Abdominal muscles are crucial for stabilizing the upper body and core during movement. Exercises like crunches, squats, and deadlifts can improve core strength, and even everyday objects can be used for improvised ab workouts. Proper form is important to avoid injury.
Virtually every movement the human body makes involves the use of the abdominal (ab) muscles. Without the abs holding the upper torso against the pelvis, the upper body would simply fall backwards. Because the crunches are used to stabilize the upper body and core, there is a virtually limitless number of core ab exercises that can be performed with or without weights. Some of the most common core abdominal exercises include crunches, crunches, squats, and deadlifts.
The most commonly performed basic abdominal exercises are crunches and bodyweight crunches. A sit-up is performed by lying on your back, with your knees bent at a 45° angle. The hands are placed behind the head with the fingers interlocked. The torso is raised off the floor using the abdominal muscles, until the head is above the top of the knees, and then the torso is lowered until the shoulder blades touch the floor. Typically, several repetitions are performed when doing squats.
Crunches are performed almost exactly the same as sit-ups, except that the range of motion is limited to the middle of the abs. The shoulder blades are lifted off the floor and the head and shoulders are slightly forward then back, keeping the shoulder blades off the floor. Both crunches and crunches are simple ab exercises that will improve core strength and can be performed almost anywhere without equipment.
Other great core ab exercises include compound weight lifting exercises like the squat and deadlift. Both the squat and deadlift rely heavily on the abs for support throughout the exercise’s full range of motion. The front squat, which is a slight variation on the traditional squat, makes particular use of the abdominals due to the more upright position of the upper body. Any exercise that involves lifting a weight off the floor will recruit the use of the abdominals in at least one supporting role, which, in turn, strengthens the abdominal muscles. While the squat and deadlift typically involve heavy weights, the basic exercises can also be performed with smaller, lighter weights for beginners.
Remember that anytime the upper body is used to move something, the abs are used to support the movement. As a result, although the traditional abdominal exercises mentioned above are mentioned above, anyone who wants to strengthen or tighten their abdominal muscles can easily improvise abdominal exercises with items commonly found around the house. However, be sure to always perform exercises with correct form to avoid injury.
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