Jason Da Bodiful

I know that in order to remove the layer of fat from our Abs, the main thing we should do is focus on Diet and not how many Crunches we do. However, I read in MuscleMedia saying that even though doing 10,000 Crunches a day won't remove the fat, it will, however, tighten and firm your Abs. So right now since my Abs are slim enough at 29 inches, is it advisable for me to train hard with at least 500 Crunches daily to make it more solid?

<FONT COLOR="#000002" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[Edited 1 time by Jason Da Bodiful on 08-02-2001 at 08:27 AM]</font>

Mule

Are ya wanting them to be tight or to stick out with muscle?

------------------
Im an Iron Addict!

Jason Da Bodiful

Muscles! Tight will be sweet too, but maybe a pack will be better.

Mule

To make them show the muscle better add some weight to you crunches, well all your ab excercises.

------------------
Im an Iron Addict!

Scotty the Body

Yeah, adding weight helps, what are you doing now for your ab workouts?

BTW, if your like 140lb, a 29" waist isn't that great. (Sorry, I don't know your weight, not trying to flame you)

------------------
Just another day in the gutter

ballast

I think you should train the abs like you would any other exercise.Your abs are a muscle just like the pecs and lats.I don't think excessive reps will do much for you.Like the others suggested, try using weighted movements.If you want some volume, do several ab exercises performed back to back, like a circuit routine.Here is an ab routine I like:
1)Russian Twists
2)Reverse Trunk Twists
3)Hanging Leg Raises
4)Reverse Crunches
5)Pre-Stretch Crunches
Try 1 or 2 sets of 10-15 reps w/ weight if possible.


------------------
"I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose."

CarbAddict

Can you give a quick description of each...I might just be calling them something different.


------------------
Go the extra mile. It makes your boss look like an incompetent slacker.

TheSupremeBeing

2 sets of pre-stretched weighted crunches and you're set.

------------------
Complex problems have simple, easy to understand, wrong answers.

Scotty the Body

I find hanging leg raise to be the best for abs, nice and slow.

------------------
Just another day in the gutter

ballast

1)Russian Twists:assume a bent legged sit up position-feet anchored-arms outstretched w/ or w/o a plate for extra resistance-twist to each side without the hips moving out of alignment
2)Reverse Trunk Twists:lie flat on the floor with arms out to the sides(your body forms a T)-keeping your legs straight and feet together,raise legs to a 90 degree angle to the floor-lower your legs to each side while holding the 90 degree angle in your hip joints-keep shoulders in contact with the floor at all times.
4)Reverse Crunch:lie flat on the floor, knees bent-lift the knees to the chest while keeping lower back on the floor at all times.
5)Pre-Stretch Crunchesut a pad or swiss ball under your low back-perform a crunch.
Using a swiss ball for #2 and 4 makes them even more difficult.

------------------
"I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose."

TheSupremeBeing

Oh jesus you guys with your 20 set multi-angular ab routines...the ab"s" are ONE muscle visibly seperated into 6 (depending on genetics and bf%) by tendons that run over the top of them.

One exercise for abs is all you need, and pre-stretched crunches are the best. The obliques should be just fine w/o any direct work but if you insist then 2 sets of side bends will be more than sufficent.

------------------
Complex problems have simple, easy to understand, wrong answers.

ballast

20 sets?That's 5-10 sets Supreme.And you use different exercises for lats and pecs right?Why not with abs?

------------------
"I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose."

TheSupremeBeing

*Bites lip*

------------------
Complex problems have simple, easy to understand, wrong answers.

TheSupremeBeing

OK, like I've said on numerous occasions I don't feel there is a need for a bunch of different exercises for each part. You should pick a compound exercise for the given part, and supplement it with an isolation exercise and that's it. Until you reach a point of complete accommodation (muscular and neural) then you should stick to the same exact routine if your goal is muscle mass gain.

Since the abs are one muscle with really only one primary function (flexing the torso), it really only has one primary ROM and is not limited by weak links in any way if done correctly. I've also never really heard of anyone accommodating to cunches, likely because the abs are used in just about exery compound lift, hence various neural patterns are created preventing accommodation.

And the 20 set thing was an exageration, although you didn't specify sets per exericise.



------------------
Complex problems have simple, easy to understand, wrong answers.

ballast

Look at my post again Supreme-I specified sets at the bottom (1-2 sets of 10-15 reps).
And I don't train just the rectus abdominus, I like to hit the obliques with exercises like russuan twists.
I don't mean to question your judgement in an offensive way, Supreme.If I don't understand or agree with something, I'm damn sure going to question it.If you don't like people questioning your statements, then don't post.I have learned quite a bit from you(even though it turns into a session of kicking each other in the balls most times).So don't get offended.

------------------
"I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose."

TheSupremeBeing

I'm not offended at all, I actually like when people question me (heh)...so go ahead.

Personally, I don't think direct oblique work is necessary but if you really insist on doing it then one exercise will be more than sufficient for 2 sets or so. Side bends are prolly your best bet, those twists are basically just a less effective and more dangerous way to do side bends.

------------------
Complex problems have simple, easy to understand, wrong answers.

ballast

Cool Supreme.I'll start including the side bends.Thanks.

------------------
"I'm just an ordinary guy with nothing to lose."

Maki Riddington

Supreme was correct about the rectus abdominis being one muscle but the external and internal obliques along with the transverse are seperate.

Russian twists are a great movement for the obliques.
There are many different ways to perform the Russian twist.




------------------
Exercise, my drug of choice

Baumer

I usually do 9 sets for abs, 3 times per week. That's 3 sets hanging leg raises, which I think are one of the best excersises to hit the entire ab muscle region. Then I do 3 sets decline twist crunches, and 3 sets crunches.

ZONE

Very interesting ab post. All I do is lay on my back with legs up off the ground bent at the knees then place a 20lb DB on my Massive pecs and do 3-4 sets of 20-25 reps once per week. More is not always better.

------------------
Thoughts are more powerful then Matter