing koozies. 🙂
I have to admit . . . I LOVE ab work. LOVE. IT. I don’t have a 6-pack; the only time I ever came close was when I was dancing and not eating much. Then I had the line down the middle of my stomach, but no horizontal definition. A 2-pack? LOL
But abs are the only strength training exercise that I LIKE. I will do situps and crunches (all Pilates-style, thankyouverymuch) while watching TV, no big deal. And it’s not because I’m strong (lately I’m not, though I’m getting stronger again) – I just LIKE them.
Yeah, I know. WEIRD, right?
Couldn’t agree more. Love the feeling of working them, hate actually doing the work, though. It’s my one weakness in my workouts–I do everything else (cardio, weights, stretching) but cannot get myself to do the ab work I know I should.
I don’t particularly enjoy strength training in general, but I do it (same with yoga) because I like the benefits. I have no more back pain (I used to have chronic back issues), I have improved posture, and a strong core helps me runFor me, I’m doubting my stretched-out-to-265lbs skin is going to allow for stomach definition, but I can sure try. I just want the pooch to go away, but I know that that’s more attributed to just fat loss in general, not working my abs specifically.
AMEN. I constantly get questions like “what ab exercise should i do to flatten my stomach?” like there is some secret, all in one ab exercise that will do it. and then people “PSH” me when i tell them cardio and their parents are the answer.
i dont want to get stoned for this, but if i work my abs i get a six pack pretty quick. too quick. so i dont work them that often cause i dont want to end up with a “look at my penis muscle.” My boyfriend is the same way. some people do abs constantly all day long and dont get any definition.
Im just built that way. crunches doesnt do it. not by a long shot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKlGYIxp6yw
I cannot recommend highly enough the above link. It’s a three minute plank with variations built-in. They jabber a bit so feel free to start it at 1:10. I just did my coreworkout with this and I feel like my back is ripped open. Here’s what I did: 9 sets of three minute planks (three sets of three, 15 seconds rest in between each 3 minute segment, then two minutes rest between the next three three minute sessions), and then I did bicycle crunches for three minutes, 1.5 minutes of which I used a 6 lb weight behind my head. Total workout time 36 minutes, with actual real movement for 30 of those minutes. I was extremely honored/flattered to have you answer my “can I wear a backpack during plank” question, Charlotte, so I would be likewise tickled pink if you would please, please do my above workout as a mini-experiment and tell me what you think!!!! Also, I do a rocking plank for the straight-up plank part to get a little more upper back work, and when my legs are lifted I recommend doing ankle circles to stretch the calves.
ATTENTION MARSTE:
If you happen to read this, please see the above post (since I read your comment that you love ab work too). Also, thank you from the bottom of my scraggly puft of hair for sharing those hair tips!?!!? Esp. the product recommendations. Because my hair is so thin, I’m petrified of gooping it up with product and it looking even more Professor Snape-like greasy, but I know a GOOD product will make it appear more volumptous. Thanks!
I absolutely hate doing ab work! I hardly ever do crunches alone, but I do enjoy core exercises.
Current favorite ab is plank on the ball and then up to pike. Kickboxing has done the most for my obliques. No six pack here for certain, but definitely improved after having 6 kids!
Lovelovelove ab and core work. Its my favorite, even though I know I’m not going to get a six pack out of it. It just feels fantastic!
I want to try that 16 minutes of hell workout 😀
i have to say that the ab workout that gives me results is the dreaded plank!
and i so wish i could spot tone because after 2 really big babies and losing 75 lbs, i have fabulous legs and am still dealing with a muffin top. agh!
Oooo, Plankityplankplank, I will totally try that workout! My back has been so weak that I haven’t been able to do planks for a while, but it’s finally getting strong enough to do them again! Hooray! 🙂
Also, re: the hair? If you have fine hair naturally – even when it’s healthy – stick with shampoo, protein packs and that Redken Extreme Snap. The heavy conditioners, while good for your hair, might weigh it down at the moment. 😉
I never do abs, even though my six pack is visibly sharp year-round. I feel that, for most people, the abdominal muscles get plenty of work from doing big exercises like deadlifts and squats, as well as other exercises like kettlebell work and jumping. As long as my dietary habit remains healthy and controlled, the definition in the abdominal area stays sharp. Also, exercises that are metabolically demanding are MORE effective at reducing body fat than long hours of “cardio.”
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