Tag ab workouts

In fitness circles, you often hear about toned abs and 6-packs for guys that sometimes you might forget that the best ab workouts for women can be very beneficial as well.

Toned abs can go a long way in making women look attractive and feel strong and fit; it helps build confidence during “bikini season.”

In addition, abs workouts can help improve core muscles that can make daily challenges much less troublesome.

Doing ab exercises should be included in a complete body workout and not just working the ab muscles only.

Top Three Best Ab Workouts for Women:

• Standing Side Crunch. Start by standing with your hands on your hips and your feet about 3½ feet apart, with your toes slightly turned outward. Now bend your knees over your toes, while you lower your hips directly under your shoulders. Then when you straighten yourself back up, lift your right knee slowly towards your right shoulder. When you start lowering your knees again, slowly return your right foot back to the floor. You should make sure that your movements are controlled and deliberate. This will work your obliques as you go up and down. You don’t need a lot of reps for this. Just do ten reps on one side and another ten for the other side.
• Stability-Ball Plank Leg Lift. As the name of the exercise suggests, you’ll need a stability ball to get started. Get into a pushup position, except that your hands are on the stability ball directly under your shoulders. You may want your feet planted wider for more stability. Now contract your abs to bring your body into a straight line. You can keep this position stable, lift one leg off the ground, and keep it there for ten seconds. Now do this for the other leg. Do three sets when you hold for ten seconds, then level up to 30 seconds. Keeping your body in this position stresses all of your core muscles, and forces your abs to stay contracted the whole time. If you want a flatter tummy, this is really an excellent exercise technique to use.
• Reverse Press Up. This workout will focus on the lower part of your abs without having to use any sort of equipment. Start by lying flat on your back with your palms pressed to the floor. Now lift your legs straight up in the air over your hips, with your knees bent and your feet flexed. Then push upward using both feet at the same time, with your hips off the floor, while you press your heels toward the ceiling. One set consists of 15 reps, and you should do three sets.

Now the thing you need to remember is that not even the best ab workouts for women can give you a flat tummy if you live an unhealthy lifestyle and fail to take in the right nutrients. Not moving around enough will also hinder you from seeing any results because sitting in one position tightens your muscles and this can make it more difficult for you to contract your abs when you exercise.

You can also see http://myfitnessnut.com/5-tips-to-get-six-pack-ab-results for some good tips on the best ab workouts for women and men alike.

According to some estimates, the typical American guy spends about 56 hours every week sitting down. This can contribute to a lot of medical conditions, including decreased agility, inflexibility, and back pain.

Add in the love of potato chips and beer, and you’re going to have some problems with your abs. With the best ab workouts for men below, you can really work your core; which in turn strengthens you and gives you sexier abs.

Getting into the Best Ab Workouts for Men

So what are the best ab workouts for men anyway?

They may differ for each guy, but experts agree that the following exercises are good for your abdomen:

• Swiss Ball Rollout. Kneel on a mat, while you place your hands on a Swiss stability ball in front of you. Roll the ball forward as far as you can, while you keep your abs engaged and with your back straight. Then slowly return to your original position. Do two sets of ten rollouts each. This exercise is quite safe and easy on your lower back, compared to other similar exercises. By staying on one plane, you focus on the rectus abdominis. If you want, you can also work your obliques by rolling out to the left and then to the right.
• Cross Crunch. Obviously, any effective ab program at some point will have to involve crunches. In this version, you lie back with your arms and legs diagonally stretched. They should form a big X. Keep them straight and lift your head, neck and shoulders as you bring the right hand and left foot together, then do that for the other hand and foot. That’s one rep. Now do 10 to complete one set. The nice thing about this workout is that it’s simple, and you don’t need any fancy equipment. It’s also quite safe. By coming at an angle, you’re working your rectus abdominis and your obliques. You also work on your lower abs when you lift your legs off the floor.
• Bicycle crunch. This exercise combines the regular crunch, the reverse crunch that works on the lower abs, and the side to side movement that works on the obliques. Start by lying on your back with your hands behind your head, but don’t interlace your fingers. Your legs should be raised and bent. Now move your right elbow and left knee toward each other while you straighten your leg without letting it touch the ground. Your lower back should be pressed into the mat, and your abs should tighten as you raise your head, neck and shoulders for this move. Hold the crunch for a couple of counts, then do the other elbow and knee. Move continuously as if you’re riding a bike.

It’s important that you get quality nutrition and don’t stick to just one type of ab exercise. If you insist on doing just crunches or sit ups for your workout, your body will just quickly adapt to the stresses, which will then reduce the exercise’s effect on your muscles. If you want the best ab workouts for men, put in some variety. This will stimulate your muscles continuously and will result in muscle growth.

Determining the best ab exercises can elicit a lot of fiery opinions on the subject, from people who are naturally passionate about the very idea of fitness and exercise.

So, rather than getting caught in the crossfire, we’re going to refrain from choosing sides. Instead, we’ll just list down some of the ab exercises that fitness professionals propose to be the best and most effective.

As an added note, it’s always a good idea to have a professional fitness trainer to assist you in learning the proper way of doing these exercises so that you can get the most value out of your workouts.

The Top Four of the Best Ab Exercises

• Walkout. While you stand with your knees bent, put your hands flat on the ground and then “walk” your hands away from your body and past your shoulders as far as you can. Hold that position for a count, and then walk your hands back towards your feet and then slowly return to standing position. Now do that 10 times. This will work your lower back, obliques, and upper and lower abs.
• Swimming plank. You may find it strange that one of the best ab exercises resembles free style swimming, but you don’t need a pool to do it. This will challenge your abs as well as your back. Lie on your stomach, and prop yourself up by your elbows and toes, while there’s an upright dumbbell about six inches in front of you. Now use a freestyle motion with your right arm to reach over and past the dumbbell, then repeat with the left arm. Do 10 reps total while you alternate.
• Cross-Leg Reverse Crunch. This will work a lot of your muscles from your bottom pelvis region upward, and it won’t strain your neck. Just lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Bring your arms over your head, and hold onto a heavy medicine ball (or just the bottom of your couch). Now cross your right ankle to your left knee, and in that position lift your legs as close as possible to your chest. Slowly return to your original position. Do 15 of these, and then alternate your legs.
• Rotational Lift. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet hip-width apart while you interlace your hands behind your head. Now bring your head and shoulders off the floor as you try to get your chest close to your knees while your pelvis is neutral. Exhale and then rotate to your right side. Then let out another breath and rotate even further while you lift a little higher. Then inhale and lift as you return to the center, and repeat to your other side. Do about 8 to 10 reps of this. This exercise will focus on your abdominal walls and oblique muscles.

Choose any one or all of these abs exercises for your workout. You probably need it, since the average modern society person spends 56 hours a week sitting which weakens the core.

You can read more about how long will it take to see six-pack abs; but of course, not even the best ab exercises known to man can help if you don’t watch what you eat, so do take care of your diet too!

With the right nutrients, preferably from whole food such as the ones found in Zeal for Life can help with performance and recovery in a really big way. So focus on the best ab exercises outlined above, feed your body the important nutrition it craves and watch the results they have on your mid-section.