Crunches NOT the Ticket to 6-Pack

So, you want to reduce the middle. Over the years the first thing I generally hear is, “I’ll start doing crunches!” Just last week I saw someone curling away, and she told me she does 300 crunches a day to give her a lean stomach. So, let’s get to the bottom of the “crunches give you a great middle myth!”

Crunches/curl ups/sit ups are not your first-class ticket to a six pack.

Facts:

• Performing a crunch/curl up/sit up builds muscle.
• Building a muscle under fat still means you’ll see the fat.
• There is no such thing as “spot reduction” around the middle – yes, magazines would like you to believe this but ultimately you have to reduce the layer of fat.
  
  The vast majority of people today find themselves perched in front of a computer – or rather hunched over a computer. Shoulders rounded, heads forward, necks strained and bellies protruding. Look at yourself right now – tighten your tummy, pull your shoulders back and sit up straight – that’s better!

Performing a crunch puts significant strain on the back at its weakest point: the section where there are the most nerves and subsequently the most potential for nerve damage – the very part that is strained when you’re flexing forward (crunching). If you keep bending forward (when injuries most often happen) the probability of disk herniation is increased. Stuart McGill is a leader in research on core training and has written extensively on flexion intolerance.

So what is your core? The core muscles extend from the pelvic area (primarily the glutes), the trunk (traditionally thought of as abdominals – transverse abdominas, rectus abdominas, internal/external obliques) and the muscles that support the spinal column. These latter can be tiny little devils – there are 31 muscles that connect all the way down from the neck to the rear – 31!! And yet far too often we’re focused on that one set of “6-packs,” which is actually more like a 10-pack!

Ok – how’s that back doing? You still sitting up straight – belly still tightened – that’s it – you’re working your core as you sit! Try this when you’re standing, shoulders back, and it will activate your TVA (Transverse abdominus) and immediately make you’ll look straighter and leaner.

So what exercise will help your core and will help you expose a lean body once you lose the fat (yep, once – not when or if – you can and should do it!)

In this weeks’ video, Marc demonstrates a plank, push-up and lunge. These are excellent full body core moves and great calorie burners. Try them, slow them down, focus on your breathing – do them 2 or 3 times a week and do 2 or 3 sets along with all the other good stuff you’re doing – cardio and good nutrition – and you’ll be taking great care of yourself from the inside out.

So conquer your core without the crunches, and your back will love you for it. http://www.acefitness.org/exerciselibrary/32/front-plank