Lower Ab Question

[SlapItHard]

What's the easiest to do exercise to strengthen and build up the lower abs?

 

[The Shadow]

leg scissors....lie on back.....legs in air about 6-9 inches off the ground.......fan legs out and then in like the name implies....use ankle weights to keep progressive resistance in place

 

[bignate73]

lower abs...........................



ie....hip flexors.

youd have better luck riding a unicorn than targeting your "lower abs".

 

[Thaibox]

leg scissors....lie on back.....legs in air about 6-9 inches off the ground.......fan legs out and then in like the name implies....use ankle weights to keep progressive resistance in place

Oh Crap, basic training flashback

 

[the People's Champ]

Oh Crap, basic training flashback

"OH! you wanna play games?! get on my dancefloor, recruit!"

 

[The Shadow]

obviously nate has never tried those

 

[Thaibox]

"OH! you wanna play games?! get on my dancefloor, recruit!"

Ah, like music to my ears
Makes me think of those wonderful sunny afternoons comfortably prone on that 125 degree tarmac

 

[The Shadow]

Makes me comfortably prone on that 125 degree tarmac

uh-huh........lol

 

[Thaibox]

hmmm, we talking about military or prison?

 

[DanielBishop]

What works well for me, is hanging knee-raises.... except I do them a bit different than most.

Hang from the chin-up bar and bring your thighs up parallel to the ground.... (ie. your thighs are at 90 degrees to your body).... that is your STARTING POSITION. Then without swinging, bring your knees up as high as possible towards your chest.... and slowly back down to parallel.... don't lower your thighs past parallel with the floor, or you're using hip flexor muscles like ilio-psoas, iliacus etc....

That's what works for me. Certainly not an EASY exercise, but you'll find that the most effective exercises aren't the easiest ones.

 

[bignate73]

daniel bishop is dead on. a hanging reverse crunch.

all the leg raises lying on the ground basically serve to do is isometrically work the abdominals. a little insight into the iliopsoas would kindof shed light on whey my "lower abs" are burning. (the whole "i feel it there" argument). unless im causing spinal flexion or stabilization (isometrically), leg raising from the floor or near the floor is pointless if one is looking for specific training, other than for the reason that im holding my feet up while my abs contract. flailing around, scissoring, fluttering or whatever, hmm......way to keep the mind off things? shifting center of gravity? fine that has its purposes.

the "scissor" leg raise thing, its nice for isometrics.

BUT... you cant get around the fact that there are no "lower abs".

i hate to see bad gym science/myths perpetuated. this is supposed to be "elite" fitness......

 

[The Shadow]

talk to fold about them and how they helped his events

 

[bignate73]

not saying its not a good exercise for other reasons, its just not valid to label it as something that TARGETS "lower abs".

 

[b fold the truth]

Not sure that they have really helped my events...but they did make my lower abs sore. I really could care less WHY an exercise or principle works for me...or why a supplement works for me...just that it does.

I like the leg scisors thing...but I don't like wearing the pad on my neck when I do them

B True