We reveal to you the absolute truth about coveted muscles and how to make them visible.
While some choose to bombard their torso with intensive exercise (? Only 200 more …?), Others developed tools that save them the work (do you have your? Electric belt ??). Now, if at work someone tells you that they can mark the abs only with their? Rubber pants? you would laugh in their faces, right?
With the results? And your well-being? In mind, we picked up some of the most common torso exercise myths and turned to expert trainers to discover what you really need to know to style your six-pack.
MYTH 1: MANY REPETITIONS MAKE GREAT ABDOMINALS
FACT: Progress stalls by doing the same exercise, regardless of repetitions.
You must intensify your exercises to teach your abs to balance your weight. Increase more complicated variations or weight exercises, or load weight during the abs when the simple ones become too easy.
Do this:
Coach Matt McGorry of Peak Performance Gym in New York recommends the triple plank – a front plank package (crunch with foot and forearm support points on the ground), left side and right side? which forces you to contract your abs for long intervals, helping to sculpt your torso.
Start by holding each plank for 15 seconds and continue to 60. When you reach that level, increase the sets and rest only 30 seconds between them. If you find it very easy to do them on the floor, put your feet up on a bench. Don’t forget: “No amount of sit-ups substitutes for a good diet plan and comprehensive exercise,” says McGorry. Laundry does not arise when you build it, you must also work all the muscles of the body.
MYTH 2: WORKING ABDOMEN INVOLVES A LOT OF MOVEMENT
FACT: Exercises that require stability are improvements.
By bending your spine doing sit-ups and squats you risk hurting it, says Dr. Stuart McGill, professor of spinal biomechanics at the University of Waterloo, Ontario. Also, those exercises aren’t the best way to focus on your abs, because the spinal discs are flexed repeatedly without forcing the muscles to resist movement.
Do this:
McGill suggests exercises that promote spinal alignment and stability, such as planks. Your abs do all the work to keep you stabilized and decrease the risk of injury (if you have back pain, see a doctor before starting an abdominal regimen; some exercises can make conditions worse).
Exercises that prevent movement are especially good for strengthening the sides of the abdomen, which is what your body needs to be fit under pressure (as in some sport or when doing squats or deadlifts. Does McGill suggest? Farmer’s ride ?: hold a heavy dumbbell in one hand and walk with a perfect posture increasing the distances. This burns more calories than the simple abs.
MYTH 3: ROTATION EXERCISES WORK BETTER OBLIQUES
REALITY: Not only is it false, but it can also hurt the spine.
The oblique muscles surround and accentuate your abs, protecting them from damage by turning your torso in a hurry. According to McGorry, while certain exercises such as the Russian twist / Russian twist help to form the obliques, they may not be the best way to obtain a constitutive force and lead you to force your spine when turning under tension.
Do this:
Better use exercises that involve weight? Squats and deadlifts? so that the obliques work harder and keep your spine aligned. For added challenge, add non-symmetrical movements, such as moving one leg or lifting with just a dumbbell. These types of exercises require adjusting the body to uneven tension while your spine maintains its neutral position, which will stabilize your torso and make your obliques work (as long as you maintain a correct position).